2 nights – June 2020 – family trip
For these locations we were only able to spend a few days there, but we really enjoyed them and in many cases we easily could have spent more time in that spot.
Like the rest of our travel guides, this is not an all-encompassing account of everything we did. We do not want to make a list of ‘Best’ or ‘Must-do’ experiences since we know it depends on your personal preferences. These are only our personal favorites.
After stuffing ourselves in Bologna, we took a side trip to Ravenna. We’d love to say we were inspired to see the UNESCO churches, but really the kids were super excited to go to the Mirabilandia amusement park and ride roller coasters. So classy. It doesn’t have the same number of rides that a US amusement park would have (like a Six Flags, Busch Gardens, Cedar Point or Disney), but a couple of the rides were just as fast and exciting. Plus there’s a Ducati world with simulators to see how well you’d do on a Moto Grand Prix course. And as usual the prices for tickets and food were much lower than in the US. It might have been the kids favorite day, but it’s not something the adults would consider a Favve experience.
We’re slightly embarrassed to admit that we didn’t know much about the famous UNESCO churches in Ravenna, but thankfully Dave made all of us hit a couple after our day at Mirabilandia. The churches are very old (5th century) and famous for their mosaics, and because they are less visited than St Mark’s in Venice the mosaics are much better preserved and visible. Honestly, the Basilica di San Vitale might be one of the most breathtaking works of art we’ve ever seen. The mosaic work is amazing. The ticket also included the neighboring little Galla Placidia mausoleum with similarly beautiful mosaics, and other churches. We didn’t have enough time (or interest from the kids) to see the others besides the Basilica of Sant’Apollinare Nuovo, but really the first two are the best and so, so worth the time. Unlike us, get tickets in advance to pick the best entrance times (https://www.ravennamosaici.it/).
Normally we hate shopping for souvenirs, but Akomena is a nice little art boutique shop that carries on the mosaic tradition with items small and large.
We ate at Ristorante Ca’ de Vèn. I’d recommend it just for the unique atmosphere with exposed brick, arches and painted ceilings. It kind of felt like we were eating in one of the churches we came to see (ha!).
The Avventura 