A boat trip through the Valli, the Trepponti, the Manifattura dei Marinati and the Museo Delta Antico.
Comacchio is a town built on water, with canals and bridges like Venice, in the middle of the largest lagoon in the Po Delta. Morning by boat among the fishermen's casoni and flamingos, then the historic centre and the story of the eel, the fish that has sustained this town for centuries.
Long half day: leave early or skip one visit.
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.
On a guided boat you cross the Valli di Comacchio, brackish lagoons where the water is shallow and the landscape seems suspended. You stop at the casoni, the old houses of the vallanti where they slept and cooked during fishing, and see the lavorieri, the reed traps for eels. Thousands of pink flamingos, herons and egrets live in the valley.
Seasonal boat, booking required; may be cancelled on very windy days.
The symbol of Comacchio, commissioned in 1638 by Cardinal Pallotta and designed by the Ravenna architect Luca Danese: five brick staircases rising to a platform in Istrian stone, above the point where the Pallotta canal divides into the town centre canals. More than a bridge, it was a fortified gate for those arriving from the sea; the two guard towers were added later.
The old factory where eels were marinated, reopened as a working museum. In the Sala dei Fuochi the eels are roasted on spits in front of large fireplaces, then put in jars with vinegar and salt, just as they were a hundred years ago. You understand why in Comacchio the eel is a religion.
Processing can be seen at certain times of year; shop on site.
In the old eighteenth-century Ospedale degli Infermi, it tells the story of the Delta territory from the Etruscans of the city of Spina to the Romans. The most famous piece is the cargo of the Roman ship of Comacchio, found in 1981: ingots, amphorae, tools and personal belongings of the crew, intact for two thousand years.
Separate ticket, check opening days.
A seventeenth-century portico with more than 140 arches leading to the sanctuary of Santa Maria in Aula Regia; along the way you cross the Ponte degli Sbirri, near the old prisons. It is the most photogenic walk along the canals.
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.
San Vitale, Galla Placidia, the Neonian Baptistery, Dante's Tomb and Sant'Apollinare Nuovo, all on foot in the centre
4 h 35 from Imola Half day
The plan
The Mausoleum of Theodoric, the Classis museum and Sant'Apollinare in Classe, driving from one stop to the next.
4 h 40 from Imola Half day
The plan
The International Museum of Ceramics, the squares, the Cathedral, Palazzo Milzetti and a ceramicist's workshop.
4 h 30 from Imola Half day
The plan
The Via degli Asini, the Rocca, the Clock Tower, the Pieve del Thò and an oil tasting.
4 h 15 from Imola Half day
The plan
The elliptical Piazza Nuova, the Pieve di San Pietro in Sylvis, the Rocca di Lugo, the Pavaglione and Francesco Baracca.
5 h 00 from Imola Half day
The plan
The Cervia salt pans, the Salt Warehouse, Cesenatico's canal harbour with its historic boats.
6 h 05 from Imola Long half day
The plan
The Rocca Sforzesca in Imola, the Senna memorial at the racing circuit, the painted walls and the Regional Wine Library of Dozza.
3 h 40 from Imola Half day
The plan
The Palazzo Pubblico, the Basilica of the Saint, the Guaita and Cesta Towers and shopping in the historic centre.
5 h 40 from Imola Half day
The plan
The Este Castle, the Cathedral, the Palazzo dei Diamanti and Via delle Volte.
5 h 20 from Imola Half day
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.
