Culture and cuisine go hand in hand in Parma – but tourists are surprisingly few

By -D'Bills

January 17, 2025

. Head there in 2025, before the secret gets out.

Art and architecture

Central Parma is compact, and its streets and piazzas are easily explored on foot. Its numerous delis, with enticing displays and aromas, are dotted throughout the city, interspersed with churches, theatres and other eye-catching monuments.

, by local Renaissance artist Correggio, decorating the cathedral dome, and, in the monumental baptistry, an evocative series of sculptures by Benedetto Antelami, also the building’s architect.

Room with a view

, a medieval building that makes a perfect base for exploring Parma. Many of the apartments and rooms are furnished with items from previous generations of the Dalla Rosa Prati family, who have owned the building since the 15th century and still live here. The views are memorable (from room five you can see through the baptistry windows to the frescoes inside) and the palazzo’s courtyard has a vast wisteria. Exhibitions are held on the ground floor and there’s a shop selling food and perfumes.

Temple of music

, another local figure with hero status. Theatre tours (daily except Mondays) give fascinating insights into Parma’s history and culture.

Say cheese

). Be prepared for an early start to see procedures that have changed little since medieval monks first perfected them. Traditional equipment is used, ingredients are limited to locally produced milk, rennet and salt, and everything is done by hand, even hefting the 50kg (8st) wheels from the vat using strips of linen.

Castles and wine

, a lovely restaurant combining contemporary and tradition in both dishes and décor, opposite the impressive 12th-century Montechiarugolo castle.

Into the Food Valley

and is committed to sustainability in all fields, even down to the restaurant flooring made from discarded tomato skins.

, founded in 1877 by Pietro Barilla, now a household name and the world’s top pasta producer. The original premises in central Parma is now an interesting multisensorial visitor centre, Bottega Barilla (Friday-Sunday).

, is actually horse-meat tartare.

Pass the prosciutto

, a contemporary restaurant and cocktail bar owned by the Montali family, artisan producers of superior-quality Parma hams, Ruliano. The menu, created by executive chef, three-Michelin-starred Heinz Beck, has intriguing seasonal combinations such as pasta with root vegetable ragout or pomegranate-marinated chicory with goat’s cheese.

portrait, actually a noblewoman. See it at the National Gallery within the Palazzo della Pilotta museums complex, which also hosts the 17th-century wooden Farnese theatre, where spectacular video-mapping brings the past to life.