🧀 Parma Day Trip in Italy: Firsthand Review & Tips

🍀 Lukiih’s Overall Rating	5.9
🦄 Uniqueness	Low
😊 Enjoyment	Moderate
💰 Value	Moderate
🎒 Preparation	Minimal
⭐️ Book a Tour	View Price

Parma is a culinary gem in northern Italy, renowned for producing Parmigiano Reggiano and Prosciutto di Parma. Here’s my honest review and firsthand tips.

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🍀 Lukiih’s Verdict

A day trip to Parma is a decent option; it’s not a must-do on your first trip to Italy.

• It’s a great place to visit to experience a more tranquil side of Italy, eat Parmigiano, or dine at exceptional restaurants.
• The day trip is moderately priced, assuming you will eat at a well-rated restaurant or visit one of its main attractions.
• Minimal preparation is required, as you mainly need to figure out transportation and make restaurant reservations in advance.

Planning a trip? Here’s what to know about Italy.

🏆 Where Does It Rank?

A day trip to Parma ranks as my #14 thing to do in Italy. Here’s how it compares to other experiences on my trip:

#	Experience	Location	Overall Rating
1	⛰️ Cinque Terre Hike	Liguria	8.0
2	🥖 Cicchetti by Canals	Venice	7.6
3	💧 Lake Como Day Trip	Lombardy	7.3
4	🎨 Sistine Chapel / Vatican City	Rome	7.3
5	🍷 Tuscany Wine Tour	Florence	7.1
6	🌊 Trevi Fountain	Rome	6.8
7	🚣‍♂️ Gondola Ride	Venice	6.6
8	🖼️ Uffizi Gallery	Florence	6.5
9	🏟️ Colosseum	Rome	6.4
10	🏰 Brunelleschi’s Dome	Florence	6.4
11	☀️ Michelangelo Plaza	Florence	6.3
12	🏰 St. Mark’s Square	Venice	6.3
13	🌹 Rose Garden	Florence	6.1
14	🧀 Parma Day Trip	Emilia-Romagna	5.9
15	🍝 Pasta Making Class	Florence	5.7
16	🏃‍♀️ Spanish Steps	Rome	5.5
17	🌉 Rialto Bridge	Venice	5.1
18	🌳 Boboli Gardens	Florence	4.9

My Italy itinerary features the above experiences.

✈️ About My Trip

For context on my review, here’s what to know about my trip:

• I finance my trips and don’t receive sponsorship; this review reflects my honest opinions.
• This post has updated 2024 information, but I visited Parma in 2022.
• My Italy trip was in May when it was less crowded and expensive.

🦄 Uniqueness: Low

The Uniqueness Score is based on how rare and memorable an experience is.

Rarity: Uncommon

A day trip to Parma is an uncommon experience – I estimate fewer than 50 cities are known to have originated a famous cheese.

• Parma is located in Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region, the country’s food capital, and is known for producing some of the best restaurants in the world.
• It’s the origin city of Parmigiano Reggiano, the regulated version of Parmesan cheese, and Prosciutto di Parma, one of the best types of prosciutto.

• Although a notable city serving exceptional food, Parma is not the most famous culinary place in the Emilia-Romagna region (Bologna and Modena are).
• Several places worldwide are renowned for cheese production, including Switzerland’s Gruyères, Spain’s Manchego, and England’s Cheddar.

Memorability: Low

Visiting Parma is great for your palate, but it’s not the most memorable experience in Italy.

• I traveled to the city to eat Parmigiano Reggiano and was not disappointed when Cocchi, a restaurant featured in the Michelin guide, presented an entire block of fresh parmesan as an appetizer.

• Although the city has a rich cultural heritage, its cathedral, museums, bridges, and other attractions pale in comparison to much grander ones throughout Italy.

Read on for the best way to spend time in this city.

😊 Enjoyment: Moderate

The Enjoyment Score is based on how much happiness and reward an experience provides.

Happiness: Moderate

I found visiting Parma decently fun and delightful.

• The cheese and cured ham are, of course, outstanding.
• It’s a great Italian city to escape the touristy places and have a more tranquil time without being completely bored (there are enough things to see and do).
• One of the best things I discovered in Italy is Lambrusco, a sparkling red wine from the Emilia-Romagna region. It’s not specifically a Parma wine, but it’s difficult to find elsewhere.

See below for great attractions and things to do.

• It’s a slow city where smaller businesses are sometimes closed on Mondays, Sundays, and certain holidays, so it can be quieter than expected.

Reward: Low

Visiting Parma is not a particularly rewarding experience.

• It’s interesting to take a Parmigiano factory tour to better understand the cheese-making process. These tours are consistently the most well-rated experience in the city.

• Unless you plan to visit the city’s museums, opera houses, or other historical attractions, a day trip there isn’t particularly enriching.

💰 Value: Moderate

The Value Score is determined by the price divided by the duration of an experience. All prices mentioned here are in USD.

Cost Estimate: $100 PP

A day trip to Parma costs between $50 and $150, depending on whether you eat at a high-end restaurant and book a Parmigiano factory tour. At about $100 per person for a full-day trip, I consider this experience moderately priced.

Lukiih Spent: $47

I spent $47 in Parma, and below is my breakdown. My total cost is lower because I only paid for food and transportation.

Expense Category	Total Cost
🍝 Food	$34
🚇 Round-trip train	$13

See my Italy trip expenses.

🎒 Preparation: Minimal

The Preparation Score is based on the required skills & fitness, transportation, and bookings & packing. The higher the score, the less preparation is needed.

Skills & Fitness: None

You don’t need any skills or fitness to visit Parma.

• No special skills are required.
• The city is small enough that you can explore the center on foot.

Transportation: Moderate

Parma is located in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy.

• The best way to get there is by Italy’s excellent train infrastructure.
• It’s about a 30-minute train ride from Modena and a one-hour train ride from Bologna. The closest major cities, Milan and Florence, are about two hours away.

Scroll down for how to get around.

Booking & Packing: Some Effort

To visit Parma, you’ll need to book and pack accordingly:

• Parmigiano factory tours take place in the morning, so they should be booked one to two days ahead.
• If you want to eat at one of the restaurants mentioned in the Michelin Guide, make reservations more than a month in advance. As is true in many places in Italy, this is the only way to guarantee seating.
• If you plan to spend more than a half-day there exploring on foot, wear comfortable shoes.

You might have to contact the restaurant through email or WhatsApp (I made my reservations through email) and wait more than 24 hours for a confirmation.

How To Guide & Tips

Interested in visiting Parma after reading my review? Below is a practical how-to guide and firsthand tips.

How To Get Around

Most visitors travel to Modena or Bologna and then take a train to Parma for a day trip. Once you’re there, you can get around in four different ways:

• 👟 Walking – The center is small enough to reach most attractions on foot. It takes about 30 minutes to walk from one end of the city center to the other without making stops. This is how I primarily got around.
• 🚲 Rental bike – Biking is an efficient and cost-effective way to get around. Bike rental places are located next to the train station.
• 🚌 Bus – The city has a bus system; see the Tep bus’s official website for more details.
• 🚕 Taxi – If you need to go further out of the city center, you can call a taxi, but they’re relatively expensive.

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Attractions

Having collectively spent two days in Parma, I share my and my friends’ recommendations on the best things to do in the city.

• 🧀 Eat Parmigiano Reggiano and Prosciutto di Parma – No Parma trip is complete without eating both. You can try them at a well-rated restaurant or on a highly-rated walking food tour.
• 🧀 Take a Parmigiano Reggiano factory tour – The city specializes in producing Parmigiano Reggiano, so this is the best place to learn about the production process.
• 🌉 Cross the Ponte Verdi – This is a historic bridge that’s pedestrian-friendly and located above Torrente Parma, the river that flows through the city.

• 👟 Explore the central area – One way this city is unique from its neighboring cities, Modena and Bologna, is that it has a small-town atmosphere while still offering lively markets and shopping streets. Check out Strada Cavour.
• 🌳 Visit Parco Ducale – This park is a worthwhile main attraction. It’s a relatively large park with beautiful gardens, historical landmarks, and plenty of space for relaxation.

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Itinerary

This is a great way to spend your day in Parma and is an improved version of what I did. I’ve included suggested times for each activity based on my firsthand experience.

	Morning
🚆	Train to Parma from Modena or Bologna	Before 8:15 am
🧀	Take a Parmigiano Reggiano factory tour	8:30 am–1 pm
	Afternoon
🛍️	Explore the central area	1:30–4 pm
👟	Cross Ponte Verdi	4–4:15 pm
🌳	Walk through Parco Ducale	4:15–5:15 pm
	Evening
🍝	Have an early dinner or head back to Modena/Bologna	After 6 pm

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Italy Trip Planner 2024

To make your travel preparation easier, download the trip planner below. It has destination-specific travel information, itinerary, map, and packing list.

My trip planners are built on Notion, which I use for all my travel planning. I genuinely love this tool and creating an account is free.

Thoughts? Questions? Leave a comment below.