Bologna Secret Gardens Bike Tour

• Day tours by bike
• Italy
• Bologna

Glide around Bologna’s glorious green oases

Cycle around Bologna’s most beautiful secrets on the Bologna Secret Gardens Bike Tour! In just 3 hours, your guided day tour leads you on a leisurely ride through the green oases of the city, including Orto Botanico, Giardino della Montagnola, Giardino del Cavaticcio, Giardini Margherita, and Parco di San Michele in Bosco. These picture-perfect parks provide a nourishing haven for nature lovers!

Your bicycle tour begins in Orto Botanico, the Botanical Garden of the University of Bologna. One of Italy’s oldest gardens, the exceptional foliage and flourishing flower beds provide a cascade of green colors all the way to the city walls. The gardens feature four greenhouses, two containing a fascinating selection of exotic plants, and two a sensational array of succulents.

Your guided tour leads you on to the Giardino della Montagnola, one of the oldest green areas in Bologna, with its flamboyant central fountain. Pedal between centuries-old plane trees dating back to the Napoleonic period, when Napoleon himself ordered G.B. Marinetti to redesign the gardens in the French style you can admire today. Your guide will lead you on to Giardino del Cavaticcio, the city park that transforms each summer with spectacular cultural events bringing the people of Bologna together. This green entertainment hub hosts the MAMbo, Cassero, and film library on its luscious lawns.

Moving on to Giardini Margherita, explore Bologna’s most popular park, inspired by the romantic gardens of England. In its center, cycle around the serene waters of the tranquil pond, discovering on its southern side a stretch of the ancient Savena canal of 1176. During the 19th Century, an Etruscan burial ground was unearthed right here in the gardens! You’ll pedal from here to Parco di San Michele in Bosco for the last stop on your bike tour. The Parco di San Michele in Bosco is an arboreal haven - glide under a canopy of burgeoning branches on the site of a former monastery, and enjoy the beautiful birdsong of Bologna.

View more photos

Highlights

Orto Botanico, Giardino della Montagnola, Giardino del Cavaticcio, Giardini Margherita, Parco di San Michele in Bosco

What’s included

• Bike, padlock, and chain rental
• English and Italian-speaking guide
• Insurance

Meeting place & directions

Travelhoo - Via Caduti di Cefalonia, 4, 40125 Bologna BO, Italy