Things to do in Ferrara
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Ferrara
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Transitional and cool, improving, museums uncrowded.
Best overall, mild cycling weather, May brings the Palio on the last Sunday.
Sweet spot of summer, long evenings, Sotto le Stelle and Summer Festival concerts.
Heat and humidity peak, late August Buskers Festival makes the city nocturnal and joyful.
Second best season, Balloons in September, best eating and softer prices.
Rain and Po Valley fog settle, atmospheric but short days and lowest prices.
Quiet, cold and romantic, teatro season and Christmas lights, poor for delta boats.
What's on
- Palio di Ferrara last Sunday of May
Historic races in Piazza Ariostea with a month of processions, flag throwers and contrada dinners.
- Ferrara Sotto le Stelle early June
Indie and alternative concerts in the castle courtyard.
- Ferrara Summer Festival June to July
Larger rock, pop and electronic bills in Piazza Ariostea.
- Ferrara Buskers Festival late August
Free street music festival filling the whole centre until late.
- Ferrara Balloons Festival second week onward, about 10 days in September
Mass balloon ascents from Parco Bassani with Night Glow and concerts.
- Internazionale a Ferrara late September to early October
Festival of journalism and ideas, talks across the centre, Italian language heavy.
- Christmas markets and lights December
Markets and lights on the Listone, pampepato everywhere.
- Cento Carnival Sundays in February to early March
Regional carnival twinned with Rio, about 35 minutes away in Cento.
Best things to do in Ferrara
Castello Estense
Moated Este castle in the centre with painted apartments, dungeons and the Lions Tower view.
Palazzo Schifanoia
Este pleasure palace holding the Salone dei Mesi, a vast joyful fresco cycle of months and zodiac.
Palazzo dei Diamanti
Diamond cut stone palace with major temporary exhibitions and the Ferrarese school Pinacoteca upstairs.
Mura di Ferrara
Nine kilometres of Renaissance walls turned into a raised tree lined park for cycling and walking.
Ferrara Cathedral
Romanesque Gothic facade with loggias and a Last Judgement porch facing the main piazza.
Museo della Cattedrale di Ferrara
Small museum in San Romano with Jacopo della Quercia, Tura organ shutters and Flemish tapestries.
Via delle Volte
Cobbled medieval lane roofed by brick vaults, the most atmospheric walking in the old Jewish quarter.
Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Ferrara
Palazzo Costabili housing the Spina finds, Attic vases and Etruscan gold of museum quality.
Where to stay in Ferrara
Centro Storico, castle and cathedral core
first trip, all-round base
Everything in the centre is within a 20 minute walk, with restaurants and the evening passeggiata.
Addizione Erculea / Palazzo dei Diamanti quarter
repeat visitors, longer stays, runners and drivers
Grand greener Renaissance streets by Parco Massari, quieter at night and 10 minutes to the castle.
Medieval south / Schifanoia quarter
budget stays of 3+ nights and self-catering
Cheaper B&Bs and a neighbourhood feel, closest to Schifanoia and the Archeologico, 15 minutes to castle.
Just outside the walls / countryside agriturismi
families with a car doing a delta-heavy trip
Farm stays with gardens and parking, but you will drive or taxi for trains and late dinners.
Think twice about
- Station forecourt and Gad quarter
Ferrara's roughest edge, with loitering, poorly lit underpasses late and a scruffier feel. Base in the centre instead.
- Far Via Bologna and motorway-exit hotel strips
Not dangerous, just isolated and car dependent with nothing to walk to. They defeat the point of Ferrara.
Best restaurants in Ferrara
Ca' d'Frara Trattoria Moderna
Ferrara's acclaimed serious restaurant, hand rolled pastas and the traditional menu for first timers.
Ristorante L'Oca Giuliva
Creative seasonal take on Ferrarese classics with a serious cellar, a second special dinner pick.
I Piaceri di Lucrezia
Meat led dining room named for Lucrezia Borgia, strong on mixed grill and rib eye for two.
Trattoria da Noemi
Local institution since 1958 for fresh egg pasta, pasticcio and salama da sugo done classically.
Balebuste
Modern osteria for cappellacci and bigoli, with fluent English and unusually good vegetarian range.
Antica Osteria delle Volte
Vaulted rooms on Ferrara's most atmospheric street serving the Ferrarese canon unhurriedly.
Osteria Al Brindisi
Historic osteria by the cathedral where Copernicus lodged, order cappellacci di zucca and local wine.
Hosteria Savonarola
Value star by the castle for cosy home style Ferrarese cooking without castle square prices.
Outdoor things to do in Ferrara
Destra Po
Embankment cycle path along the Po from the walls toward Bondeno and the delta, flat under huge skies.
Valli di Comacchio
Flat bottomed boat trips through lagoon valleys past casoni, salt pans and breeding pink flamingos.
Argine degli Angeli
Narrow raised causeway through the lagoon with water both sides and birds at handlebar height.
Comacchio
Lagoon town of canals, arched bridges and coloured houses built on 13 islands, free to wander.
Abbazia di Pomposa
Romanesque abbey with a 48 metre campanile rising over flat delta land and 14th century frescoes.
CUS Ferrara Golf
18 hole par 68 course under 500 metres from the historic centre, with range and instructors.
Argenta Golf Club
Par 72 course woven into delta edge terrain by Valle Santa, the sterner golf test near Ferrara.
Ravenna
Byzantine mosaics balanced with historic pine forests, canal port and Marina di Ravenna beach clubs.
Best hotels in Ferrara
Villa Horti della Fasanara
Tiny renovated Este hunting lodge villa in parkland, profound quiet a short walk from the centre.
Hotel Duchessa Isabella Collection by GSA Hotels
Frescoed Este villa with garden and spa, character luxury whose reviews are sharply divided.
Hotel Torre della Vittoria 1928
Small stylish hotel in a 1920s tower on the main square, with a panoramic terrace over the cathedral.
Hotel Annunziata
Contemporary design hotel facing the castle, with strong breakfast and a fleet of guest bikes.
Hotel Carlton
Reliable central three star superior praised for breakfast, location and staff, often cheaper.
Maxxim Hotel
Forty contemporary rooms in a converted 15th century palace, family sized layouts with terraces.
Hotel de Prati
Family run hotel set up for cyclists, with early breakfasts and a warm old school welcome.
Piazza Nova Guest House
Comfortable central guest house with breakfast included, a solid budget base inside the walls.
Is Ferrara expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | €70 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | €130 a person |
| Splurge | €260 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Castello Estense: a few days ahead
- Palazzo dei Diamanti: weeks ahead
- Teatro Comunale Claudio Abbado: weeks ahead
- Valli di Comacchio: weeks ahead
- CUS Ferrara Golf: a few days ahead
- Argenta Golf Club: a few days ahead
- Ravenna: weeks ahead
- Gran Bosco della Mesola: a few days ahead
- Hotels 6 to 10 weeks ahead for Palio, Buskers, Balloons and Summer Festival weeks.
- Palazzo dei Diamanti blockbuster exhibitions, Ca' d'Frara and da Noemi weekend dinners.
- Comacchio boats May to September, Ravenna mosaic tickets April to October, Teatro opera premieres.
- Balloon flights early in your stay with a weather fallback morning.
Is Ferrara safe?
- Bike theft is endemic, lock properly and store bikes indoors overnight.
- Watch for festival pickpocketing at normal Italian levels and ZTL fines.
- Use repellent and water in the delta May to September, mosquitoes and heat are real.
- Emergency number 112, the station and Gad quarter are the cautious late night edge.
Ferrara travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Ferrara as a 4 hour Bologna day trip misses the pace that is the city's value, stay overnight.
- Listone cafe lunches are priced for the view, eat two streets away in the medieval quarter.
- Midday summer sightseeing in heat and humidity, sightsee 9 to 12 and after 16:00.
- Duchessa Isabella at full rate expecting international five star polish, it is character not polish.
Getting around Ferrara: public transport and more
- Train is the correct arrival, Bologna in 30 to 50 minutes and Venice in 90 minutes to 2 hours.
- Walk and bike in town, the walled centre is about 2 km across, buses 1, 2, 6 and 9 fill gaps.
- Do not drive into the camera enforced ZTL, park at Ex-MOF or register your plate with a centre hotel first.
- Rent bikes by the station or castle, use hotel bikes, and bring a serious lock.
Who Ferrara suits
| Solo travellers | Great |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Not ideal |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | Not ideal |
Make Ferrara your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
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