Experience Off the beaten track tours in the best of
Bologna with Withlocals

"What a great day we had with Sarah. She contacted us in advance and put together a bespoke experience that was the highlight of our trip. We felt like we were spending the day with an old friend! "

"If you are looking for a nice day trip outside Bologna, like to see the countryside, and try local wines, spending a day with Sarah is not to be missed. This is not your typical US wine tour where you are shuttled from place to place in a car, belly up to the tasting bar, and head off to the next place. Slow down. You will be glad you did. Sarah meets you at the train station in Bologna, tickets in hand, and rides with you about 30 minutes outside the town of Dozza. From there, she has arranged a ride up to the hillside outside Dozza. Depending on your group, she will take you on an off-road walk down the hill or will adjust for you. Our group walked the road, but the view and walk were still wonderful. Sarah shared local history and stories on the walk down. We stopped first at a family run farm winery, Cenni & Assirelli, about halfway down the hill. We were greeted by one of the owners and treated to 4 different local wines as well as plates of local salumi, cheeses, and bread. Our view was a bit hazy on our day but still beautiful. Save some room in your suitcase to grab a couple of bottles to bring home. Next, we proceeded down the hill into the town of Dozza where we were treated to many painted murals which are proudly displayed throughout town. We opted for a short visit to a local trattoria for some appetizers and little more local wine. We also visited the castle in town, with Sarah sharing the local history of the area and the castle. In the basement of the castle, the local wine consortium has a tasting room where we tasted several more local wines. Finally, we were picked up and driven outside the town a few miles to another family-owned winery, Branchini. We were running a bit late, but Sarah called ahead, and the owner as well as the winemaker stayed late to host us and let us walk through their cellars as well as sample their wines. Again, we tasted 4 wines and had more of the local salumi and aged parmesan. Finally, a ride back to the train station where Sarah has your return tickets and makes sure you are on the train back to Bologna. Sarah’s cost for the day for each person covers the train tickets each way, the various rides, the tasting fees at the wineries, and the tasting in the castle. Lunch and/or snack in Dozza is optional, but a nice pause in the day. There are many “canned” tours in Bologna where you are herded from place to place in a group. This is NOT that tour. Sarah contacts you before the day to understand your particular needs and is willing to adjust/modify the day to accommodate. Sarah is knowledgeable and eager to share her special part of Italy with you. We highly recommend spending the day with Sarah."

"Sarah is a brilliant guide and we had the best day exploring the vineyards and wineries, meeting the lovely winemakers and of course tasting delicious wines (and food). We learned so much about Emilia-Romagna which is a totally underrated Italian wine region. Thank you, Sarah!"

"We spent such a great day with Sarah exploring Emilia-Romanga wines. We visited with an award-winning winemaker and with a farmhouse winemaker, both of whom served us amazing wines (and local snacks) and chatted with us about their process. We also walked through the beautiful art village of Dozza and toured the castle. Sarah was friendly and organized and gave us wonderful experiences that we couldn’t have done on our own. Highly recommended. "

"Our day began at Bologna Centrale. We met Sarah and hopped a train to a small town outside Bologna. On to the winery where we walked the grounds and heard about the five generations who have lived on this farm going back 1858. We learned about the process of wine making and then the fun began. We tasted five wines and had a spread of food that was outstanding. Sarah and Marco, the wine maker, explained about the history of wine making in the region and that it was being brought back into prominence. We then were driven to another small town where we took a short hike to another winery. More wine and more food and then we were were off on another short hike to a village of murals and a castle. The day was fabulous and Sarah was better. She is a very caring and thoughtful person who happens to love what she does and it comes out. Thank you Sarah for a magical day. "

"Great tour indeed, we thoroughly enjoyed! Sarah is very knowledgeable on all things wine and Italy, we had a great day visiting wineries, walking the countryside and sampling the local food - recommended without reservation! "

"We had a great day with Sarah and her husband wine tasting and exploring the amazing town of Dozza. As our plans were sort of fluid, Sarah went above and beyond to accommodate us. She managed to have a amazing winery, Fattoria Monticino Rossom, in the hills of Imola to open on a Sunday for a tour and a tasting. We then moved on to Dozza where she booked a delicious lunch at La Scuderia. After lunch, toured the beautiful town of Dozza which is spotted with murals by various artists and went on to tour the local castle, which has a wine cellar where we could sample and buy wines from the Emilia Romagna region. We topped off the day with some gelato in Sarah's home town, which Sarah and her husband made a special stop, just for us. All along the way, Sarah gave us recommendations for apertivo, restaurants, wine bars, etc., all of which were excellent! We couldn't have asked for a better day or guide. Definitely the highlight of our time in Emilia Romagno. Thank you, Sarah! xo"