Parma is located in northern Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region, about half-way between Bologna (situated 89 km away) and Milan (110 km away).

By car

Parma lies on the Milan-Bologna A1 and the Parma-La Spezia A15 motorways, and has two motorway exits:
- the “Parma Ovest” or Parma West exit on the A15 motorway (from La Spezia) near the junction with the A1, about 10 km from town, heading towards Milan;
- the “Parma” exit on the A1 motorway (from Milan or from Rome-Naples) lies about 2 km from historic centre.

Other roads into the city are:
- Strada Statale or State Highway 9, called the Via Emilia
- Strada Statale or State Highway 62, called the Cisa
- the Asolana highway from Mantua and Lake Garda

By train

Parma lies on the Milan-Bologna railway line and is well-linked to most other Italian and European destinations. At least one train an hour links the city to Milan or Bologna, and connections with Turin, Genoa and the coasts of Liguria and Romagna are also well served. Eurostar trains bound for Rome and Florence also call at Parma.

For information and to see timetables, go straight to the railways’ website: www.trenitalia.com.

By air

From Parma’s Giuseppe Verdi airport (www.aeroportoparma.it), located just 5 km from town, one can conveniently reach the historical centre by taxi or by means of bus no.11. Parma currently has a daily flight to Rome.

How to get around in Parma

By Bus

Parma has an excellent urban and out-of-town transport service that runs both by day and night.

For information and to check timetables, see the website of TEP, the local transport company: www.tep.pr.it

By car

There are certain traffic limitations to be respected in the centre of town: areas comprising the historical centre are called “Isole ambientali” or environmental islands, and access is only permitted to residents. There are also ZTL or Restricted Traffic Areas where access to non-residents is only permitted after 20.30.

Car parks

In other areas, parking is regulated by means of the blue-line system. Parking is subject to payment of a variable amount that must be paid at the parking ticket dispensers or by means of pre-paid parking cards that can be purchased from bars, newsagents, tobacco shops and TEP sales points.

The historical centre can be reached in just a few minutes’ walk from the three payment car parks: Goito (between Viale Toscanini and Via Farini), Toschi (Viale Mariotti) and Duc Parking (Viale Mentana).

By bike

At Parma Punto Bici, in Viale Toschi 2 (about 400 metres from the railway station) it is possible to hire electric bicycles, traditional bikes for adults and children and tandems for one or more days. It costs 90 cents to hire an electric bike for one hour, whilst traditional bikes cost 70 cents an hour. Parma Punto Bici is open Monday to Saturday at the following times: 9.30-13.00 and 15.00-18.30.