The best city hikes and walks in Ravenna

The Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna is an impressive testament to early Christian and Byzantine art and has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1996. Even from the outside, it fascinates with its unusual geometric shape, in which Roman and Byzantine architectural elements combine harmoniously. The interior, however, is particularly impressive: golden apse mosaics, ornate capitals, and the imposing vault create a unique atmosphere. In the presbytery, one also discovers a circular marble labyrinth, which symbolizes the soul's pilgrimage to the Holy Land. During my visit, I was especially touched by the interplay of history, spirituality, and magnificent art. The proximity to the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia makes the tour of Ravenna even more special. San Vitale is not an ordinary building, but a place where the past comes alive and every glance reveals new details.

Anyone visiting Ravenna often thinks first of the famous early Christian mosaics. This makes the Cathedral of the Resurrection all the more surprising, as it stands out clearly with its Baroque design. Built between 1734 and 1745, the cathedral stands on the foundations of the former 5th-century Ursiana Basilica. Even from the outside, the facade impresses with its three-arched portico and the 35-meter-high cylindrical bell tower. Inside, visitors are greeted by magnificent barrel vaults, an elliptical dome, and colorful marble decorations. Particularly worth seeing are the 6th-century ambo and the mysterious Madonna del Sudore. Admission is free, and there is usually a pleasantly quiet atmosphere. This allows you to experience Ravenna away from the large tourist crowds. For me, the cathedral is a wonderful place to get to know the lesser-known but equally fascinating side of the city.

Recognized as part of the World Heritage in 1996, built around 520 as the burial place of the Ostrogothic king outside the city, distant from other monuments, made of brick and studded inside with incredible mosaics, a few hundred meters from the sea then present in the area: building material white Istrian stone with unfinished shells inside, perhaps due to the king's imminent death, surmounted by an imposing 300-ton dome with a clearly visible ornamental pincer frieze outside, erected at the time by rolling and cracked probably by error during construction, although legends circulate about the origin of the crack; in the upper cell, the very famous red porphyry basin, a symbol of imperial power, made around the 2nd or 3rd century for thermal use and later rethought as an open sarcophagus because it was protected by the imposing dome: 1500 years have passed since his death

Port scale built at the end of the 18th century concurrently with the construction of the Candiano canal, once much smaller and narrower, which reached beyond the railway tracks to the current Aldo Moro square of the station; the current trapezoidal shape was conceived in the early 20th century to allow the entry of ever larger ships: currently, the right bank of the Candiano has been redeveloped with a 2 km pedestrian and cycle path rich in greenery, benches and play areas, which reaches the swing bridge, while unfortunately the left bank features buildings such as the former fertilizer factory, the feed mill and the dilapidated Consorzio Agrario in a total state of abandonment 😓

Built at the beginning of the 6th century AD at the behest of the Ostrogothic king Theodoric the Great, it was initially conceived as the Arian church of the royal palace. After the Byzantine reconquest, it was reconsecrated to Catholic worship and dedicated to Saint Apollinaris. It is called "Nuovo" (New) to distinguish it from the older Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Classe, which already existed outside the city: it was therefore the "new" church compared to the previous one. The interior is famous for the large mosaics in the naves: on one side the processions of martyrs, on the other those of virgins, among the most extensive mosaic testimonies of the late antique world. It is part of the eight early Christian monuments of Ravenna inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list.

It is the square overlooked by the Cathedral of Ravenna, the city's religious center since the early Christian era. The area took on its current configuration between the 18th and 19th centuries, when the spaces around the episcopal buildings were reorganized. In the center of the square stands the Column of the Virgin Mary, a devotional element erected as a sign of protection for the city. At the top is a statue of the Madonna, a religious and historical reference symbol for the community of Ravenna.

The Basilica of San Vitale was built in the 6th century AD during the reign of Emperor Justinian, it is one of the greatest examples of Byzantine architecture and art in Western Europe. The interior is famous for its golden and luminous mosaics, among the most important in the Byzantine world, depicting Emperor Justinian and Empress Theodora with their retinue. The structure has an octagonal plan, a symbol of perfection and the link between earth and sky. It is part of the eight early Christian monuments of Ravenna inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list. It was begun under Ostrogothic rule and completed after the Byzantine reconquest of the city, thus reflecting the transition between two very different political and cultural worlds. The interior is built with a typical Byzantine technique that creates an effect of "expanded space", where walls and surfaces almost completely dissolve into the mosaics. The apse is one of the most important points: here Justinian is represented not as a simple emperor, but as a representative of sacred power, together with Bishop Maximian. The basilica is also connected to the nearby Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, sharing the same historical period and the same artistic language, although with different functions.

The Church of Santa Maria del Suffragio was built in the 18th century in the Baroque style. The building has an octagonal plan and features a richly decorated interior, with stuccoes and frescoes typical of the era. The church is linked to the Confraternity of Suffrage, which was involved in charitable works and prayers for the souls of the deceased. Today it is one of the most important examples of the city's Baroque architecture.