Les meilleurs hôtels à Parme

Food figures heavily into Parma's history and culture. For instance, everyone knows Parmesan cheese, and the city is renowned for its culatello (salted pork), sweet prosciutto, San Secondo cooked ham, and Felino salami. Parma is situated in north Italy's Emilia-Romagna Region along the Via Emilia -- one of the great ancient Roman roads. Dating back to 183 B.C., Parma has been an important transport hub. Nowadays, the city is home to some 180,000 people. Given fertile surrounding lands, Parma developed as a regional agriculture market. That heritage is reflected in its modern farm machinery and fertilizer industries. Pharmaceuticals and petroleum spur the local economy as well. The University of Parma (founded in the 13th century) and a fine arts academy lead a list of cultural institutions in this, the hometown of Arturo Toscanini. Tourists are drawn to Parma's 12th century cathedral, its octagonal Romanesque-Gothic Baptistry, and artworks in the Pilotta Palace. Local events and festivals are highlighted by an international competition for young opera singers, and various food fairs, naturally.