How Far Is Bologna From Padua?

Padua, the inland city in the Veneto famous for Giotto's frescoes in the Scrovegni Chapel and one of Italy's oldest universities, sits in a flat plain crowded with day-trip options on every side. Venice is about 36 km to the east, Vicenza about 30 km to the west, and Bologna, the capital of the neighbouring Emilia-Romagna region, is about 110 km to the south in a straight line. That figure comes from computed straight-line distances between city centres, not road distances, and it makes Bologna the farthest of the standard hops from Padua. This page lays out what the distance means in practice, how the rail connection works, and what sits closer if a shorter day out is the goal.

How Far Is Bologna From Padua?

Bologna is about 110 km south of Padua in a straight line, measured centre to centre, which makes it the farthest of the classic day trips from the city and roughly three times the straight-line distance to Venice, which is about 36 km. The figure is a straight-line distance, not a road distance or a rail distance, and the actual track distance is longer because the rail line bends around the hills between the Veneto plain and Emilia-Romagna.

Straight-line distance is the one number that can be stated precisely, because it is computed from coordinates rather than from a route. It answers "how far apart are these two cities on the map" and nothing else. For everything that follows, journey time, road distance, fare, the answers depend on the train or road you take, and those figures are not printed on this page because they were not confirmed from a primary source. Check Trenitalia's own site or app for current schedules and prices before planning the day. A quick search on your travel date settles the question in a minute, and prices on high-speed services in Italy move with demand, so a figure copied from any guide, this one included, would mislead more than it helps.

For scale, here is where Bologna sits among the other day-trip targets, all measured the same way, in straight-line kilometres from the centre of Padua:

The table tells the story at a glance: everything in the Veneto sits inside about 70 km, and crossing the regional border into Emilia-Romagna roughly doubles the hop to Bologna. Sirmione, on Lake Garda, is the only entry between the Veneto cluster and Bologna itself, and like Bologna it belongs to the long-day tier. The day trip guide to Bologna on this site covers what the city itself offers; this page is about the distance question.

Can You Do Bologna As A Day Trip From Padua?

Yes, Bologna works as a day trip from Padua by train, and the city is a recognised destination for a longer day out, but at about 110 km in a straight line it is a different category of trip from Vicenza at about 30 km or Venice at about 36 km. Padova station is on the main Milan to Venice rail axis, one of Italy's busiest corridors, and Bologna is a major interchange on that same national network, so the two cities are directly linked without going through Venice.

What this page cannot do is quote a journey time or a fare for Padua to Bologna, because no confirmed figure for that exact route sits in the sources behind this site. Journey times for nearer cities have been reported: trains from Padova to Venezia Santa Lucia take about 26 to 40 minutes, Vicenza 16 to 25 minutes, and Verona 43 to 60 minutes, all reported by timetable aggregators rather than official sources, so treat them as approximations and check Trenitalia. Bologna's equivalent figure is not among them. The practical advice is simple: open Trenitalia's site or app, search Padova to Bologna Centrale for your date, and read the times and fares from the source that sells the tickets.

Padova station itself is well set up for a day away. The IAT tourist office at the exit of platform 1 is open Monday to Saturday 9:00 to 19:00 and Sunday and holidays 10:00 to 16:00, closed 25 and 26 December and 1 January, if you want printed advice before you travel. Left luggage at platform 1 runs daily 6:00 to 20:00 at EUR 5 per 6 hours, useful if a morning checkout precedes the trip. The urban ticket for buses and tram in Padua is EUR 1.70 for 90 minutes, and it can also be paid by tapping a contactless card on board.

Is Bologna Or Somewhere In The Veneto The Better Day Trip From Padua?

This page does not rank cities, and the sources behind it offer no comparison between Bologna and Padua's nearer neighbours, but the distance numbers speak for themselves: Vicenza, Venice, Treviso and the Euganean Hills all sit inside about 45 km in a straight line, while Bologna is about 110 km, so a Bologna day commits more of the day to travel by definition. The choice comes down to how much of the day you want on a train versus in a square.

A practical way to frame it is by tiers. Inside about 45 km: Venice, Vicenza, Treviso, Chioggia, Montagnana, Bassano del Grappa and the Euganean spa towns of Abano and Montegrotto, all reachable as short hops with reported train times in the 16 to 60 minute range for the rail-served ones. Between about 55 and 70 km: the Prosecco hills towns of Valdobbiadene and Conegliano, Ferrara and Verona, the latter reported at 43 to 60 minutes by train. At about 110 km: Bologna, and beyond it nothing on the standard day-trip list. More of these guides are collected on Padua Travel Guide.

The Euganean and Prosecco hill country is the tier that rewards a guided day most directly, because the wineries and hill villages are awkward by public transport and a tour removes the driving question entirely. This site's featured trip for that tier is the Tour in the Prosecco Hills from Padua, which covers the hill wine country as a guided day out. If a Prosecco day appeals, Check availability on the operator's live listing.

Closer still, the Euganean Hills sit on Padua's doorstep: Abano Terme about 8 km away, Montegrotto Terme about 11 km, Arqua Petrarca about 20 km and Monselice about 21 km, all in straight-line kilometres from the centre. For travellers weighing a first day trip, the guide to how many days you need in Padua helps decide whether the city itself deserves the extra day before anything outside it does.

What Does 110 Km Mean For Planning A Day Out?

A straight-line distance of about 110 km between Padua and Bologna means the round trip consumes a large share of a single day even on fast trains, and it means the practical plan is one city, not two: a Bologna day from Padua is Bologna alone, while the nearer tier allows combinations such as Vicenza and Verona or Venice and its islands in one outing. Budget the day around the train times you find on Trenitalia, not around the map distance.

Three planning points follow from the geography. First, Padua's own sights are timed and booked: the Scrovegni Chapel admits at most 25 people every 15 minutes, about 15 minutes inside, with advance booking, and it closes 16 to 27 November 2026 for the annual fresco inspection, so a long Bologna day and a chapel slot have to be reconciled before either is booked. Second, the seasonal calendar matters more than the distance: the Scrovegni evening visits, Giotto sotto le stelle, run 25 March to 1 November, 19:00 to 22:00, chapel only, which can pair an out-of-town day with a late chapel entry. Third, weather belongs in the plan: the ERA5 reanalysis for Padua, 1991 to 2020, puts November as the month with the highest rain total at 114 mm and January the lowest at 53.6 mm, so a long-distance day in late autumn carries more weather risk than a short hop that can be moved indoors.

For anyone whose real question is whether Padua deserves the base at all, the answer on whether Padua is worth visiting and the explainer on what Padua is famous for cover the case for staying put, and the distance guide from Padua to Venice covers the most popular hop of all.

Common Questions About Bologna And Padua

How Far Is Bologna From Padua?

About 110 km in a straight line, measured from centre to centre. That is a map distance, not a road or rail distance; the rail route between Padova and Bologna Centrale is longer. Check Trenitalia for actual journey times and fares.

Is Bologna Closer To Padua Than Verona?

No. Verona is about 69 km from Padua in a straight line and Bologna is about 110 km. Trains from Padova to Verona are reported at about 43 to 60 minutes; no confirmed equivalent figure for Bologna is published on this site.

Can You Get From Padua To Bologna By Train?

Yes. Padova is on the main Milan to Venice rail axis and Bologna is a major interchange on the national network, so the cities are linked directly. Timetables and fares change, so read them on Trenitalia's site or app for your travel date.

Is A Day Trip To Bologna From Padua Realistic?

At about 110 km each way, a day trip is feasible but commits a large share of the day to travel, and the practical plan is Bologna alone rather than a two-city day. If a shorter outing matters, Vicenza at about 30 km, Venice at about 36 km and the Euganean Hills at about 8 to 21 km are all far closer.

What Is Closer To Padua Than Bologna?

Nearly everything on the standard list: Venice at about 36 km, Vicenza at about 30 km, Treviso at about 41 km, Verona at about 69 km, Ferrara at about 66 km and the Euganean spa towns at about 8 to 11 km, all in straight-line kilometres from the centre of Padua.

The distance is the easy part of the question: about 110 km in a straight line, the longest standard hop from the city. Everything else, times, fares, whether the day feels worth it, depends on the date and the timetable, and Trenitalia's own pages hold those answers.