Parma in ten riddles, from the Farnese gardens to Correggio's dome
The Parma scavenger hunt is a self-guided city game you play on your phone: you walk from landmark to landmark, solve a riddle at each one by looking closely at what is in front of you, and unlock the stories and legends behind it. Plan on roughly 2 hours for the whole game, although Parma packs its 10 stops so tightly that the legs between them total a mere 1.9 km, or 26 minutes on foot, from the ducal gardens to the cathedral square.
Highlights include the gardens of the Parco Ducale, the vast Farnese palace of the Pilotta, the monument to Giuseppe Verdi, the Teatro Regio opera house, the Steccata basilica, Piazza Garibaldi on the old Roman forum and the pink marble Baptistery next to the Cathedral. Parma's centre is flat and compact, with many traffic-free streets, so the stops are close together.
- Durationabout 2 hours
- Walkingabout 26 min · 1.9 km
- Stops10
- LanguagesEnglish, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch
Riddles from the ducal gardens to a Romanesque cathedral
Clues in brick, marble and stone
Every stop sets one riddle, and the answer is in plain sight: a detail on the unfinished walls of the Pilotta, a figure carved on the Baptistery, the clock on the tower of the Governor's Palace. Sharp eyes and a little reasoning are all it takes, with no homework on the Farnese dukes beforehand.
Dukes, a duchess and a composer
Solving a riddle opens the stories behind the stop: a palace named after a ball game, an opera house commissioned by Napoleon's second wife, a basilica that takes its name from the wooden fence once put up to hold back the faithful. Switch on the audio narration and keep your eyes on the city while you listen.
Short hops across the old town
Google Maps leads you from stop to stop, and the hops are short: 1.9 km and 26 minutes of walking in all, over the river from the Parco Ducale and on through largely car-free streets to the Duomo. The river bank is about as steep as Parma gets.
A break for Parma's own flavours
The game waits whenever you stop, so there is time for a coffee on Piazza Garibaldi or a plate of Parma ham and Parmigiano Reggiano along the way. Pick up where you left off later that day, or save the final riddles for tomorrow.
See the route and attractions →
How it works
- Book online Choose the number of players. Your booking reference arrives by email straight away.
- Get the app Download the World City Trail app from the App Store or Google Play and enter your booking reference.
- Play when you like Start whenever you are ready, walk at your own pace and pause any time. No guide, no fixed schedule.
A good fit for a day on the Via Emilia, a family outing or a team
Day trippers on the Via Emilia
Parma lies on the railway between Milan and Bologna, and this game shows you the essentials of the city in about 2 hours, between a morning train and a long lunch. The riddles give a short visit a clear thread from the river to the cathedral.
Children with sharp eyes
Young players like hunting for the stone lions at the cathedral portal, counting the sides of the octagonal Baptistery and spotting the fountain on its island in the ducal pond. Each team needs a grown-up, and since no stop is more than a few minutes from the next, younger children rarely tire before the end.
Friends, clubs and colleagues
Up to 5 people play as one team, each with the game on their own phone, so a larger group can split up in the Parco Ducale and meet again on Piazza Duomo. Since the whole game takes place in Parma's public streets and squares, the only thing a group has to book is a ticket per player.
Good to know
- Bring a charged smartphone with mobile data; a power bank helps.
- No entry tickets needed: everything happens outside the buildings. Going inside is optional and paid separately.
- Family friendly; children must be accompanied by an adult.
- Not suitable for wheelchair users and difficult with strollers.
- Teams of up to 5 work best; bigger groups split into several teams, one ticket per player.
- Every purchase helps support stray cats and dogs in Greece.
Anonymous (verified owner) –
Very nice!