Piazza Maggiore

A beautiful and vibrant city center with a perfect blend of history, culture, and modern charm. The magnificent Neptune sculpture stands proudly as a centerpiece, surrounded by elegant architecture and lively public spaces. The nearby library adds a touch of intellectual and cultural richness, making it a pleasant area to explore and relax. Everything is within easy walking distance — from charming cafés and local boutiques to upscale shopping destinations such as Hermès, Louis Vuitton, and Bottega Veneta. Whether you’re here for sightseeing, shopping, or simply soaking in the atmosphere, this area offers an enjoyable and well-balanced urban experience

Very romantic place, during the evening beautiful lights, feels very calm and chill inside these walls and stones. Sometimes street musician plays just adding a vibe to the place. Around it a lot of different restaurant with good food.

The piazza is truly a beautiful place to visit, showcasing stunning architecture. Throughout the square, one can feel the weight of history, which is quite impressive. The feeling of being surrounded by such a historic setting is an unforgettable experience. The piazza offers a unique and immersive journey into the past. Overall, it's a truly remarkable destination.

Piazza Maggiore is Bologna’s main square and historic heart. Laid out in the 13th century, it’s surrounded by some of the city’s most important buildings: the vast Basilica of San Petronio, the Palazzo d’Accursio (city hall), Palazzo del Podestà, and Palazzo dei Banchi. The square is broad, elegant, and serves as a natural meeting point for locals and visitors. Its mix of medieval architecture and everyday life makes it one of the most iconic public spaces in northern Italy.

Piazza Maggiore is the main square of Bologna, Italy — and one of the country’s most iconic public spaces. Located in the heart of the historic center, it has been Bologna’s political, social, and cultural hub since the 13th century. Basilica di San Petronio – A massive, unfinished Gothic church dedicated to Saint Petronius, Bologna’s patron saint. It’s one of the largest brick churches in the world. Palazzo d’Accursio (or Palazzo Comunale) – Once the seat of Bologna’s government, now home to the Morandi Museum and the city hall. Palazzo del Podestà and Palazzo Re Enzo – Medieval buildings from the 13th century, when Bologna was an independent commune. Palazzo dei Banchi – A beautiful 16th-century portico closing off the eastern side of the square, connecting to the old market streets.

The main square of bologna boasting a large outdoor space with buskers and coffee shops for entertainment and people watching. You will likely find a lot of your time spent here during your visit.

The perfect spot for live singers, people-watching, and switching off from the bustles of the streets! Looks even more inviting and romantic in the evenings.

We had a tour of the piazza with a very knowledgeable local guide. What a fascinating history and so much about Bologna I did not know. The piazza is easily accessible by foot or public transport from the central station.

If you're visiting Bologna, you will definitely spend a lot of time in Piazza Maggiore. It is the heart and center of the city. You'll see street performers here. You'll find many of Bologna's top attractions including churches, libraries, statues, and more. Restaurants and shops surround the plaza. They even showed a movie on a big screen in the middle of Piazza Maggiore one evening when we visited. Fun fact: Bologna has more covered walkways than any city in the world. It's a charming city. Spend some time exploring the piazza and everything else the city has to offer. Beyond exploring, your stomach will be happy too. Bologna is considered the gastronomic capital of Italy.

This square is almost like a hub to all of the best sightseeing in Bologna. It's the central square where a lot of the interesting sights are located. While we were there, they were setting up for some sort of viewing with a huge screen and plenty of seats. I didn't look up what it was for but I assume that because this square is so large and central, they do this sort of thing all of the time. We visited the fountain, the church and the shops and restaurants branching off from this square and we also took the San Luca express from here. Great way to landmark yourself in the city.

The place to go in Bologna. Beautiful architecture. Always something going on or something to see. Lots of shops and restaurants around to people watch. A must see!

Other Yelp reviewers have covered many of the major points regarding location and this square's centrality to all the major site seeing attractions nearby. I'll add a few notes on some of the notable places to visit in and around this piazza: - Palazzo Re Enzo in April 2024 wasn't open to the public for general viewing, inside are mainly government offices. - Biblioteca Salaborsa: cool library building for history and architecture fans. Aside from the impressive details of the current building. Roman ruins are visible from main library floor and visitable underneath the library. See my separate review for this! - Biblioteca Communale and the Two Towers (Asinelli Tower and Garisenda Tower--not to be confused with LOTR) are about a 5 minute walk from this square. Towards the south for the historical library with a historic anatomical studies operating room, and directly east for the towers. - Signorvino: decent spot to people watch, enjoy some wine and a light meal or charcuterie while taking in the view of the piazza. Indoor and outdoor seating available. - Fontana del Nettuno: ask the locals about the legend around the sea god's sculpture...walk around it to view at different angles...maybe not appropriate for kiddies. - Cinema Modernissimo: recently renovated (end 2023) old school movie theater from 1915 that's underground and on the block next to the piazza. They play Italian classics, and both old and modern movies, tickets starting at €6 and some movies with free entry. All showings book up very quickly, so move fast--as of end June all paid shows were booked up thru end November. Hope anyone reading this enjoys their time in Bologna as much as I did!

The chairs were set up I. The piazza for Bologna University's graduation. Exciting to see graduates in caps & gowns getting ready to march, parents dressed up in the seats & music playing.

Bologna is surely one of the big cities to visit in Italy. The old town is actually quite compact and many sights are very close to each other. The heart is definitely this square: The Piazza Maggiore. The Palazzo Comunale, the Palazzo d'Accursio, the impressive Fontana del Nettuno, the Palazzo dei Banchi, the Santuario di Santa Maria della Vita, the Voltone and the breathtaking Basilica di San Petronio. All here. Just on one square. Most other towns wouldn't have that many sights altogether. And Bologna has just that many on one single square. It's a fantastic spot. From here you should check out the Via D'Azeglio, the main street Via Ugo Bassi/Via Rizzoli with many shops and the Via Pescherie Vecchie with lots of wonderful restaurants. Especially the latter is a small little street you shouldn't miss. The tourist office is also located here as well as a good number of shops and cafés. Head to the Via Pescherie Vecchie for some lunch or dinner though. If you need some wine, "Signorvino" is a great chain with good wine and knowledgeable staff. There is a branch just here on the Piazza. A great square in a great old Italian City.

Piazza Maggiore is the main square in Bologna. It is located right in the center of the city with many important buildings including the Palazzo d'Accursio, the Palazzo del Podesta, the Basilica di San Petronio, and the Palazzo Comunale. This is a must for all visitors - you get to admire the architecture, visit the palaces and basilica, or just sit and watch the world go by.

In love with Bologna..... the porticos of Bologna, you won't feel or think a big deal of them until you run around Bologna and appreciate its unique porticos. Love them. The Piazza Maggiore today still, despite the rush modernization of the city, pulls the vibe of Bologna back to a time when the Bolognese were intellectual, rebellious, rich, fat. It still is today, a gathering place for intellectuals, performers, artists. For not many piazzas in Italy can lay claim to a basilica, and 4 palazzi (palaces) in one square.....yep super unique. During the day, you get to people watch in this grand square where it hosts passersby, locals, philosophers, hipsters, global transplants. The oldest university in the world, the University of Bologna (founded in 1088) is closeby with its equally impressive and beautiful settings. I love sitting in the Piazza Maggiore, imagine what it must have been like to live in this town, to blend into its academic circles, to participate in its most vibrant political parties, and get fat from the unctuousness of its feasts. Yeah, it's all about the richness (the ragus, butters, cheeses) of Bolognese plates and yet its most famous dish the tortellini in brodo boasts utter simplicity-- a simple yet delicious meal. For nowhere in this great dining country can one experience a tortellino stuffed with 2 cheeses prosciutto and nutmeg in the tiniest package and framed with the simplest savory beef or chicken brodo. Perfection in a bowl. As evening sets, you walk through the market, a few meters away, find the right salumeria, a Sangiovese, olives, cheeses and bread and you've found the most delicious dinner with friends. Visits: many Yelp=2 Tip: It gets packed here, so find a spot to sit, savor a coffee, maybe a spritzer, a torta salata, a pastry, feed the pigeons.......until the day fades to a luscious memory.

One of the happening places. Every passes through there. Always something going on. Lots of high end shopping in that area as well as on your way to St Stéfano. Behind the church, go till you reach another piazza and turn left. Louis Vitton, Gucci, Hermés, they are all there. Bologna has it all.

My favourite square in Italy, partly because it brings back so many happy memories of being in Bologna many times, but also because it is very beautiful. It's right in the centre of Bologna and bordered by Romanesque and Gothic buildings, a basilica, various palaces, an art gallery and a fountain. I have enjoyed sitting on the steps of one of the buildings in summer (as others do here) just to watch the people go by. Sometimes there is live music too or other events.