Piacenza is the westernmost of the nine provinces in the region of Emilia-Romagna in northwestern Italy. The main elements of tourist attraction in the province are food and wine and castles. As for winter sports, in the Bobbio area there are cross-country ski runs and ski lifts for alpine skiing.
The northernmost part of the province is largely flat but the southernmost two thirds are hilly and extend to the Ligurian Apennine Mountains.
The coldest month is January with average temperatures just above freezing for the plains and just below freezing for the mountains, while the hottest month is July with an average temperature of 22.9 °C in the capital and of 18.1 °C in the mountains.
Mi Muovo is an integrated public transport pass for the region. Short-stay visitors might use "Mi Muovo Multibus", a 12-trip bus ticket, see Emilia Romagna#Get around.
The province has a wealth of religious architecture. The Romanesque Abbey of San Colombano in Bobbio was built in 614. The Cathedral of Piacenza (1122-1233) is the mother church of the diocese of Piacenza-Bobbio. The Cathedral of Bobbio (11th century) is the co-cathedral of the diocese of Piacenza-Bobbio. The Basilica of Santa Maria di Campagna in Piacenza (1522-1528) contains a vast Mannerist pictorial cycle of the early 16th century. The Basilica of Sant'Antonino in Piacenza (350-375) preserves the relics of Antonino, a Christian martyr killed near Travo. The Basilica of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Cortemaggiore (1480-1495) houses a polyptych of 12 Filippo Mazzola panels.
The important civil architecture of the province includes the Palazzo Comunale in Piacenza (1281), seat of the city government in the Middle Ages. The Palazzo Farnese in Piacenza (16th century) was designed by Vignola as a representative palace, butvwas not completed due to the changed political conditions that interrupted the works.
Amongst is military heritage sites is Rivalta Castle, in the Rivalta fortified village, which guarded the access to the Trebbia valley from the plain. Grazzano Visconti, a small fortress in Vigolzone, was built in 1395 and restored in the early twentieth century by Count Giuseppe Visconti di Modrone. Rocca Viscontea, built between 1342 and 1347, dominates the fortified village of Castell'Arquato. Riva Castle, on the right bank of the Nure stream, in Ponte dell'Olio, controlled the passage from the plain to the first elevations of the Nure valley. Castello di Vigoleno fortified complex in Vernasca was built in the 10th century and rebuilt in 1389. Archaeological sites
The archaeological excavations of Veleia, in Lugagnano Val d'Arda, house the remains of a Roman municipium which fell into ruin starting from the 4th century. Piana di San Martino, in Pianello Val Tidone, contains the remains of a settlement inhabited in between the Bronze Age and the Iron Age.
Piacenza gastronomy boasts various typical dishes that over time have become known outside the province, such as pisarei and faśö, and tortelli alla piacentina. An important role in Piacenza gastronomy is held by cured meats, of which the three most famous, bearing the mark DOP, are the salami from Piacenza, the coppa from Piacenza and Piacenza bacon. Other cured meats that do not have the DOP indication are mariola, a sort of salami typical especially of the Nure valley and which enjoys the recognition of Slow Food presidium, salami gentile and lard which, crushed together with parsley (pistä 'd gras), is also used as an ingredient in different dishes.
Cold cuts are the main Piacenza appetizer; other popular dishes are cooked salami , greaves (called graséi in Piacenza), bortellina from the Nure valley, the Trebbia valley and the Tidone valley, a sort of pancake made with flour, accompanied with cured meats or cheeses, the chisulén or fried cake, typical only of some municipalities of the lower Val d'Arda, but very common in other provinces of Emilia-Romagna, sometimes with the name of fried dumpling, always paired with cured meats, batarö, a focaccia from Val Tidone, fried polenta and the potato cake typical of the upper Nure valley.
The best-known sauces are the walnut sauce (ajà) and the Ligurian pesto on the Apennines, an area that has always been influenced by the influence of Genoa and Liguria, the parsley sauce and the Farnese-style liver sauce.
Other first courses include bread and flour dumplings with bean sauce dressing, and tortelli alla piacentina, anolini, fresh pasta filled with stewed meat served in broth, the anolini used in the Val d'Arda, a variant of those just mentioned in which the stew is replaced by cheese, pumpkin tortelli, different from those of Mantua and Cremona due to the absence of amaretti, chestnut tortelli, typical of the mountains, the poorly made and macaroni made with a knitting needle (macaron cun agùcia) by Bobbio, the half sleeves of the friars , a sort of large stuffed macaroni, tagliatelle or trofie with walnut sauce typical of the mountains and Liguria, risotto alla Primogenita, risotto with mushrooms, rice and cabbage (with pork ribs), risotto with livers, risotto with pork tails and panzerotti alla piacentina (cylinders of fresh baked pasta stuffed with ricotta, chard and grana padano).
Very common among the latter are roast duck and guinea fowl, pìcula 'd cavall (small horse), stewed donkey, stewed Piacentina, Bobbio 's rice bomb, snails alla bobbies, the key or pocket (stuffed veal tip) variant of the Genoese top that is at home on the Apennines, the delicate stewed eel, the marinated eel known as puppet or büratëin , stuffed zucchini of the Apennines that show clear Ligurian traces and, among the poorest second courses, stewed cod and polenta, available in different variations including consa, that is, with layers of sauce and parmesan cheese, or with cracklings, or in accompaniment to pìcula 'd caval.
The DOP cheeses are Grana Padano and Provolone Val Padana; in the mountain areas, cheeses are still produced with sheep, goat and cow milk.
There is no great confectionery tradition, however there is no shortage of desserts: turtlìt (sweet tortelli), pies, standing milk, buslàn (donut) and buslanëin (donuts), and spongata very common in Monticelli d'Ongina and in Val d'Arda. Very common on the tables of Piacenza, as well as in other areas of Lombardy and Emilia, is the sbrisolona cake originating, however, from Mantua. Piacenza gastronomy boasts various typical dishes that over time have become known even outside the province itself, such as pisarei and faśö and tortelli alla Piacentina. An important role in Piacenza gastronomy is held by cured meats, of which the three most famous, marked with the DOP mark, are Piacenza salami, Piacenza coppa and Piacenza pancetta. Thanks to their presence, Piacenza is the only Italian province to include three DOP cured meats. Other cured meats that do not have the PDO indication are mariola, a kind of salami typical especially of the Nure valley and which enjoys the recognition of Slow Food presidium, salami gentile and lard which, crushed together with parsley (pistä 'd gras), it is also used as an ingredient in various dishes. The cured meats are the main Piacenza appetizer; other popular dishes are cooked salami, greaves (called graséi in Piacenza), bortellina (burtlëina in Piacentino) from Val Nure, Val Trebbia and Val Tidone, a sort of flour pancake, accompanied with cold cuts or cheeses, chisulén or cake fried, typical only of some municipalities of the lower Val d'Arda, but very common in other provinces of Emilia-Romagna, sometimes with the name of fried dumpling, always in combination with cured meats, the batarö, a focaccina originating from the Tidone valley, the fried polenta and the potato cake typical of the upper Nure valley. The best-known sauces are the walnut sauce (ajà) and the Ligurian pesto on the Apennines, an area that has always been influenced by the influence of Genoa and Liguria, the parsley sauce and the Farnese-style liver sauce. Among the first courses there are the aforementioned pisarei and fasö, bread and flour dumplings with bean sauce dressing, and tortelli alla piacentina, anolini (anvëin), fresh pasta filled with stewed meat served in broth, anolini the use of the Val d'Arda, a variant of those just mentioned in which the stew is replaced by cheese, pumpkin tortelli, different from those of Mantua and Cremona due to the absence of amaretti, chestnut tortelli, typical of mountain, the malfatti and the macaroni made with the sock needle (macaron cun agùcia) by Bobbio, the half sleeves of the friars, a sort of large stuffed macaroni, tagliatelle or trofie with walnut sauce typical of the mountains and Liguria , risotto alla Primogenita, risotto with mushrooms, rice and cabbage (with pork ribs), risotto with livers, risotto with pork tails and panzerotti alla piacentina (cylinders of fresh baked pasta stuffed with ricotta, chard and grana pada no), a recently introduced dish. Very common among the second courses are the roast duck and guinea fowl, the pìcula 'd cavall (small horse), the donkey stew, the Piacentina stew, the Bobbio rice bomb, the snails alla bobbiese, the key o pocket (stuffed calf tip) variant of the Genoese peak that is at home on the Apennines, the delicate stewed eel, the marinated eel known as puppet or büratëin, the stuffed courgettes of the Apennines that show clear Ligurian traces and, among the poorer second courses, stewed cod and polenta, available in different variants including consa, that is, with layers of sauce and parmesan cheese, or with cracklings, or as an accompaniment to pìcula 'd caval. The D.O.P. cheeses they are Grana Padano and Provolone Val Padana; in the mountain areas, cheeses are still produced with sheep, goat and cow milk, including the cheese from which the saltaréi worms come out, whose marketing has been banned following European directives, but which continues to be produced on a family level . There is no great confectionery tradition, however there is no lack of desserts: turtlìt (sweet tortelli), pies, standing milk, buslàn (donut) and buslanëin (donuts) and the spongata very common in Monticelli d'Ongina and in val d'Arda, a cake probably of early medieval origin spread by Benedictine monasteries in the lower Piacenza area as well as in the province of Parma, Reggiano and other areas; there is evidence of this in the diplomatic code of the monastery of San Colombano di Bobbio in which the Benedictine monks used to give a spongata at Christmas to those who had regularly brought them the share of the rent: giving illi qui fictum portaverit unam spongatam (giving to those who rent a spongata). Very common on the tables of Piacenza, as well as in other areas of Lombardy and Emilia, is the sbrisolona cake originally from Mantua. As can be seen from this long list of recipes from the province, the city of Bobbio can boast a good number of local recipes, so much so that its cuisine is considered, in some cases, as a stand-alone, separately from the cuisine of the rest of the province.
Viticulture is also very widespread in Piacentino, an activity whose presence in Piacenza is documented since the first millennium BC.
There are several wines produced within the DOC area of the Piacenza hills, which occupies the hilly area of the province from east to west. The wines part of the DOC Colli Piacentini that have obtained the denomination of controlled origin are in total 31 belonging to 14 types Monterosso Val d'Arda, Trebbianino Val Trebbia, Valnure, Barbera, Bonarda , Malvasia , Pinot Nero ,Sauvignon , Chardonnay , Pinot Grigio, Vin Santo di Vigoleno, Novello and Cabernet Sauvignon. To these wines is added Gutturnio, which has a separate DOC that recognizes it in 5 variants. The portion of the territory of the Val Versa falling under the jurisdiction of Piacenza falls within the DOC DOCG areas of Oltrepò Pavese.
Primary administrative division