Happy TravellerWelcome to Bergamo, a stunning city located in the Lombardy region of northern Italy. With its rich history, breathtaking landscapes, and delicious cuisine, Bergamo is a must-visit destination for any traveler. The city is situated approximately 40 km (25 mi) northeast of Milan, and about 30 km (19 mi) from Switzerland, the alpine lakes Como and Iseo and 70 km (43 mi) from Garda and Maggiore. The Bergamo Alps (Alpi Orobie) begin immediately north of the city. With a population of around 120,000, Bergamo is the fourth-largest city in Lombardy. Bergamo is the seat of the Province of Bergamo, which counts over 1,103,000 residents (2020). The metropolitan area of Bergamo extends beyond the administrative city limits, spanning over a densely urbanized area with slightly less than 500,000 inhabitants. The Bergamo metropolitan area is itself part of the broader Milan metropolitan area, home to over 8 million people.
The city of Bergamo is composed of an old walled core, known as Città Alta (Upper Town), nestled within a system of hills, and the modern expansion in the plains below. The upper town is encircled by massive Venetian defensive systems that are a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 9 July 2017.
Bergamo is well connected to several cities in Italy, thanks to the motorway A4 stretching on the axis between Milan, Verona, and Venice. The city is served by Il Caravaggio International Airport, the third-busiest airport in Italy with 12.3 million passengers in 2017. Bergamo is the second most visited city in Lombardy after Milan.
The town has two centres: Città alta (upper city), a hilltop medieval town, surrounded by 16th-century defensive walls, and the Città bassa (lower city). The two parts of the town are connected by funicular, roads, and footpaths. The upper city, surrounded by Venetian walls built in the 16th century, forms the historic centre of Bergamo. Walking along the narrow medieval streets, you can visit numerous places of interest including: Cittadella (Citadel), Piazza Vecchia Palazzo della Ragione, Palazzo Nuovo (Biblioteca Civica Angelo Mai), Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, Cappella Colleoni, Battistero (Baptistry), Bergamo Cathedral, Rocca, San Michele al Pozzo Bianco, Tempietto di Santa Croce, Museo Civico Archeologico, Museo di Scienze Naturali Enrico Caffi, Orto Botanico di Bergamo Lorenzo Rota (botanical garden).
The lower city is the modern centre of Bergamo. At the end of the 19th century Città Bassa was composed of residential neighborhoods built along the main roads that linked Bergamo to the other cities of Lombardy. The main boroughs were Borgo Palazzo along the road to Brescia, Borgo San Leonardo along the road to Milan and Borgo Santa Caterina along the road to Serio Valley. The city rapidly expanded during the 20th century. In the first decades, the municipality erected major buildings like the new courthouse and various administrative offices in the lower part of Bergamo in order to create a new center of the city. After World War II many residential buildings were constructed in the lower part of the city which are now divided into twenty-five neighborhoods: Boccaleone, Borgo Palazzo, Borgo Santa Caterina, Campagnola, Carnovali, Celadina, Centro-Papa Giovanni XXIII, Centro-Pignolo, Centro-SantA
