Bologna is surrounded by beautiful hills ("colli"), where its people love to go when they want to escape the chaotic life of the city. Let's explore the hills and enjoy some breathless views of Bologna. We will reach the top of two main hills through known steps and porticoes. The latter connect Bologna city centre to the Sanctuary of San Luca up in the hills and they are a Unesco World Heritage Site
This itinerary can be customized to meet your needs and preferences. Send me a message with your requests!
Meeting Point
Piazza Malpighi or at your hotel
- Let's begin with a good breakfast close by one of the most beautiful churches of the city: San Francesco
Porta Saragozza
The starting point of San Luca porticoes: let's start counting the 600 arches we will need to cross before our arrival!
Villa Spada
A beautiful garden with a public library at the feet of the hills
300 Scalini
"300 steps" is the name of this iconic spot, you can imagine why. The view is 100% worthy the effort!
Meloncello
We are back on our path to San Luca: here the porticoes start to be steeper
San Luca Sanctuary
We have finally reached the top and the wonderful sanctuary welcomes us. While recovering, we can also visit the church inside
Portici di San Luca
Way back to the city centre
Ending Point
Piazza Maggiore or at your hotel
This tour can be customized to meet your needs and preferences. Click below to send me a message with your requests.
- Guide fee
- Travel tips and advice for guest
- Entrance to the church
- Water
- Transport ticket (in case you get tired of walking)
- This tour involves a lot of walking, so make sure to wear comfortable shoes
- Bring enough water: up in the hills, there are no bars
- It would be a great idea to buy something to eat (sandwiches) before the departure and to have a picnic up in the hills
If it rains, we will skip "300 scalini" and go directly to San Luca (thus the tour will last less, around 3.30 hours)
On Wednesdays and Fridays I am available in the afternoon (after 1 pm)
Hi! I'm Giulia, I'm a certified Tour Leader and Italian language teacher. I came to Bologna to complete my studies some years ago and I immediately fell in love with this city! Bologna holds a special place in my heart: not only it is a nice city with many historical buildings, but it is its warm and welcoming people that makes it unique. This openness towards foreigners is related to the old university, that still today attracts many people from outside the city (including me!). You can have a taste of this in the university district, whose walls display plenty of heartfelt messages left by students once they've completed their studies. Another great feature of Bologna is the possibility of escaping the traffic of the city centre thanks to the close hills. There you can enjoy the quietness of nature and some beautiful views. Some of my favourite ways of spending my free time are precisely taking a walk in the hills or, if I feel lazier, sitting on the steps of San Petronio church to listen to street artists playing. I am passionate about sharing Bologna’s friendly vibes, fascinating history and local food with visitors. Having travelled a lot, I know that exploring a new place with a local is a completely different experience, so I am enthusiastic to share with you my love for the city and to allow you to appreciate all of it!
Me llamo Giulia y soy tour líder certificada y profesora de italiano. Me mudé a Bologna hace un par de años para completar mis estudios y me enamoré enseguida de la ciudad. Estoy feliz de compartir con ustedes los secretos que he descubierto y sigo descubriendo sobre esta maravillosa ciudad!
Je m’appelle Giulia et je suis tour leader et professeur d’italien. Je suis venue à Bologna il y a quelques années pour compléter mes études et je suis tombée amoureuse de cette ville dès le premier jour. Je suis heureuse de partager avec vous les secrets que j’ai découverts et que je continue à découvrir sur cette merveilleuse ville!
$150/ per group