Bologna or Venice or ????? for Pre-Cruise Visit?

[Sunset329]

We have booked a cruise in October of 2025 leaving from Ravenna, Italy. We plan to spend one night in Ravenna before the cruise. We want to spend three to four days around either Venice or Bologna prior to the cruise. In March we will be visiting Italy for the first time, spending three days in Rome. We are looking for ideas or thoughts about what we should do before the cruise leaving from Ravenna. Thanks for all your thoughts and suggestions.

[euro cruiser]

Do you have a burning desire to see Venice?  If so, by all means go there unless your cruise has a port day there.

 

If you don't have a real desire to experience Venice but love to eat, Bologna is an excellent choice.  It's the capital of the Emilia-Romagna region and there is lots to see and do there:  Bologna Welcome | Things to do and visit in Bologna - Tourist Office - Bologna Welcome

 

Food:  Food & Drink - Bologna Welcome

[Sunset329]

7 minutes ago, euro cruiser said:

Do you have a burning desire to see Venice?  If so, by all means go there unless your cruise has a port day there.

 

If you don't have a real desire to experience Venice but love to eat, Bologna is an excellent choice.  It's the capital of the Emilia-Romagna region and there is lots to see and do there:  Bologna Welcome | Things to do and visit in Bologna - Tourist Office - Bologna Welcome

 

Food:  Food & Drink - Bologna Welcome

 

We really don't have a burning desire to see Venice. As always, we want to make the trip memorable. We do like to eat (too much).

[euro cruiser]

Beyond fantastic food (Emilia-Romagna is known for this) Bologna is also home to the oldest continually operating university in the world.  

 

Our history — University of Bologna (unibo.it)

 

As a side note about Venice, I've been there several times but every one of those visits after the first one were because someone I was with wanted to go there.  It's so overcrowded that I really think it's the kind of place you should really, really want to go to in order to offset its many inconveniences.  As you might imagine, this attitude generally garners a fair amount of pushback from those who love Venice.

Edited August 3 by euro cruiser

[FreestyleNovice]

Venice, it's a top destination after all. Before it sinks! 

 

Bologna whilst nice, is just an Italian city and can be combined with Tuscany on another another trip.

[FreestyleNovice]

11 hours ago, euro cruiser said:

Beyond fantastic food (Emilia-Romagna is known for this) Bologna is also home to the oldest continually operating university in the world.  

 

Our history — University of Bologna (unibo.it)

 

As a side note about Venice, I've been there several times but every one of those visits after the first one were because someone I was with wanted to go there.  It's so overcrowded that I really think it's the kind of place you should really, really want to go to in order to offset its many inconveniences.  As you might imagine, this attitude generally garners a fair amount of pushback from those who love Venice.

 

I understand what you are saying with the Venice part, but Venice is still a masterpiece, wonder off a few streets from the busy streets and you will experience less tourism with each corner you take. Use the network of water busses and hop over to Murano or the smaller Giudecca. Explore the Lagoon by boat: take a ferry/water bus to experience the sailaway the cruise ships once did through the Giudecca canal (albeit from a lower point of view and not towering above all other ship traffic it still is worth it!) along the sights and go to the beach at the Lido afterwards. If you have the chance to visit Venice for the first time, do it. Venice is overcrowded yes but we otherwise could say the same about Paris, NYC/Manhattan, etc. Or those sunny sea days on mega cruise ships packed with 6.000 of your new best friends. 

 

OP, my advice: plan one day or daypart for Venice and look into Florence as a base for the other days or book each night along a route if you like to plan. Rent a car. Search online the Tuscany region for the villages of Lucca, Siena, San Gimignano, Pitigliano, Volterra, Montepulciano, Pienza, Cortona, Montalcino, Monteriggioni and/or if you are into wine, drive the Strada del Vino across the vineyards combined with some of the above.

https://www.discovertuscany.com/itineraries-in-tuscany/strada-del-vino/

 

Florence is a 2.5 hour drive from Ravenna. You will pass by Bologna from Ravenna so that can be a stop too.

You can also visit Pisa from Florence, 1 hour drive each way, see the leaning tower in the morning, stroll around a bit, have a coffee and be in your next small Italian village before the crowds take over. Having a delicious fresh panini served by the owner of a small shop on a tiny piazza. La dolce vita! 

 

 

 

[NCteacherlovescruising]

Just have to say we absolutely loved Venice and I can’t imagine missing her given the opportunity. However, it was a bucket list item for me. Given that, @FreestyleNovicesuggestion sounds amazing!!  Tuscany is absolutely stunning and Florence is the main place I wanted to go on our visit to Italy that we couldn’t squeeze in. 

We did an NCL excursion to Bologna from Ravena and it was just ok. IMO, it didn’t compare to charm and beauty of Venice. If you do Venice, get up early to see it before the crowds. We stayed at the Hotel Rialto. We had breakfast outside with a view of the Rialto bridge and there were very few people out at that time. 

[MeHeartCruising]

I think Venice is a one-of-a-kind place that is worth a few days' visit for most anyone.  Explore on foot.  Explore on the boats.  Escape the crowds.  Get lost walking around.  You'll eventually find familiar territory again.

[marazul]

21 hours ago, Sunset329 said:

We are looking for ideas or thoughts about what we should do before the cruise leaving from Ravenna.

Venice. Venice. Venice.

[Fairgarth]

Venice!!  See the thing is, Roma, Firenze, Bologna are all cities with wonderful historic centres but Venice is so amazingly different.  It's a bucket list thing and you only have to do it once but yes, you have to do it.  I would hope that by October the crowds will be past their peak.  You can research all the things to see and do there.  You won't have time to do it all.  And I'm assuming you are fit to walk and walk.

[caripoo]

Fly into Venice...you will not be disappointed. 

[PurpleTraveller]

Having just been in Bologna and loving our time there it can not compare to wonderful Venice. Venice is so different to anywhere else with a wonder of a building, a canal, a square, a church, a historic site or a view around every corner. I would choose Venice for a first visit over Bologna.

[Sunset329]

Thanks for all of the responses. I think we will start researching Venice. This same cruise has an overnight stay in Florence. We hope to get a very small taste of Florence and Tuscany also.

[euro cruiser]

With an overnight think seriously about spending the night in Florence rather than returning to the ship.  It takes at least 90 minutes each way to get there and get back, not to mention the cost of all that travel.  Consider spending that money instead on a room in Florence and get to enjoy the city after the day trippers leave and before they arrive the next morning.

[Fairgarth]

15 hours ago, euro cruiser said:

With an overnight think seriously about spending the night in Florence rather than returning to the ship.  It takes at least 90 minutes each way to get there and get back, not to mention the cost of all that travel.  Consider spending that money instead on a room in Florence and get to enjoy the city after the day trippers leave and before they arrive the next morning.

 

Excellent advice.  Florence and Tuscany no.  Florence!  Period.  You will have to be very selective for what to see in Florence, your time is so limited.  Mind you, you can use your trip to plan a couple of weeks in Florence in future.  Climb the Brunelleschi Dome and the Giotto Campanile, Michelangelo's 'David', Uffizi Gallery (waste of time), Ponte Vecchio, Palazzo Vecchio, Pitti Palace, Santa Croce, Mercato Centrale, Piazzale Michelangelo, hire a Ferrari for twenty minutes.......ah!  Time to go back!

[Hlitner]

Given a choice between only Venice and Bologna, for a first time visitor, we would strongly recommend Venice.  It is such a unique place and has much to offer a visitor.  As to Bologna, while we do agree it is a "foodie" city, and certainly has some very interesting architecture, it has never ranked high on our list of places.  In fact, we have probably been to Venice about a dozen times (on both cruises and driving trips) and only visited Bologna one time (for 3 days).  Bologna is also near and dear to my heart because it is the only place in Italy where a Roma  thief did her best to pick my pocket (and she got some bruises from my Tote, for her failed efforts).

 

Hank

[Tim Bloomfield]

If you are allocating 4 days to the pre-cruise stay why not both. Some years ago we spent 2 days in Bologna and loved it - great food and a very buzzy place as it is a university city. Then we took a taxi to the station and travelled first class by train to Venice. Prebook on the Trenitalia website [you can opt for English] and about 1.5 hours I think on a high speed train [ Frediorossa or similar] and it takes you right into Venice at Stazione Venezia Santa Lucia. The you can take a vaporetto to wherever you are staying.

Why not stay on Guidecca island which looks across to the main island and is only a few minutes by vaporetto, and is much quieter to stay on. A great time to visit the main island is in the evening, when you can visit the main sites without huge crowds. If there during the day just wander off the main places up the side streets. 

[Langoustine]

Venice. I've been there many times and never get tired of it. Florence is also wonderful. But Bologna? It's...OK.

[cruisemom42]

For me, the "idea" of Venice is almost better than the reality of it, but everyone should see it once. It's even better if one has some of the history in mind (read in advance) and also has read some of the many novels set there. 

 

Do expect crowds, even off-season. I was there with my son a few years ago (just before Covid) and even in late November the crowds were crazy in Venice.