• Private Tour
• Instantly Confirmed
• Carbon Neutral

You’ve probably heard that Bologna is well-known for its Jewish History, but do you know the stories and origin behind it? Or how much influence it has on the locals daily life? On this private city tour, you are in for a cultural treat!

Destination

Bologna, Italy

Category

City Highlight Tours

Duration

2 hours

Transport mode

Walking tour

Available languages

Dansk, English, Italiano, Español, Français

Included

• Private guide
• All Withlocals tours are carbon neutral

Excluded

• Entrance to attractions

What you can expect

This is the plan

Check out the plan below to see what you'll get up to with your local host. Feel free to personalize this offer with the host of your choice.

1. Meeting point

   Meet at In front of 12B Caffè - Bologna to start your journey

   View on Maps

2. Itinerary

   This is what our experience could look like, but it’s not set in stone! Once you book, you can chat directly with your host to make small tweaks to suit your preferences.

3. Culture of the City

   On this private tour, you’ll experience and discover Bologna through its culture. Whether it’s focused on a tradition, a special part of town with a story to tell, cultural beliefs, or around a cultural activity that shaped the city into what it is - this tour will be a cultural awakening you can’t miss!

4. Jewish History in Bologna

   Your tour will focus on Jewish History, a very important cultural subject in Bologna. Thanks to your local host, you’ll learn and see how Jewish History made an impact in Bologna, making you experience the city from a different perspective.

5. Cultural Highlights

   As you deep dive into the subject of your tour, you’ll make stops to visit unique spots that will give you a full picture of the city. Visit Former Jewish Ghetto, Synagogue of Bologna, Palazzo Pannolini, and more and see how these cultural highlights are part of the local life but have so much history behind them!

6. Storytelling Journey

   As you discover the cultural side of Bologna, you’ll be able to embrace it thanks to the amazing stories and storytelling skills of your local host. Feel free to ask any questions and feel as if you are relieving history in the present time.

7. Make it yours

   Want to tweak the itinerary? Book directly & chat afterwards with your host to adjust highlights, skip stops, or make small changes to fit your preferences.

   Book risk-free: Cancel within 24 hours for a full refund.

   Need something special? Personalize your experience for more time, alternative locations or a completely tailored plan.

Flexible cancellation policy

• Feel confident booking

  Cancel within 24 hours for a full refund. Even up to 7 days before your experience, you’ll receive a refund, minus the service fee.

• Change of plans?

  Reschedule your experience to a date and time that works best for you.

• Loved by travelers worldwide

  Simple and flexible – your plans, your way.

Reviews from guests

Liam

(About local Frederik)

18 February 2025

The perfect guide. Great insider knowledge of Bologna, flexible and great fun. Highly recommended. Fantastic!

Heinz🇨🇭 Switzerland

(About local Stephanie)

9 January 2025

Stephanie war sehr charmant - gutes Französisch und stark in Geschichtszahlen und kennt die wichtigen Monumente sehr gut. Etwas weniger kann "der Alltag" - wie leben wir heute in Bologna zur Geltung. Werde Stehpanie aber auf jeden Fall weiter empfehlen oder wieder selber buchen. Dank und Gruss aus Bern/Schweiz Gruppe Enzo Gabi

Ron🇺🇸 United States

(About local Frederik)

29 December 2024

Fredrick, is a great guide. He is fun, knowledgeable, organized and connected to the city. Our tour was fantastic. Highly recommend Fredrick. RonFood Tour Bologna

Charles🇺🇸 United States

(About local Frederik)

21 December 2024

Frederick was an enthusiastic and expert on Bologna. We thoroughly enjoyed our tour with him. Enthusiastic and expertise

Panos🇬🇷 Greece

(About local Frederik)

24 November 2024

Professional and friendly

Nancy🇺🇸 United States

(About local Frederik)

1 November 2024

We thoroughly enjoyed our tour with Frederik. He is personable, informed and extremely passionate about Bologna. We learned so much about the history and culture of the city and experienced aspects that we couldn't have done without his guidance. We recommend him highly and will book tours with him when we return! Fantastic tour

Sandra

(About local Frederik)

16 October 2024

We signed up for a 3 hour tour of regional foods. What we got was a 2 hour tour. Frederick provided us with 5 pieces of meat and cheese each. We asked for some gluten free substitutions. Rather than provide gluten free pasta he served olives and crackers. For "regional" dessert he took us to a gelato shop. This was a cheap alternative to true Bolognese dessert. I requested to purchase some local items. He made excuses that they were not in season inspite of having seen them in stores. The whole experience seemed like a cheap rip off.Con Artist

Erin🇮🇹 Italy

(About local Frederik)

13 October 2024

Frederik is amazing. My spouse and I had the pleasure of joining a walking tour of Bologna led by Frederik, and it was an outstanding experience. From the moment we met, Frederik's passion for the city was evident. His knowledge of Bologna’s history, architecture, and culture added depth to every stop on the tour. The pace of the tour was perfect, allowing us to soak in the sights without feeling rushed. Frederik also recommended local eateries and hidden gems, enhancing our overall experience in the city. Overall, I highly recommend this walking tour for anyone wanting to explore Bologna. Frederik is a fantastic guide who truly brings the city to life!Bologna’s Best

Carole

(About local Frederik)

10 October 2024

We signed up for this tour based on the advertised agenda and picked our guide based on reviews. The day of the tour we received a note that the guide and the location of the tour had been changed. That was not an issue. We met Frederick at the new spot and proceeded on the tour. He is very nice and has a lot of historical information to offer. We appreciated that, but since we had signed up for a food tour with 10 tastings and gelato at the end and were bringing our grandson, the itinerary was not what we wished for. We understood that he wanted to provide “quality over quantity”, but the experience was long and hard for us at the beginning because we did not ever stop for tastings. We finally arrived at the shop of Paolo, who was wonderful. We then had a small portion of lasagna and a platter of meats and cheeses along with a glass of wine. That was the tasting. Paolo did provide Nutella for our grandson. That was a hit with him, but again since we had paid the prices we did for the experience, we were disappointed with the reality. All in all an interesting experience, but not as advertised. Informative, but not as advertised

Kathy🇺🇸 United States

(About local Stephanie)

23 September 2024

Stephanie took the time to understand our backgrounds and tailored our experience accordingly. She shared her comprehensive knowledge of Bologna past and present with us. We learned volumes about the past of the city along with some very humorous anecdotes. We invited her to have lunch with us where she generously continued to share her knowledge of Italy and Europe. We would highly recommend her as a private tour guide. Bologna in context

Richard

(About local Frederik)

19 September 2024

Hi - we did a tour with Frederick last week in Bologna; he is very friendly and educated about not just the food in this city, but also the history. He answered all our questions and was very easy to talk to and get along with. However, here are several issues we have with the tour - 1) The tour was scheduled for 1130AM - I was asked to move it to 1230 which was fine, we re-arranged our schedule. But the guide was 15 minutes late and showed up at 1245pm. 2) The tour was scheduled for 3 hours on the booking, but it was barely 2 hours. We learned a lot in the 2 hours, but with the costs of this tour, it really shouldn't be advertised for 3 hours if it's not going to be? 3) Maybe most disappointing, was the lack of food tasting/served. We toured around the old part of the city to different places to learn about Bologna's history and food, which was great but no food in this part of the tour. Then we walked a little bit to one shop, where we sampled a very small piece of lasagna and then was offered a few meats and one cheese on two boards, with a glass of wine. For how this tour is advertised, only one food eating stop and so little food to sample? I've been on many food tours worldwide, and this was by FAR the smallest amount of variety of foods I've been able to sample and taste on a tour. Again, we liked Frederick, but due to the shortened tour, complete lack of food variety to taste.. with what you pay for the tour, I don't think I would do it again. Calling it "10 local food and Drink tasting" is downright false advertising, apologies. Good tour but falsely advertised

Tessa🇦🇺 Australia

(About local Frederik)

12 September 2024

We had a fabulous tour with Frederik. He was very knowledgeable and gave us some excellent dining suggestions.Bologna Tour

Cherita🇺🇸 United States

(About local Frederik)

24 June 2024

Frederik was so knowledgeable and excited to share his city with us. He gave us some history and took us to a great little local shop for wine and several dishes. He kept us away from the tourist traps and the owner of the shop, Paulo, was very welcoming. I definitely recommend this tour. Fantastic tour!

Jodi🇺🇸 United States

(About local Frederik)

7 November 2023

We had a wonderful tour with Frederik. He was extremely knowledgeable and passionate about the city and it’s history. We were only there for the day, and he was able to cover a great deal of information about the city, and showed us many of the highlights, as well. He also gave us a recommendation for an authentic food and wine tasting which completed our visit to Bologna. I would highly recommend taking a tour with Frederik.Best of Bologna

jm.connolly🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Frederik)

29 October 2023

Very interesting to learn about the long history of Bologna with a local. Interesting History

Christina🇩🇪 Germany

(About local Frederik)

7 October 2023

Frederik hat uns bereits am Tag davor kontaktiert und uns Tipps gegeben, was wir anschauen könnten. Er war ausgesprochen nett und freundlich und hat uns einen tollen Einblick in die Stadt und deren Geschichte vermittelt! Danke Frederik!Perfekter Einblick

Jamie🇺🇸 United States

(About local Stephanie)

3 October 2023

It was obvious she did her research and was very informative. She arranged great places for lunch as well!She is so nice!!

Nancy🇺🇸 United States

(About local Frederik)

2 October 2023

Frederick was very pleasant and friendly but just a bit too talkative for us. He obviously loves his city and knows all about the art and history of Bologna, but having been a few tours prior to this one, a lot of the info was repeated. For us there was too much standing around and listening and not walking. Very heavy on history and not more general “ get to know Bologna” which we would have preferred. He did love conversing tho and answered questions happily. For history buffs

brentkaiserman19

(About local Frederik)

1 October 2023

We paid for the 10 tastings of Bologna and got 1 tasting. Our guide complained about how he only got paid a small percentage from the website and how he had to pay for the food. If i had known we wouldn’t be eating on the tour, I wouldn’t have booked it. It was great to meet the restaurant owner, Paolo, but other than that we just learned about the city and really didn’t get to experience the food. Really disappointing. At the end, the guide made a comment about how my tip was too low as well. Just weird. Really underwhelming

mallen

(About local Frederik)

27 September 2023

This was not your typical local tour… Frederic, is extremely knowledgeable with great depth of detail on local history, bring you to non touristy spots and introducing you to other locals who add great color to the overall tour. We highly recommend a day with Frederic…Fantastic Fréderic…

Rachael🇦🇺 Australia

(About local Frederik)

17 September 2023

Frederik was a great tour guide for our family. He kept the tour fast paced and was able to tell the history of the buildings and city in a way that kept the kids engaged. Frederik was able to recommend a walk for us to do, which showed us a little more of Bologna, and gave us a view over the city. We love kick start tours as they give us a chance to get an idea of a city’s layout, cover where major sites are, and get all the low down on alternative places to visit, eat etcFast Paced Intro

MaryBeth🇺🇸 United States

(About local Frederik)

26 August 2023

We did a kickstart city tour with Frederik and he was great! It was sweltering hot so he was very thoughtful to keep us in the shade as much as possible and let us take our time since we had two kids with us. He knows a lot about Bologna and this was a nice way to start our trip! Great tour!

Geoff🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Frederik)

18 June 2023

Absolutely first-class tour of Bologna. Frederik did exactly what we asked him to do and gave us an amazing tour of the city, showing us things we would never have found on our own. He really knows the city inside out and gave us some useful tips for the rest of our stay. Fascinating

Marlene 🇩🇪 Germany

(About local Frederik)

22 April 2023

Even before we met Frederik, he was very considerate and asked for allergies etc. and gave us some tips for restaurants and answered questions. He chose great stops for food and sightseeing! He told us really interesting and fun stories about Bologna and what the food is about. The interaction was super friendly and he gave us great insider tips according to our interests and location. The mix between food, history and recommendations was perfect. It was like a friend showing us around Bologna and a great start for our weekend trip! Perfect start for our weekend trip

Fhiona🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Frederik)

17 April 2023

This tour was very expensive and we didn’t get enough to eat or drink. We had assumed we would be taken to 4/5 different restaurants to try the local cuisine but we only had one stop to sit, the rest was sampled standing in the street. It was very bad value for money and we then had to find a restaurant for dinner. Frederik was a lovely young man but he jumped from topic to topic, didn’t move us away from drumming procession and seemed very intent on finishing the tour after 2 hours rather than the advertised 3 hours. Disappointing

Richy🇧🇪 Belgium

(About local Frederik)

23 February 2023

A nice mix of fantastic food & interesting city sightsThanks Frederik :)

Greg🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Frederik)

4 December 2022

Frederik gave us a very good introductory tour of Bologna's main attractions and historical sites. He is a knowledgeable and enthusiastic guide who clearly loves his city. Good introduction to Bologna

elaine🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Frederik)

6 November 2022

Absolutely well done- Frederik was so knowledgeable we all loved it. Such a beautiful city and so worth doing the tour 100%. Fiodie guided tour

Ute🇩🇪 Germany

(About local Frederik)

4 November 2022

Facettenreicher Stadtspaziergang mit vielen Insights. Frederic kannte sich sehr gut aus und ist auf all unsere Wünsche eingegangen. Es fühlte sich an wie mit einem Freund unterwegs zu sein. Wir waren auch kulinarisch mit ihm auf den Straßen und Mörkten und haben die Köstlichkeiten Bolognas gekostet. Bologna on stage

Judy🇺🇸 United States

(About local Frederik)

30 October 2022

I signed up for a 3 hour food tour with 10 tastings. Our tour only lasted 2 hours, and we stopped at just 2 places to taste food. Our guide was lovely and very knowledgeable about the history of Bologna, but that is not why I chose this tour. Very disappointing.Not a food tour

Steven🇺🇸 United States

(About local Frederik)

18 October 2022

Got a very nice overview of Bologna. Even though we have been to Bologna previously, Frederik showed us details we hadn’t noticed before. We found the tour informative. Frederik also gave us some good restaurant recommendations before the tour!Loved our kickstart tour of Bologna

Matthias 🇩🇪 Germany

(About local Frederik)

12 October 2022

Frederik loves his City and can tell you everything you want to know about Bologna. He wants you to feel the soul of Bologna and therefor he gives as many tipps as you can wish for further discoveries! Thank yoe Frederik for the great tour! Highly recomanded!

Josef🇩🇪 Germany

(About local Frederik)

28 September 2022

Wir sind als Familie nach Bologna gekommen und wollten gerne ein bisschen mehr wissen und sehen. Frederik hat uns sehr freundlich empfangen, spricht perfekt mehrere Sprachen (wie wir auch) und hat unsere Führung in dänisch gemacht. Die Gebäude und Denkmäler kriegen eine ganz andere Bedeutung wenn man die Geschichten dahinter erfährt. Auch mit etwas Humor aufgelockert hatten wir ein schönes Erlebnis und empfehlen Frederik sehr. Sehr guter Eindruck

Neil🇨🇦 Canada

(About local Frederik)

27 September 2022

Frederik is extremely engaging and knows so much about he architecture and history of his city. We couldn't have had a better guide for our "kickstart" tour. After spending a few hours with him and we had a pretty good idea on how we would spend our next 2 days as he provided inspiration to check out various sites later on, as well as catch an opera at the Teatro Comunale. Great kickstart to Bologna

Mark🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Stephanie)

27 September 2022

We spent a super morning with Stephanie walking round the centre of Bologna - it was a great introduction to a fabulous city. She took it at a lovely relaxed pace - but we still seemed to cover a lot of ground. We have one more day we can spend here before heading off to our next place, and she has left us with plenty things to go and see or return to. Many thanks. Introduction to Bologna

Calum🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Frederik)

19 September 2022

Frederik was super friendly and knowledgeable. Clearly has a genuine love for Bologna and in just 90 minutes he really showed and taught us a lot. Gave us lots of recommendations too. Frederik was great

Michael🇺🇸 United States

(About local Frederik)

18 September 2022

This tour was exactly what we were looking for. We didn't have a ton of time in Bologna (only 2 days) and wanted something quick to give us an overview of the city and help us to appreciate the details that would be missed without an expert pointing them out. Frederik was very friendly and the tour was perfectly paced and covered a lot of ground. Would definitely recommend this tour if you're looking to get acclimated to Bologna. Thanks Frederik!Perfect Tour to get started

Sandra🇩🇪 Germany

(About local Frederik)

17 September 2022

Frederik is a native from Bologna. He has excellent knowledge regarding history, art, culture and modern live of the city. Also he supported us greatly in getting tickets for the opera. He is a kind and nice person, we can truly recommend. Frederik is the best in town!!!

Aleksi🇫🇮 Finland

(About local Frederik)

15 September 2022

Tour with Frederik was great. He gave us a nice introduction to the citys history and also architecture. We asked him to also talk about the transportation system of Bologna and he gave us some nice insights about it. He also booked us a lunch after the tour, and the food was great :) Great tour

Mark🇦🇺 Australia

(About local Frederik)

11 September 2022

Fredrick was a terrific guide, he spent lots of time answering our questions and tailoring the tour to make interesting and fun for all of us. Great guide, great city!!

Joanna🇦🇺 Australia

(About local Frederik)

16 August 2022

You can tell Frederik is a passionate guy, about his city, music and life. His low key enthusiasm is perfectly matched with the vibe of Bologna. He showed us lots of interesting places and gave a good account of the history. We only had 1 day left after our tour and he helped us develop a plan of what to see and what to leave off. Finally, his recommendations for restaurants were delicious. Highly recommend Frederik. A wonderful host who loves his city

Samreen🇺🇸 United States

(About local Frederik)

12 July 2022

Frederick reached out a couple of days before our tour to let us know it was going to be HOT on the day of our tour. We were traveling with two young kids and he was great at accommodating our need for refreshment breaks and moving at a slower pace. He also gave us some great restaurant recommendations. Great local guide!Two thumbs up!

Unknown

(About local Stephanie)

11 July 2022

Stephanie is very knowledgeable and friendly and I enjoyed going round Bologna with her. We had a very nice dinner afterwards with her and continued to text and chatBologna with Stephanie

Mike🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

(About local Frederik)

6 July 2022

We met Frederik and he took us on an interesting walk to see some highlights of central Bologna. He was quick to point out and share insights into the layout, architecture and unique features (the towers for example) of the city. He was knowledgeable and fun to spend some time with as he shared a glimpse of his hometown with us. Thanks Frederik.Quick Introduction to Bologna

mollygreenyer🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Stephanie)

27 June 2022

We met our guide Stephanie on the first afternoon of our visit to Bologna. We had requested an introduction to the city. We met in the city centre and started out tour with a drink in a bar where we introduced ourselves and she gave us a brief summary of the history of Bologna. She was also able to answer our questions about practical details such as how and where to buy bus tickets! She was friendly and helpful and we immediately felt at ease with her. The tour continued with a visit to the main sites, such as Piazza Maggiore and the famous uncompleted Basilica of San Petronio. We were intrigued by the famous Torre dell’Arengo where you could whisper in one corner and be heard in the opposite one. Useful for trading secrets to be passed on and for socially distanced confessions to a priest in the time of plague! Stephanie had a vast and detailed knowledge to pass on . A highlight of the tour was Basalmic Vinegar tasting at the back of a traditional store selling the vinegar and lots of other tasty treats. Our host there was charming and we all chatted at length. Stephanie was an excellent guide. She was flexible and willing to respond to our request to practice some Italian! We were delighted to have met a ‘real local’ and to have discovered ‘hidden gems’ A great introduction to Bologna

Unknown

(About local Frederik)

21 June 2022

We chose Frederik for his artistic background and weren't disappointed, lots of anecdotes about the musical side of Bologna you don't read or hear very often about. Apart from that, a really nice and friendly attitude. Showed us a couple of places where we went back to. Hope Frederik will get a lot of customers from this as he deserves this after the cultural sector was hit so hard during Covid. Would really recommend picking him!Great guide, made our day!

Eveline 🇩🇪 Germany

(About local Frederik)

6 June 2022

Thank you Frederik, our tour was perfect. the tour was very informative and hit the spot. Thank you for your time. You brought us Bologna and many background stories. We really enjoyed it. And thanks for the insider tipsA perfekt city tour

Meera🇬🇧 United Kingdom

(About local Frederik)

1 June 2022

We spent a very enjoyable few hours with Frederik. He is knowledgeable, and enthusiastic - not only about Bologna but also the Arts ie painting and music. He really made the city come alive for us! We found him to be extremely friendly and helpful. Thank you!

Annemarieke🇳🇱 Netherlands

(About local Frederik)

31 May 2022

We had a lovely 1.5 hours tour with Frederik. He has been living in Bologna since he was born and knows the city very well. We learned a lot about the history of Bologna and we were shown all the highlights. Frederik is a lovely person and he was able to answer all our questions about Bologna.highly recommended

Dario🇨🇭 Switzerland

(About local Frederik)

31 May 2022

Die kurze Stadtführung war sehr lehrreich - Frederik hat die Führung humorvoll wissenswert gestaltet. Es hat uns sehr gefallen. Herzlichen Dank!wissenswertes über Bologna!