Bologna's hilltop Madonna, reached under the world's longest portico
Photo: Stefano Zocca · Unsplash License
Why go
The climb is the experience. The portico, built between 1674 and 1715 according to Italia.it, links the city walls to the hilltop church, and the Comune calls it the longest portico ever built. It was raised so that processions could accompany the image of the Madonna when it was carried down to the city, and chapels of the Mysteries of the Rosary mark the way. Today walkers and joggers use it in all weather.
At the top, the sanctuary took its present elliptical form through the work of Carlo Francesco Dotti between 1723 and 1757. The icon was traditionally attributed to Saint Luke, but Italia.it describes it as a 12th-century Byzantine work, and studies in 1991 revealed an older drawing of the 9th–10th century beneath the panel. The church also holds paintings by Guido Reni and Guercino.
Gallery
Photo: Stefano Zocca · Unsplash License
Photo: Ferdinando Grimaldi · Pexels License · source
Photo: yusuf coşkun · Pexels License · source
Photo: Marco Biondi · Unsplash License · source
Photo: Damir K · Pexels License · source
Highlights
The image at the heart of the sanctuary is the Madonna and Child known as the Madonna di San Luca. Tradition says Saint Luke painted it and a pilgrim from Constantinople brought it to Bologna; Italia.it describes it as a 12th-century Byzantine work, and 1991 studies, recorded in the regional heritage catalogue, revealed an older drawing beneath.
The sanctuary owes its present form to the architect Carlo Francesco Dotti, who worked on it from 1723 to 1757 and gave it an elliptical plan. Inside, look for the paintings by Guido Reni and Guercino that Italia.it singles out, two of the great names of Bolognese painting.
Where the flat city stretch meets the hill, the Meloncello Arch, built in 1718, carries the portico over the street like a flyover, a bold solution for its time according to the Comune. It works almost as a theatrical backdrop and marks the start of the long climb to the sanctuary.
The route starts at the Bonaccorsi Arch and follows Via Saragozza for about 1.5 km, then rises, uphill or by steps, for more than two kilometres to the sanctuary. Some say there are 666 arches; the Comune says slightly fewer. At the 170th arch, look for Andrea Ferreri's statue of around 1706, nicknamed the 'Madonna Grassa'.
At the foot of the walk, the Cassero of Porta Saragozza, part of the 13th-century third city wall and the gate most processions to the sanctuary passed through, houses a museum opened in 2004. It tells the story of the icon, the portico and the processions with prints, ex-votos and 18th-century papier-mâché statues.
Practical information
From the official website:
Not verified: the sanctuary's opening hours are not published on the official pages that could be read (Italia.it, Comune di Bologna). Check the sanctuary's own website, santuariodisanluca.it, before you go.
The official sources checked mention no admission charge for the sanctuary; the portico is a public walkway.
Checked on the official sources in November 2026. Hours can change on holidays: check the official website before you go.
Getting there
Walk up Via di San Luca under the portico, as Italia.it suggests. The covered route starts at the Bonaccorsi Arch near Porta Saragozza, runs about 1.5 km along Via Saragozza to the Meloncello Arch, then climbs for more than two kilometres to the sanctuary.
Insider tips
Begin at the Cassero of Porta Saragozza, the medieval gate through which most processions left the city for the sanctuary, and see the small Museo della Beata Vergine di San Luca there, at Piazza di Porta Saragozza 2/a (tel. 051 6447421). Then follow the portico from the Bonaccorsi Arch.
The flat stretch along Via Saragozza is about 1.5 km; after the Meloncello Arch the route climbs, uphill or by steps, for more than two kilometres. Wear comfortable shoes, carry water and take your time: the chapels along the way make natural resting points.
The sanctuary stands on the Colle della Guardia, in what the Comune calls a strategic position above the city. Before going inside, pause on the hilltop and look back along the route you have just climbed from Porta Saragozza.
In the centre
Historic-centre restaurants and hotels from the Bologna City Guide, each with its own Holiplanet page.
Historic restaurant
Tortellini in brodo and lasagne verdi since 1909
Discover more →Traditional restaurant
Handmade tortellini and tagliatelle in Bologna since 1948
Discover more →Chef's restaurant
Mario Ferrara's Lucanian-rooted cooking in a 1600s convent
Discover more →Wine bar / osteria
Wine osteria since 1465: bring your own food
Discover more →Hotel
Romantic 3-star hotel in the ancient Quadrilatero
View hotel →Boutique hotel
12th-century building facing San Petronio's Gothic windows
View hotel →Unique stay
Sleep inside a 12th-century tower, sixty metres above Bologna
View hotel →All restaurants on the Bologna map → All hotels on the Bologna map →
Questions
About 3.6 km. Italia.it gives about 3.6 km and the Comune about 3,600 metres, describing it as the longest portico ever built. It starts at the Bonaccorsi Arch, runs about 1.5 km on the flat along Via Saragozza, crosses the Meloncello Arch and then climbs for more than two kilometres to the sanctuary.
Popular lore says 666, but the Comune's UNESCO porticoes site says the real number is slightly lower, depending on how the arches are counted. In September 2026 the Museo della Beata Vergine di San Luca even hosted a talk on the story of 'the portico of San Luca, which does not have 666 arches'.
Italia.it dates it between 1674 and 1715. The Comune says work on the flat city stretch began in 1674 and the Meloncello Arch followed in 1718. It was built so that processions could accompany the image of the Madonna di San Luca when it was carried down from the hill to the city.
Tradition attributes the icon to Saint Luke the Evangelist, and says a pilgrim from Constantinople brought it to Bologna. Italia.it describes it instead as a 12th-century Byzantine work, and the regional heritage catalogue notes that studies in 1991 found an older drawing, of the 9th–10th century, beneath the panel.
Yes. San Luca is one of the twelve components of the Porticoes of Bologna, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2021. The Comune notes that it has served civil and religious purposes for more than three centuries and is used today by walkers and joggers in all weather.
