Take the funicular to the old town: Piazza Vecchia, Santa Maria Maggiore, the Colleoni Chapel and the walls, then the Accademia Carrara
Bergamo is two cities: the lower one, modern, and the Città Alta, on the hill, enclosed by the walls that the Republic of Venice built in the sixteenth century, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2017. You take the funicular up and explore on foot between Piazza Vecchia, the basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore and the Cappella Colleoni. In the afternoon you go down to the Accademia Carrara, one of the finest art galleries in Italy.
Times are a guide: driving times are worked out without traffic, then come the visits and ten minutes at every stop to park. In summer towards the coast and at rush hour allow extra time.
The funicular has been climbing from the lower town to the upper town in a few minutes since 1887. At the top you arrive in Piazza Vecchia, the heart of the old town, with the Contarini fountain, the Palazzo della Ragione and the Torre Civica, the Campanone: every evening at 10 pm it rings a hundred chimes, just as it did when it announced the closing of the gates in the walls.
The square is free; the funicular and climbing the tower require tickets.
Behind the Palazzo della Ragione stands the Romanesque basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore: plain outside, inside it's a baroque triumph of stucco, gold and tapestries, with the tomb of Gaetano Donizetti, the composer born in Bergamo. Next to it is the Cappella Colleoni, built between 1472 and 1476 by Giovanni Antonio Amadeo as the tomb of the condottiere Bartolomeo Colleoni: the façade is an embroidery of white, red and black marble.
The basilica has a ticket for tourists; the chapel is free. Shoulders and legs covered.
Venice built them from 1561 to make Bergamo its fortress on the border with Milan: about six kilometres of ramparts, with four gates. They were never besieged. Today they're a tree-lined walk with views over the plain; the Porta San Giacomo, in white marble, is the finest.
Free.
The art gallery was born at the end of the eighteenth century from the collection of Count Giacomo Carrara. It holds five centuries of Italian painting: the San Sebastiano by the young Raphael, Botticelli, Mantegna, Giovanni Bellini, Pisanello, Lotto, Moroni, Tiepolo and Canaletto. It's small enough to see properly in an hour.
Ticket required; closed on Tuesdays.
How long it takes from each town, the drive back included. Tap a town to see the plan from there.
Almost every old town has a limited traffic zone (ZTL) with cameras: park outside and walk in. The fine reaches your home, abroad too. ZTL and car parks town by town
Romagna Transfer picks you up at your hotel, drops you in front of every stop and brings you back: no parking, no ZTL, and the wine is yours to enjoy.
The centre on foot in the morning, the sanctuary of San Luca, the Certosa and the Arca di San Domenico in the afternoon
11 h 10 from Gabicce Mare Full day
The plan
The Ducati Museum in Borgo Panigale, the Lamborghini Museum in Sant'Agata Bolognese, then Maranello and the Enzo Ferrari Museum in Modena.
11 h 40 from Gabicce Mare Long half day
The plan
The UNESCO World Heritage Cathedral and Ghirlandina tower, the Albinelli market, a vinegar cellar and the Ferrari Museum in Maranello.
10 h 10 from Gabicce Mare Full day
The plan
The Roman Arena, Piazza delle Erbe, Juliet's house and the Scaliger Tombs in the morning, San Zeno and Castelvecchio in the afternoon.
12 h 00 from Gabicce Mare Long half day
The plan
Mantegna's Camera degli Sposi, the squares and Leon Battista Alberti's Sant'Andrea in the morning, Giulio Romano's Palazzo Te in the afternoon.
10 h 55 from Gabicce Mare Full day
The plan
The Pilotta with the Teatro Farnese, the Cathedral with Correggio's dome and the pink Baptistery in the morning, the castle in the prosciutto hills in the afternoon.
11 h 05 from Gabicce Mare Full day
The plan
The Duomo with the Piccolomini Library and Duccio's Maestà in the morning, Piazza del Campo, the Palazzo Pubblico and Torre del Mangia in the afternoon.
11 h 30 from Gabicce Mare Full day
The plan
The Duomo with the Piccolomini Library and Duccio's Maestà in the morning, Piazza del Campo and the Palazzo Pubblico in the afternoon, and on the way back the walled village of Monteriggioni.
12 h 30 from Gabicce Mare Too far
The plan
The Scaliger Castle, a boat trip and the Grotte di Catullo in Sirmione in the morning, the walled village of Lazise on the Verona shore in the afternoon.
11 h 50 from Gabicce Mare Long half day
The plan
The Rocca Scaligera, a boat trip and the Grotte di Catullo in Sirmione in the morning, Lazise and Bardolino, the wine town, on the Verona shore in the afternoon.
13 h 00 from Gabicce Mare Too far
The plan
Medieval towers, the frescoed Collegiata and views over the Val d'Elsa, then the walled village of Monteriggioni.
11 h 30 from Gabicce Mare Full day
The plan
Piazza dei Miracoli with the Tower, the Cathedral and the Baptistery in the morning, Lucca with its tree-lined walls, Piazza dell'Anfiteatro and Torre Guinigi in the afternoon.
12 h 15 from Gabicce Mare Too far
The plan
Piazza dei Miracoli with the Tower, the Cathedral and the Baptistery in the morning, the centre with Piazza dei Cavalieri, Borgo Stretto and Santa Maria della Spina on the Arno in the afternoon.
11 h 25 from Gabicce Mare Full day
The plan
The Rocca Sanvitale in its moat with Parmigianino's little room, the fortress of the Meli Lupi princes, then the lands of Giuseppe Verdi.
12 h 10 from Gabicce Mare Too far
The plan
The medieval village with the Rocca Viscontea, the walled town among the vineyards, then the fairytale village built by the Visconti di Modrone
12 h 10 from Gabicce Mare Too far
The plan
The Torrazzo, the Cathedral and the Violin Museum in Cremona in the morning, the Gonzaga ideal city of Sabbioneta in the afternoon.
11 h 50 from Gabicce Mare Long half day
The plan
The Teatro Olimpico and Basilica Palladiana in Vicenza in the morning, Palladio's wooden bridge and grappa in Bassano in the afternoon.
11 h 45 from Gabicce Mare Long half day
The plan
The Legend of the True Cross and Piazza Grande in Arezzo in the morning, Cortona on the hill above the Val di Chiana in the afternoon.
11 h 05 from Gabicce Mare Full day
The plan
The castle where the emperor begged the pope's forgiveness, the red fortress of Rossena, then the mountain mentioned by Dante.
11 h 30 from Gabicce Mare Full day
The plan
Colourful seaside villages in Liguria, one after another by train: the view of Manarola, the harbour of Vernazza, the beach of Monterosso.
12 h 45 from Gabicce Mare Too far
The planTrips written by our editors from the facts of our monument pages and the official sites. Opening days and hours change: the note under every place tells you what to check before you leave. No prices: you find them on the museums' sites.
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