Thinking of doing the factory / museum tour this Jan / Feb and just looking for some information on where to stay and how long it goes on for. Any information or top tips would be greatly appreciated .
4 years ago on the way back from World Ducati Week 2012 I stayed at the Hotel Amadeus (Hotel Amadeus | which is within walking distance of the factory in Borgo Panigale. I seem to recall they gave me a discount when I mentioned I was a Ducatista (and turned up on my bike). IIRC the no 13 bus goes from outside the front door into Bologna city centre. You need to buy tickets in advance e.g. in a tobacconist's shop, rather than on the bus. If you turn up on anything other than a Ducati you can't park in the factory car park itself - there might be some space available on the street outside. You do normally need to book in advance for factory tours. I've only done the tour once, when they basically had open house, on the way down to this year's WDW. The factory tour then was around 20-25 minutes I think. Not sure if the tour lasts longer normally (as opposed to during WDW). I'd guess as a first time visitor to the museum you'd want around 1 - 1 1/2 hours. While you're in the area you might want to pop across the road (the other side of the big roundabout) to the factory outlet if you want some Ducati clothing & other tat. If you are driving down to Bologna on the autostrada from the northwest (Milan) about 20km before Bologna there is the most awesome motorway services ever (as my friend commented - better even than Tebay!) - more like a John Lewis posh foodhall. Might have been Secchia Ovest but I'm not 100% sure.
hotel 3 stelle bologna Closest hotel to the factory and museum is the Hotel del Borgo in the Via Marco Emilio Lepido, a few minutes walk away. I have stayed there. It's OK and friendly, not fantastic but fairly cheap.
That time of year you might get a bargain on booking.com We stayed in Hotel San Donato, which is quite posh in Dec 07 in town centre just off main square for £35 a night dbl room+buffet breakfast.
Stayed at the Del Borgo loads of times as it is the closest but often books out as it's small. The Amadeus is walking distance as well, but much bigger hotel. You can always stay in the centre and get a bus or taxi to the factory. There's not really much in the way of eating/nightlife out in Borgo Panigale where the factory is. You must book the factory tour in advance to ensure you get an English speaking guide. It costs €10 but if you are a member of one of the official clubs and show your red DOC card then you get in for free. Buses run from the main road (Via Marco Emilio Lepido / SS9) into the town and also direct to the airport. You can pay on the bus with change. Put €1,50 in the machine and you get 1 hour of travel on any bus in Bologna. You can buy them in advance for €1,30 from local shops but tbh it's not worth the hassle! Most of the clubs run group trips. I've done about 8 now as we go every year. The clubs often get better/longer tours so it's often worth going with them rather than going on your own. I've often been just for the day. If you can get a day return flight - we fly Stansted to Bologna on Ryanair - then you can get there in the morning and fly back in the evening. We've done it for as little as £26 return over the years!
Just to add to Factory Tour related info, I thought it would be helpful to share that I sent an booking request on 20/1/19 for a place on the tour in March - I included all the requested information, but only just received confirmation today, so nearly 2 weeks wait. I've actually been before, about 5 years ago, and that time there was a number to call and I booked the day before! If going, you'll need to book in advance, and be patient for a response!
Similarly, I've had a response back within an hour when booking It is only a small team that runs the tours, so be gentle! The factory tour is currently evolving over this year so even if you've been before it's worth going again.
We did the museum last year. It was good, but I'd say you can do it in an hour. The factory tour, as others have said, runs in different groups with language support for English. We could have waited 2 hrs and done the factory tour same day with an English tour or right away with a German tour. We saved it for another time. There's a big car park across the road from the factory but you mightn't want to leave a fully laden bike there, security patrol but I'm paranoid. Car park is at the end of this street: A better bet might be to go a few metres up the road to the Ducati / Scrambler dealershops as there's ample parking for bikes there, and the diner is up there too (food's OK, nothing you couldn't get at OK Diner on the A1). You can see the factory in the background... The shops are worth a look as they carry the whole range of apparel and the Scrambler shop is hilariously hipster (although I quite liked it). As others said, DOCGB membership gets you in for free, SWMBO became She Who Must Be Paid For.
I used to be a docgb member and got in for free. I think same applies if you buy a new duke. Museum is the best bit i found, factory tour is nothing special, it's a factory. Museum is mostly made up of successful racers. All done in a couple of hours I'd say. We were on our way to bologna so cannot really help with local digs etc. Glad I've been but wouldn't go again. Ferrari not far away, if I'm on that neck of the woods again in the future I'd have a nosey at that perhaps.
Hotel Amedeus, nice hotel, good rooms, good food, a short walk to the factory, highly recommended. Just a few minutes taxi ride from the airport. As others have said you do need to book, do it on the Ducati website. Museum excellent as is the shop at the factory and the outlet store furhter down the road at the roundabout.
