I'm not much of a car person, I lovingly drove a cute Ford Focus most of my life and now currently rock a Toyota Corolla. I thought cars weren't really my thing, that is, until I found out I'd be visiting the Enzo Ferrari Museum in Modena, Italy! Yes, that's right, I would be visiting the museum and region where some of the world's most beautiful cars are made. But back up a second, why was I going there?
With many of my travels, I usually get to go to places off the beaten path for work and this time was no exception. For this trip, I was going to a conference in Modena, Italy to give a talk for my research on autonomous driving and lo and behold also found out that this was the region known as 'Motor Valley'. Motor Valley is in the Northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna and is characterized by a high concentration of car and motorcycle manufacturers, race tracks and museums. The region is historically linked to the production of race cars such as Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati, Dallara and Ducati and is famous for the racetracks in Imola and Misano! So suffice it to say, speed and cars course through the veins of this historic Italian region.
More beautiful cars...
Like I said before, I'm not much of a car person, but when I found out one of the social events of my conference was to tour the Enzo Ferrari Museum in Maranello I was intrigued. So here's my take on the famous Enzo Ferrari Museum and some photos from my time there.
Getting there: First and foremost, how to get there. The Enzo Ferrari Museum is technically located in Maranello, which is a small town in the province of Modena, in Northern Italy. To get there I would recommend starting or staying in Modena proper and driving or taking a cab from there (it's about 11 miles from Modena's city center). If you're coming from other areas in Italy, the Trenitalia train doesn't go there directly, so you'll have to catch a ride to the Bologna Central Station, take a smaller train from there to Modena and catch a cab or car to Maranello and vrooooom you're there!
About the Enzo Ferrari Museum: Established in 2003, the 'Fondazione Casa Natale di Enzo Ferrari- Museo' was designed with the intention of promoting Modena's motoring tradition and to create a museum dedicated to Enzo Ferrari. The Ferrari museums are open to the public seven days a week, however they do recommend that you book your tickets in advance. Tickets can be booked online here.
What I loved the most: Once inside, I was immediately in awe of all of the different Ferrari models and beautiful cars that were on display. You could really see how the design changed throughout the different decades and over the many years Ferrari has been around.
You're able to take a self-guided tour throughout the museum and I have to say some of these were absolute works of art. Everyone's taste is different, but I'm such an old soul and an absolute sucker for a vintage roadster. These were some of my favorites and (drool) were they BEAUTIFUL <3
I also really loved being able to see some of the sketches and materials used during the prototype and design phase for some of these Ferrari's as well.
Towards the exit, you'll enter the room where all the awards and Formula One trophies are kept, which was really cool. Of course I knew that Ferrari was a big deal, but I hadn't realized how big or how much it contributed to the region and auto manufacturing in general.
And that's it, I have to say I was so grateful for this experience. Getting to speak about my autonomous driving research in the Motor Valley region of Italy AND getting a tour of the Enzo Ferrari Museum was one of the special highlights of my life. Before this, I really didn't have an appreciation for beautifully made cars. I probably won't ever be able to afford one myself, but it was truly special to see the different designs throughout the years and of course some of the historic originals.
There are a few other driving experiences outside the museum if you're in the Maranello region including safe driving courses and race tracks just click here to explore.
I hope you enjoyed my virtual tour of the Enzo Ferrari Museum and find the time to go and explore yourself!