A MAGICAL PLACE

Bergamo’s beautiful upper town, the Città Alta (pictured above), is a magical place well worth visiting. Use this website to help you plan your trip to Bergamo in Northern Italy and find your way to some of the other lovely towns and villages in Lombardia that are perhaps less well known to tourists.

20110723

Museum dedicated to Bergamo composer Donizetti

Not to be missed in Bergamo's Città Alta...

Furniture from Donizetti's house can be
seen in the museum in Via Arena
DONIZETTI MUSEUM (il Museo Donizettiano)

The beautiful Palazzo della Misericordia Maggiore in Bergamo’s Città Alta houses a unique and fascinating museum dedicated to Gaetano Donizetti.
The palace at Number 9 Via Arena is home to the collection of furniture, paintings, books and musical scores brought together to commemorate the life of the brilliant composer, who was born and died in Bergamo.
Via Arena is off the Piazza Santa Maria Maggiore and climbs towards the west end of the Città Alta. It can be accessed after leaving the church of Santa Maria Maggiore at the south entrance.
The museum is dedicated to the life and works of Donizetti, who composed about 70 highly regarded operas in 30 years, making him one of the leading composers of opera in the early part of the 19th century and a major influence on Verdi, Puccini and other Italian composers who came after him.
Visitors are able to see Donizetti’s furniture, including the bed he died in and the chair he used to sit in towards the end of his life when he was living in Palazzo Scotti in Bergamo’s Città Alta as the guest of a wealthy family. The composer’s piano, portraits, original scores from his operas and his letters are also on view in display cases, as well as a library of other documents, which have been of great help to scholars.
The palazzo dates back to the 13th century but was remodelled in the 17th century and has a very decorative interior that is worth looking at for its own sake.
To add to the atmosphere as you look round the museum, you will hear occasional snatches of music played by students using the practice rooms of the musical institute, which is also housed in the palace.
Donizetti was born in Borgo Canale, a street that is a few metres outside the walls of the Città Alta. Visitors can see the place where he was born -- on 29 November 1797 -- which is marked by a plaque, at number 14 in the middle of a row of characteristic, tall houses.
Donizetti was the fifth of six children born to a textile worker and his wife. He once wrote about his birthplace: “…I was born underground in Borgo Canale. One descended the stairs to the basement, where no ray of sunlight had ever been seen. And like an owl I flew forth…”
Donizetti developed a love for music and despite the poverty of his family benefited from early tuition in Bergamo . He went on to compose some of the greatest lyrical operas of all time such as Lucia di Lammermoor and L’Elisir d’Amore.
After a magnificent career, Donizetti returned to Bergamo and died in 1843 in the Palazzo Scotti in the street now named Via Donizetti in the Città Alta.
Donizetti’s tomb is in the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore in Piazza Duomo in the Città Alta.
A monument dedicated to him was erected in Bergamo in 1897, 100 years after his birth, near Teatro Donizetti in Via Sentierone in the Città Bassa (lower town.)
The Donizetti Museum in Via Arena is open from Tuesday to Friday from 9.30 to 13.00 and on Saturday and Sunday from 9.30 to 13.00 and from 14.00 to 17.30. Closed Mondays.




20110721

Daily year-round flights from Budapest to Bergamo

Visitors can fly to Bergamo from more than 30 departure points around Europe and North Africa.  Bergamo's Orio al Serio airport, the fourth busiest in Italy, is a popular arrival point for visitors to Milan and the Italian Lakes as well as the city of Bergamo itself.
A popular arrival point for visitors to Milan and the Italian Lakes, as well as the city of Bergamo itself, the airport is situated only six kilometres from the centre of Bergamo.
A bus service connects the airport terminal with Bergamo's Città Bassa (lower town) and Città Alta (upper town). The journey takes about 15 minutes to Città Bassa, 25 minutes to Città Alta.
Here is Best of Bergamo’s updated schedule guide for flights to Bergamo from Hungary, operated by Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com).

HUNGARY

From Budapest
Until September 19 -- Daily: 10:55.
From September 20 to October 29 -- Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Sunday: 10:55; Tuesday, Saturday: 19:55.
From October 30 -- Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Sunday: 06:05; Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday: 11:00 (No flights December 25, 26, January 1).
Flight time: 1hr 35mins.

20110716

Five departure points from Greece and islands for flights to Bergamo's Orio al Serio airport

Ryanair flies from Greece
More than 30 departure points around Europe and North Africa now offer flights to Bergamo's Orio al Serio airport, the fourth busiest in Italy.
A popular arrival point for visitors to Milan and the Italian Lakes, as well as the city of Bergamo itself, the airport is situated only six kilometres from the centre of Bergamo.
A bus service connects the airport terminal with Bergamo's Città Bassa (lower town) and Città Alta (upper town). The journey takes about 15 minutes to Città Bassa, 25 minutes to Città Alta.
Here is Best of Bergamo’s updated schedule guide for flights to Bergamo from Greece, all operated by Ryanair, which flies out of five airports.

GREECE

Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) operates services from the islands of Crete, Rhodes and Kos and from the ports of Thessaloniki and Volos, on the mainland.

From Crete (Chania)
Until October 28 -- Monday: 21:20; Friday: 11:15.
Flight time: 2hrs 40mins.

From Kos
Until October 29 -- Tuesday: 16:20; Thursday: 10:40; Saturday: 12:40.
Flight time: 2hrs 55mins.

From Rhodes
Until October 27 -- Tuesday: 11:30; Thursday: 13:40; Sunday: 17:40.
Flight time: 2hrs 55mins.

From Thessaloniki
Until October 28 -- Monday, Friday: 11:15; Wednesday: 10:20; Thursday: 21:05; Sunday: 10:50.
From October 30 -- Monday, Sunday: 10:55; Wednesday, Friday: 10:50 (No flights December 25, 26).

From Volos
Until October 27 -- Thursday: 18:30; Sunday: 10:30.
Flight time: 2hrs 20mins.








20110714

When the bell tolls 100 times

Not to be missed in Bergamo's Città Alta...

Il Campanone
BIG BELL TOWER (il Campanone) 

The distinctive Campanone -- literally, the 'big bell' tower -- in Bergamo’s Città Alta (upper town) is a familiar part of the skyline, visible from miles away.
Bergamo’s bell tower dates back to at least the 12th century. It is also known as the Torre Civica (Civic Tower) and stands next to the Palazzo della Ragione, dominating a corner of Piazza Vecchia. From the top there are wonderful views over Bergamo and the surrounding countryside.
If you are in Piazza Vecchia at 10pm on any evening you will hear the bell toll 100 times marking the ancient curfew, when the gates in Bergamo’s walls were locked at night to keep the city safe from outsiders.
The bell tolled at 10pm to remind the Bergamaschi that it was time to come back inside the walls or be locked out for the night. Although residents and visitors to the Città Alta can now come and go as they please, the tradition of 100 chimes at 10pm continues.
The structure of the tower has been modified over the centuries as a result of fire damage and being struck by lightning. A clock face was added to it in the 15th century.
The big bell itself had a narrow escape during the Second World War when the Germans considered melting it down to manufacture weapons, but thankfully it survived.
Il Campanone, or la Torre Civica, is open on Saturdays and festive days only between 9.30 and 16.30. On other days it can be visited by request. There is a lift to the top.
To discuss arranging a visit, call into the Tourist Office in nearby Via Gombito.






20110709

Fly to Bergamo from four cities in Germany

Orio al Serio is Italy's fourth busiest airport
Visitors can fly to Bergamo from more than 30 departure points around Europe and North Africa.  Bergamo's Orio al Serio airport, the fourth busiest in Italy, is a popular arrival point for visitors to Milan and the Italian Lakes as well as the city of Bergamo itself.

The airport is situated only six kilometres from the centre of Bergamo. A bus service connects the airport terminal with Bergamo's Città Bassa (lower town) and Città Alta (upper town). The journey takes about 15 minutes to Città Bassa, 25 minutes to Città Alta.

Here is Best of Bergamo’s updated schedule guide for flights to Bergamo from Germany, all operated by Ryanair, which flies out of four airports.

GERMANY

Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) flies daily from Berlin Schoenfeld, from Weeze, which is an hour to the north-west of Dusseldorf, and Hahn, an hour and a half west of Frankfurt, as well as three times weekly from Lubeck, which is an hour to the north-east of Hamburg.
From Berlin Schoenfeld
Until  October 29 -- Monday: 08:35; Tuesday, Thursday: 17:30; Wednesday, Friday, Sunday: 08:45; Saturday: 08:25.
From October 30 -- Daily: 11:40 (No flights December 24, 25, 26, 31, January 1).
Flight time: 1hr 35mins.
From Hamburg Lubeck 
Until October 28 -- Wednesday, Friday: 18:30; Sunday: 11:10.
From November 1 -- Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday: 12:50 (No flights December 24, 31).
Flight time: 1hr 35mins.
From Dusseldorf Weeze
Until October 29 -- Daily: 22:05.
From October 30 -- Monday, Wednesday, Friday: 15:15; Thursday: 10:00; Sunday: 14:30 (No flights December 24-27, 31, January 1).
Flight time: 1hr 30mins.
From Frankfurt Hahn
Until October 29 -- Monday to Saturday: 06:35; Sunday: 07:10.
From October 30 -- Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Sunday: 06:35 (No flights December 24-27, 31, January 1).
Flight time: 1hr 15mins.





20110708

Grand 12th century palazzo is the focal point of the city


Not to be missed in Bergamo's Città Alta...

PALACE OF REASON (Palazzo della Ragione)

The Palazzo della Ragione looks over the busy piazza
The 12th century Palazzo della Ragione is an imposing presence at the southern end of Piazza Vecchia and perhaps the most frequently pictured building of the Città Alta (upper town).
The ground floor walls of the Palazzo were removed in the 15th century, allowing a view through the arches into Piazza Duomo. This provides a glimpse of the sumptuous façade of the Colleoni Chapel, which is in stark contrast to the dark stone of the Palazzo.
It is claimed court cases used to be heard under the open arcades that now form the ground floor of the Palazzo and that prisoners were put on show there for the Bergamaschi to see.
A grand covered stairway, which was added in 1453, rises from Piazza Vecchia to the first floor of the Palazzo and 13th and 14th century frescoes, taken from old churches and houses in the surrounding area, decorate the upper hall.
The carving of the lion over the central window was added to the exterior of the building in the 18th century, a symbol of the power once held by the Venetians over Bergamo .
Visitors this summer will be able to see the inside of the Palazzo and also enjoy some of the finest paintings from the prestigious Accademia Carrara collection.
The palazzo's elegant covered staircase
The Accademia’s neoclassical building in the Città Bassa (lower town) is currently closed for restoration, but a selection of the gallery’s most important works have been put on show in the Truss Room of the Palazzo.
The exhibition ‘Vincere il Tempo’ (literally Winning Time) will run throughout the rest of 2011. It follows the collecting history of the Accademia, which was begun by Giacomo Carrara in the middle of the 18th century and has since received donations from other collectors.
Along with works by Raphael, Titian and Mantegna, masterpieces by local artists such as Giovan Battista Moroni, Fra’ Galgario and Vincenzo Foppa are on display.
The entrance to the exhibition is up the covered staircase and along the little bridge that leads to the top floor of the Palazzo.

Opening hours: From June to September, Tues–Sun 10.00 – 21.00 (Sat till 23.00); from October Tues–Fri 9.30 – 17.30; Sat and Sun 10.00 – 18.00. Closed Mondays.
The ticket price is €5, but there are reductions for groups and families. For more information visit www.accademiacarrara.bergamo.it or telephone +39 035 399677.




Flights from Paris and Lourdes give French visitors direct route to Bergamo

Visitors can fly to Bergamo from more than 30 departure points around Europe and North Africa.  Bergamo's Orio al Serio airport, the fourth busiest in Italy, is a popular arrival point for visitors to Milan and the Italian Lakes as well as the city of Bergamo itself.

Orio al Serio airport in Bergamo
The airport is situated only six kilometres from the centre of Bergamo. A bus service connects the airport terminal with Bergamo's Città Bassa (lower town) and Città Alta (upper town). The journey takes about 15 minutes to Città Bassa, 25 minutes to Città Alta.

Here is Best of Bergamo’s updated schedule guide for services from France.

FRANCE

Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) flies twice daily -- three times on Saturday -- to Bergamo from Paris Beauvais airport, which is about an hour and a half north of Paris, and a couple of hours south of Calais, and twice a week during the summer from Lourdes. 
From Lourdes 
Until October 29 -- Tuesday: 12:50; Saturday: 16:40.
Flight time: 1hr 35mins.
From Paris Beauvais
Until October 29 -- Daily (except Saturday): 08:30, 22:30; Saturday: 08:30, 17:15, 22:40.
From October 30 -- Daily: 08:30, 21:50 (No flights December 24, 25, 26, 31, January 1). 
Flight time: 1hr 35mins.

Flying to Bergamo from Estonia and Finland

Visitors can fly to Bergamo from more than 30 departure points around Europe and North Africa.  Bergamo's Orio al Serio airport, the fourth busiest in Italy, is a popular arrival point for visitors to Milan and the Italian Lakes as well as the city of Bergamo itself.

Orio al Serio airport in Bergamo
The airport is situated only six kilometres from the centre of Bergamo. A bus service connects the airport terminal with Bergamo's Città Bassa (lower town) and Città Alta (upper town). The journey takes about 15 minutes to Città Bassa, 25 minutes to Città Alta.

Here is Best of Bergamo’s updated schedule guide for services from Estonia and Finland.

ESTONIA
Ryanair (www.ryanair.comoperates up to three flights per week from the capital, Tallinn.
From Tallinn 
Until October 27 -- Tuesday, Thursday: 11:50; Sunday: 21:40.
From October 30 -- Thursday: 11:50; Sunday: 18:10 (No flight December 25, January 1).
Flight time: 3hrs.


FINLAND
Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) operates two flights per week to Bergamo from Lappeenranta, three hours north-east of the capital, Helsinki, and five per week during the summer months from Tampere, which is about two hours north-west.
From Lappeenranta 
Until October 29 -- Wednesday: 12:35; Saturday: 21:40.
From November 1 -- Tuesday: 11:45; Saturday: 19:45 (No flights December 24, 31).
Flight times: 3hrs.
From Tampere 
Until October 28 -- Monday, Friday: 13:35; Tuesday: 12:40; Wednesday: 11:05; .Sunday: 18:05. 
Flight times: 3hrs.







20110707

Flights to Bergamo from Denmark

Visitors can fly to Bergamo from more than 30 departure points around Europe and North Africa.  Bergamo's Orio al Serio airport, the fourth busiest in Italy, is a popular arrival point for visitors to Milan and the Italian Lakes as well as the city of Bergamo itself.
Ryanair flies from Denmark

The airport is situated only six kilometres from the centre of Bergamo. A bus service connects the airport terminal with Bergamo's Città Bassa (lower town) and Città Alta (upper town). The journey takes about 15 minutes to Città Bassa, 25 minutes to Città Alta.

Here is Best of Bergamo’s updated schedule guide for services from Denmark,  operated by Ryanair (www.ryanair.com), who fly three times a week from Billund, in central Denmark, about three hours from Copenhagen. Flight schedule:

DENMARK
From Billund 
Until October 28 -- Monday: 12:20; Wednesday, Friday: 13:15.
Flight time: 2hrs.


Return to flights guide





Renaissance jewel in Bergamo's crown

Not to be missed in Bergamo's Città Alta...

COLLEONI CHAPEL (La Cappella Colleoni)

Colleoni Chapel
Considered to be the jewel in Bergamo’s crown, the Colleoni Chapel has been acclaimed as one of the finest examples of Renaissance architecture in Italy.
The chapel in Piazza Duomo was built by order of military leader Bartolomeo Colleoni to be a fitting home for his own tomb.
There is a story that the wealthy condottiero asked for his tomb to be positioned so that the sun illuminated it when it shone through the circular window.
The chapel was designed by Giovanni Antonio Amadeo and has been likened to a jewel box because of its ornate pink and white marble façade decorated with pillars and statues.
It was built between 1472 and 1476 and designed to harmonise with the architecture of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, which stands next to it. Colleoni was so powerful at the time that he had been able to order the demolition of the sacristry of the basilica to make way for his chapel.
Bartolomeo Colleoni was born in Solza, just outside Bergamo in 1400 and began his military career at the age of 15. After Bergamo came under the control of Venice, he was entrusted by the republic with commanding the armies deployed to defend it.
The Chapel glimpsed from
the Piazza Vecchia
In 1456 he acquired a castle at Malpaga to the south of Bergamo and settled down to live peacefully with his wife and eight children and carry out works to benefit the area.
He commissioned the architect Amadeo to design a chapel where he could be buried with the insignia of a captain of the Venetian republic. He died on 2 November 1475 and his body was placed in the sarcophagus inside the chapel where it still lies.
He left money to Venice with a request that a statue of himself be erected in Piazza San Marco. As there was a rule that no monuments were allowed in the Piazza, the statue was placed opposite the Scuola di San Marco in Campo Santi Giovanni e Paolo.

INSIDE THE CHAPEL:
On the right hand side, Colleoni’s body rests in the larger marble sarcophagus, which is decorated with scenes from the life of Christ.
The smaller sarcophagus above was designed for the body of his wife, Thisbe, but it is believed she was not buried there.
Above is a gilded wooden statue representing Colleoni on horseback.
On the back wall is a tomb containing the body of Colleoni’s favourite daughter Medea. This was added much later and her body was reburied there.
There are frescoes above the tombs by Giambattista Tiepolo.

Opening hours: Tues – Sun 9.00 – 12.30/14.00-16.30 (till 18.00 after March). Closed Mondays. Tel +39 035 210061.