Explore

A university city by definition: the university has eight centuries of history, its historic seat in Palazzo del Bo and a campus spread across the city. Two UNESCO sites, the Botanical Garden (1997) and the fourteenth-century fresco cycles with Giotto's Scrovegni Chapel (2021). One tram line since 2007 and two new ones under construction.

Rovigo has a University of Padua campus (Cen.Ser-Q200, viale Porta Adige 45), the Rovigo Hospital of ULSS 5 Polesana (viale Tre Martiri 140) and an employment centre at viale della Pace 5. The national tourist map marks Palazzo Roverella, the Accademia dei Concordi and the Teatro Sociale in the centre.

Capital of the Marca Trevigiana, with three Musei Civici sites (Santa Caterina, Luigi Bailo, Casa Robegan) holding works by Bellini, Lotto and Martini. Public transport is run by Mobilità di Marca and health care by ULSS 2, with the Ca' Foncello hospital.

Capital of Veneto, UNESCO heritage and a car-free water city, Venice is really two cities: the historic island city, touristic and shrinking in population, and the mainland (Mestre, Marghera) where most residents live. It lives on tourism, the port, universities and public administration; people move by vaporetto and on foot.

The city of Andrea Palladio: the centre, with 23 Palladian buildings, and the Palladian villas of the Veneto have been UNESCO World Heritage since 1994, extended in 1996. The Teatro Olimpico, Palladio's last work, opened in 1585. A jewellery hub with Vicenzaoro and home to economics courses of the University of Verona.

A city on the Adige at the foot of the Lessini Mountains, UNESCO World Heritage since 2000 for two thousand years of uninterrupted urban history: Roman, Scaliger, Venetian, Austrian. An exporting provincial economy (food, machinery, textiles, wine), the Quadrante Europa freight hub, trade fairs; a university independent since 1982 and the summer opera season in the Arena.

A border city in Friuli Venezia Giulia, chosen together with Nova Gorica as European Capital of Culture 2025 according to the regional tourism portal. It has a teaching centre of the University of Trieste, the San Giovanni di Dio hospital run by ASUGI and a cross-border urban bus line presented by APT Gorizia.

Pordenone is the seat of ASFO (via della Vecchia Ceramica 1) and of the Santa Maria degli Angeli hospital; the University of Udine runs six degree courses here. The Comune presents it as Italian Capital of Culture 2027, and the regional tourism portal names the Duomo di San Marco and the Museo Civico d'Arte.

Capital of Friuli-Venezia Giulia on the Slovenian border: a city of port trade, insurance and scientific research with about 200,000 residents, lower costs than the other northern capitals and a climate shaped by the Bora wind. Suits those who want a compact, quiet seaside city; less so those who need a large private job market.

A city in Friuli with a historic centre dominated by the castle on its hill, Piazza Libertà and the works of Tiepolo. It hosts the University of Udine, with eight departments, and the university hospital Santa Maria della Misericordia run by ASUFC. The city is divided into nine Consigli di Quartiere Partecipati.

Capital of Liguria and one of Italy's main container ports, a long, vertical city of over 560,000 residents between sea and mountains. Average costs, a vast medieval old town, a university and a growing technology hub at Erzelli. Suits those working in the port, technology or research; less so those who want a flat, easy city.

A city made of two historic centres, Oneglia and Porto Maurizio, with Saint Leonard as patron since 1991. The municipality highlights the Olive Museum, the Nativity Museum and civic art gallery, and two sanctuaries; the University of Genoa teaches some courses here.

A seaside city with a historic centre on the old harbour basin, the Priamar fortress built by the Genoese in 1542 and one of Italy's main cruise ports. It also hosts courses of the University of Genoa.

City on the gulf between the Cinque Terre, Portovenere and Lerici, grown around the naval arsenal established by Cavour in 1853. Today it is a port, a naval base and the gateway to the riviera: thirteen seafaring villages compete every year in the Palio del Golfo, and a university campus of the Genoa university trains nautical engineers and designers.

Capital of Emilia-Romagna, Italy's railway hub and home to the oldest university in the Western world: 390,000 residents, one of the country's most solid manufacturing and service economies, and rents among the highest in Italy because of student demand. Suits students and those working in industry or digital; less so those who dislike humid heat and fog.

Renaissance city of the Este family, UNESCO World Heritage since 1995 and, with the Po Delta, since 1999; a historic centre enclosed by about 9 km of walls that can be walked or cycled. Home to a university already in existence in 1391 that draws students from other regions, and to the National Museum of Italian Judaism and the Shoah.

A Romagna city founded by the Romans as Forum Livii, with Piazza Saffi, the abbey of San Mercuriale, the Ravaldino fortress and a large heritage of 1920s–30s Rationalist architecture. It has hosted University of Bologna courses since 1989 and a multidisciplinary campus; since 2026 its airport has been called Forlì-Ravenna.

City on the Via Emilia whose Cathedral, Ghirlandina Tower and Piazza Grande have been UNESCO World Heritage since 1997, a former Este capital whose Ducal Palace now houses the Military Academy. Historic seat of UNIMORE, with Enzo Ferrari's birthplace and the municipal loft of Traditional Balsamic Vinegar PDO.

City on the right bank of the Po, 67 km from Milan, end point of the ancient Via Emilia and a stop on the Via Francigena; it presents itself as the "gateway to Emilia" where four regions meet. The "Firstborn" of the Kingdom of Italy in 1848, it has the Palazzo Farnese with the Civic Museums and campuses of the Cattolica, the Politecnico di Milano and the University of Parma.

City in western Emilia, the gastronomic centre of the "Food Valley" and a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy since 2015. It hosts the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), a university that traces its origins to 962 and the agri-food trade fairs of Fiere di Parma; it is tied to the music of Verdi and Toscanini.

A Romagna city of art near the Adriatic: seat of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, then the centre of Byzantine Italy; eight Early Christian monuments have been UNESCO World Heritage since 1996 and Dante is buried here. It has Emilia-Romagna's only seaport, a University of Bologna campus and nine beach resorts within the municipality.

City on the Via Emilia where the Tricolour was adopted on 7 January 1797. Known worldwide for early-childhood education (the Reggio Emilia Approach) and for the Mediopadana high-speed station designed by Santiago Calatrava. Home to UNIMORE departments since 1998.

A city founded by the Romans in 268 BC as Ariminum, later ruled by the Malatesta and the home town of Federico Fellini, with about 15 km of Adriatic coast. It hosts the Italian Exhibition Group's trade fair and convention centre and a University of Bologna campus; the Metromare links it with Riccione along the coast.

A Tuscan provincial capital with a walled city under traffic restrictions (ZTL A and B), the Antiques Fair with twelve editions a year in 2026, and the San Donato hospital of Azienda USL Toscana sud est. The Comune's website is the starting point for services.