This content was automatically translated. View the original text.
Loiano is an important tourist centre in the Bolognese Apennines. It boasts a privileged position thanks to its proximity to the historic Strada della Futa, which connects the cities of Bologna and Florence. This road is the privileged destination of the "Mille Miglia", the famous car race that crosses the Apennines towards Rome.
Loiano is also home to the Astronomical Observatory of the University of Bologna, founded in 1936 and equipped with modern instruments to conduct studies of the night sky and explore the vastness of the universe. Among its attractions is an old Zeiss telescope dating back to the 1930s, as well as a more recent one with a diameter of 152 cm, dedicated to the astronomer Domenico Cassini.
For mountain bike enthusiasts, in Loiano riders can test themselves on the trails of the Bologna Montana Bike Area, the mountain circuit dedicated entirely to cross-country and enduro lovers. At BOM.BA. there are also tracks for downhill, freeride and enduro, which attract cyclists from all over the region. In 2014, the area even hosted a stage of the Challenge Emilia-Romagna mountain bike championship.
The history of Loiano also includes one of the most fascinating episodes of the Italian Risorgimento. On 28 September 1859, in the small town of Scanello at Palazzo Loup, a secret summit was held that would later lead to the adoption of the single currency, the lira, in view of the unification of the Kingdom of Italy under Victor Emanuel II. In Scanello, another landmark is the church of St John the Baptist, dating back to the 18th century.
In addition to Scanello, other villages worth visiting are Barbarolo, founded in 1902 and home for over half a century to the Cassa Rurale di Depositi e Prestiti (now the Banca di Credito Cooperativo, which moved to the provincial capital in 1958), and Sabbioni, which originated from a rest stop with a tavern nearby. The old building is still visible today, although the restoration after damage during the Second World War could not fully restore its original appearance.
All these villages are also home to works of land art forming part of the Bologna Montana Art Trail, a route of about 100 km characterised by works made from natural materials recovered from building sites.
40050 Loiano BO, Italy
