The 12 Best Food Tours in Bologna

1.Bologna Food & Market Tour with 6 Tastings, Pasta, Wines & More

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 1,328 reviews · 3 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $118Our pick

Spend 3.5 hours eating your way through central Bologna with a guide such as Claire, Federica, Caterina, or Mattia. Visit the Quadrilatero, watch pasta made by hand, taste aged Parmigiano and balsamic vinegar, sample regional meats, wines, gelato, espresso, and a secret dish.

“Frederica was very knowledgeable. All the stops had great food. We were also told some history during the tour.”

Check availability →Read our full review

2.Bologna Food Experience: Factory tours & Family-Style Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 1,201 reviews · 9 hours (approx.) · from $216

Leave Bologna at 7:00am for a full-day food tour through Emilia-Romagna. Visit working Parmigiano Reggiano, balsamic vinegar, and prosciutto producers, with breakfast, tastings, wine, and a long family-style lunch included. Guides such as Elena, Federico, and Alessandro may lead the visits.

“Well worth the price! Great food and wine! Very informative and great tour guides! Well organized and easy to work with! Would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys food, wine and being entertained! A great full day activity!”

Check availability →Read our full review

3.Walking Food Tour with a Local Guide

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 882 reviews · from $90

Walk from Piazza del Nettuno to the Two Towers while tasting tigella, Bolognese cold cuts, regional cheeses, tortellini, tagliatelle, local wine, balsamic vinegar, and gelato. English-speaking guides such as Eugenio, Roberta, Stefania, and Valentina add food lore and city stories along the way.

“It was really fun. Our guide, Roberta was knowledgeable and engaging. The food local and good. We went to the Osteria del Sole for wine.”

Check availability →Read our full review

4.Bologna Food Tour from a local perspective

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 860 reviews · 4 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $133

Spend 4.5 hours eating through Bologna with a local guide such as Mattia, Matteo, or Riccardo. Begin with cappuccino and cornetto, watch sfogline make fresh pasta, sample salumi, Parmigiano, wine, aged balsamic, three pasta dishes, and artisanal gelato.

“Plenty of yummy food, a charming guide in Mattia, lots of interesting information about the food culture of Bologna. We visited a cafe that roasts their own coffee, we saw pasta being handmade, we visited a salumeria that I wish I could take home to my neighborhood, we had aperitif in a 15th century osteria, a gorgeous pasta lunch, we tasted balsamics and learned what’s what, and ended the day with some excellent gelato.”

Check availability →Read our full review

5.Private Half Day Parma Food Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 561 reviews · 3 hours (approx.) · from $134

Spend three hours walking Parma with a private English-speaking guide such as Lisa, Cecilia, Roberta, or Michelle. Visit local food shops for generous tastings of cured meats, aged Parmigiano, fresh pasta, pastries, gelato, balsamic vinegar, and wine, with famous sights along the way.

“Lisa was an amazing guide. She was filled with knowledge of the area and of the amazing foods we tried. We learned so much and were quite full!! Parma has a great history of food and Lisa showed us that. So glad we went on this tour.”

Check availability →Read our full review

6.Parmigiano Production and Parma Ham Tour & Tasting

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 554 reviews · from $126

Travel from Parma with guides such as Loris, Sergio, George, or Mattia to see Parmigiano Reggiano made and aged, then visit a Prosciutto di Parma producer. Learn about salting, curing, and spillatura before tasting cheese, ham, and local wine.

“Very interesting. The effort to create the cheese and parma ham is truly amazing. The transport was comfortable. The guide was detailed , funny and friendly. Enough cheese n ham to go around and try with a nice wine to accompany.”

Check availability →Read our full review

7.Open Bus City Tour and Local Food Tasting

★★★★★★★★★★3.7 · 550 reviews · 1 day · from $46Best value

Start at Neptune Fountain for an open-top bus ride past Bologna’s major sights, including San Petronio, the Two Towers, and Archiginnasio. Use the multilingual audio guide and hop off at selected stops. Finish with food-tasting vouchers in a historic market area.

“The bus City tour was on time, great bus driver and assistant was fabulous. The tour to the most important point of the city nothing but great.”

Check availability →Read our full review

8.Full meal Food Tour with Local Delights by Do Eat Better

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 541 reviews · 3 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $81

Walk Bologna’s old center with an English-speaking guide such as Eugenio, Luca, Ares, or Erica, stopping for handmade pasta, tigelle or mortadella, cotoletta, gelato, wine, and espresso. The three-and-a-half-hour tour serves a full meal in a group of no more than 12.

“I would highly recommend this tour! Matteo was very knowledgeable about the history of Bologna and showed us many cool sites that we wouldn’t have found on our own. As an added bonus we booked us a balsamic vinegar tasting that was really fun! The food was amazing!”

Check availability →Read our full review

9.Bologna Food Tour by Taste Bologna: Intimate Group (Max 10)

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 424 reviews · 4 hours (approx.) · from $139

Spend about four hours walking central Bologna with a maximum of 10 people, sampling coffee, mortadella, cheeses, handmade pasta, wine, and artisan gelato. Guides such as Darren, Matteo, Federica, and Maria add food knowledge, city stories, and useful restaurant advice. Vegetarian, pescatarian, and gluten-free options require advance notice.

“D was our guide and a pasta chef locally, so knew he knew the food inside-out. This wasn't just several coursed in one tour, it felt like several tours rolled 5 (or was it 6) hours. Not just eating and learning about the food and its history, this was also an cultural tour of Bologna, which showed us to places not on the tripadvisor 'top 20 things to do', hence if you're in Bologna for a few days, do this early. Do this tour!”

Check availability →Read our full review

10.Bologna Private Food Tour with 6 or 10 Tastings

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 344 reviews · 2 to 3 hours (approx.) · from $188

Explore Bologna with a private local foodie guide, choosing six or ten tastings around Piazza Maggiore, the Quadrilatero, and Piazza del Nettuno. Expect classic bites, drinks, market culture, and stories about the city. Guides may include Frederik, Marco, Giuseppe, or Simone.

“Giuseppe was very knowledgeable and just a perfect guide for this food tour. I have already recommended him to friends.”

Check availability →Read our full review

11.Food Tour with Pasta Tasting & Local Specialties

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 312 reviews · 3.5 hours · from $86

Meet your English or Italian-speaking guide at Piazza di Porta Ravegnana, then visit four or more local food stops for pasta, Bolognese specialties, dessert, and coffee. Guides such as Luca, Eugenio, and Angelica add city history, practical restaurant tips, and plenty of food. Vegetarian options are available.

“Eugie was excellent. Very friendly and knowledgeable and there was so much food and drinks! We felt bad we couldn’t finish it all! I highly recommend this tour to get a taste of all the classic foods Bologna has to offer! We were even able to get a table at a place that didn’t take reservations and enjoy all their wonderful pasta!”

Check availability →Read our full review

12.Tasting and Biking Parma

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 218 reviews · 4 hours (approx.) · from $107

Ride from central Parma into the countryside with guide Davide, visit a Parmigiano Reggiano dairy, taste aged cheese and local meats, then return for city sights and lunch at an osteria. Bikes and helmets are provided, with e-bikes available.

“This 4 hour bike tour was the highlight of my trip to Italy. I haven't ridden a bike in 20 years so I was afraid to ride through the streets, but the man in charge had me practice before we went out. He told me to stay behind him just in case I needed anything. Once we started, it was a really nice ride through the streets of Italy. As soon as cars see you coming everybody stops and Everyone in the group looks out for each other. We rode into the countryside to the cheese factory, watched them make the cheese and then we tasted different aged cheeses. This…”

Check availability →Read our full review