Destination guide
Ravenna
Italy
Ravenna is a city in the Romagna zone of Emilia-Romagna.
AI insights
Local-ledTripest editorial research (YouTube travel guides, published guides)
Buy the combined Biglietto Unico covering San Vitale, the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, the Neonian Baptistery and Sant'Apollinare Nuovo — cheaper than separate entries.
Timed entry to the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia is mandatory and only ~20 people go in at once, so reserve a slot online rather than turning up.
San Vitale's apse—Justinian and Theodora in gold and purple—is Italy's most astonishing mosaic; go right at opening to beat the tour buses.
Dante is buried here, in a small neoclassical tomb beside San Francesco in the hushed 'Zone of Silence' — a free five-minute stop most day-trippers skip.
Eat piadina, Romagna's flatbread, at the Mercato Coperto or at Ca' de Ven, a 16th-century wine hall pouring local Sangiovese and Albana.
The big four mosaic sites take 2–3 hours and are all walkable; spring and autumn are quietest while midday in summer brings coach crowds.
How we vet these picks
Every pick is drawn from real sources — YouTube creators, Wikivoyage, and Wikipedia. We only surface sources that actually exist and that we've checked for authenticity — no filler, no dead-end searches.Watch first
Ranked by views and how well each landed with the people who watched it, judged against the other coverage of this place — plus a local creator where we found one.
Ravenna: cosa vedere
I Fell in Love...18 Best things to do in Ravenna, ITALY | Ravenna Travel guide
Top 10 cosa vedere a Ravenna
Ultimate Travel Guide For One Weekend In Ravenna Italy | Italy | Emilia Romagna | Bologna Ravenna
Ravenna cosa vedere in un giorno: le attrazioni da non perdere
Is Ravenna Italy's Most UNDERRATED City? | Ravenna Day Trip Guide
Una giornata a Ravenna, 10 cose da fare! Romagna on the road in camper.
10 cose da visitare nel centro di Ravenna
Best time to go
Best window: March–May and September–November
Kind weather all year — there is no month to avoid.
Rated from ten years of daily temperature and rainfall recorded at this destination, via Open-Meteo's ERA5 reanalysis. Hover a month for its real numbers.
Getting around
Getting around
Walk. The old town is a mainly pedestrian area with cafes and bars on every corner and some hidden away through small access alleys. Note that everything is a little more expensive near the Basilica.
Transport notes from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0.
What to see
Places are listed from Wikivoyage and our own sourced research. Worth it means a second, independent source names the place too; “3 sources agree” means three or more do — and each card names them, so you can check.
Basilica di San Vitale
Worth itAlso recommended by UNESCO and 1 other
Sixth-century Byzantine mosaics that are the reason to come to Ravenna at all.
Vetted sources
Basilica di San Francesco
Worth itAlso recommended by ConnollyCove
Built in between 10th–11th centuries. Inside the church is a crypt permanently flooded with water, while adjacent to it is the tomb of Dante Alighieri (on the left from the facade).
Vetted sources
Domus dei Tappeti di Pietra
Via Gian Battista Barbiani, 16· Cheap
Some remains of Roman and Byzantine buildings were excavated at the beginning of 1990s. The major one — Domus — is a 14-rooms building with 3 courtyards.
Vetted sources
Battistero degli Ariani
Piazzetta degli Ariani Ravenna· Cheap
Built by the Ostrogothic King Theodoric the Great between the end of the 5th century and the beginning of the 6th century.
Mausoleo di Teodorico
approx. 1 km north east from the city center, on the other side of the railway· Cheap
Built in the 6th century for the powerful king of Ostrogoths. The monument is also included in UNESCO World Heritage list.
Basilica di Sant'Apollinare in Classe
approx. 5 km S of the city centre· Cheap
Like many Ravenna churches, it is known for its exceptional mosaics.
Skip the line — book ticketsChiesa di San Giovanni Evangelista
Built 5th century by the Roman imperial princess Galla Placidia. Initially it was also decorated by mosaics, but virtually none of them has been survived since then.
Vetted sources
What to eat
Osteria dalla Zabariona
Worth itAlso recommended by Gambero Rosso and 1 other
Cappelletti with Mora Romagnola ragù, and regional recipes that had nearly died out.
Vetted sources
Ristorante Al Passatore
opposite the Palazzo di Teodorico
An excellent example of a typical Romagnolo menu at local prices.
Vetted sources
Where to stay
Casa Masoli
Via Rossi 22· Expensive
Casa Masoli is a wonderful Bed and Breakfast in the center of Ravenna. Rooms are large and ceilings are decorated. It is an old house with history. The owner is a gentle and friendly lady that speaks fluent English.
Vetted sources
Hotel Diana Ravenna
Via Girolamo Rossi, 47
Three-star hotel set in an 18th-century building of the city centre of Ravenna, with 48 rooms and suites, and affordable rates to visit the Byzantine mosaic of the former capital of the Roman Empire.
Vetted sources
Hotel Byron
In the centre of Ravenna, within walking distance of the most important monuments;
Vetted sources
Hotel Bisanzio
In the centre of Ravenna, within walking distance of the most important monuments
Vetted sources
Travel essentials
Gear worth packing for any trip — affiliate links that help keep Tripest free.
Travel content from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Encyclopedic context from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Videos via the YouTube Data API.