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Giardini Margherita

Bologna's Biggest City Park

Statue of Vittorio Emanuele, Giardini Margherita

Bologna keeps its largest and most beautiful city park out in the southeastern corner of the centro storico where few casual visitors ever see it. Named for the much-loved Queen of Italy who was on the throne when it was laid out in the 1870s (she also lent her name to a classic style of pizza), the park has artificial gypsum cliffs, tree lined lanes and lawns, a splendid oak grove and a pretty lagoon with an island in the middle. On the south end, you can see a rare above-ground section of the Savena canal.

Villanovan hut

There’s also a reproduction of a 2,800-year-old Villanova-culture round hut on display (perhaps fittingly, since an Etruscan necropolis was discovered in the park itself).

Practical Info Practical Info icon

Piazza di Porta Santo Stefano. Buses nos. 32, 33, 38, 39, 17, 13, 90 and 96

Hours Always open

+39 051 335611

Parks and Gardens

Text © Dana Facaros & Michael Pauls

Images by Velthur, Creative Commons License