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Pisa – a brief overview
Pretty Pisa sits beside the River Arno and grew rich on a maritime trade that rivalled that of Venice and Genoa. As a result, this small town is unusually well endowed with impressive Romanesque, Renaissance and Gothic architectural treasures, of which the Leaning Tower is the most famous.
After the city fell to Florence in 1406, the Medici fostered great artistic and scientific endeavours, giving rise to the city’s elite university. This imbued the city with a vibrant and cultured atmosphere that survives today and which spills out into its medieval piazze, lively riverfront and broad shopping boulevards.
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Top 10 sights in Pisa

The Arno
Italy
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Like Florence, Pisa sits beside the River Arno. Walk along its southern banks and admire pastel-coloured palazzi, the medieval Piazza Cairoli and photogenic Pisan-Gothic churches.
Campo dei Miracoli
56126 Pisa PI
Italy
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The so-called ‘Field of Miracles’ is a vast, manicured lawn in the centre of Pisa where Europe’s most extraordinary series of Romanesque buildings (the cathedral, the Leaning Tower and the baptistry) are arranged theatrically.
Torre di Pisa
56126 Pisa PI
Italy
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Opening times:
Daily 0830-2030 (Apr-Sep)
Daily 0900-1900 (Oct)
Daily 0900-1800 (Mar)
Daily 0940-1700 (Nov and Feb)
Daily 1000-1700 (Dec-Jan)
The 12th-century Leaning Tower really does lean a staggering 3.9m out of plumb. Climbing to its heights is dizzying and disconcerting but the views are out of this world.
Duomo
56126 Pisa PI
Italy
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Opening times:
Daily 1000-2000 (Apr-Sep)
Daily 1000-1900 (Oct)
Daily 1000-1800 (Mar)
Daily 1000-1245 and 1400-1700 (Nov-Feb)
Pisa’s stunning cream-and-green striped marble cathedral is the template for Romanesque churches throughout Tuscany. It is filled with treasures, from its medieval wooden ceiling decorated in 24-carat gold to its stunning bronze doors.
Battistero
56126 Pisa PI
Italy
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Opening times:
Daily 0800-2000 (Apr-Sep)
Daily 0900-1900 (Oct)
Daily 0900-1800 (Mar)
Daily 1000-1700 (Nov-Feb)
The pearly-white baptistry is a piece of engineering ingenuity with one dome stacked over another. In the upper gallery the custodian demonstrates its unique acoustics and echo effect.
Camposanto
56126 Pisa PI
Italy
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Opening times:
Daily 0800-2000 (Apr-Sep)
Daily 0900-1900 (Oct)
Daily 0900-1800 (Mar)
Daily 1000-1700 (Nov-Feb)
Pisa’s ‘Holy Field’ or monumental cemetery was constructed in the 13th century around soil shipped from Calvary during the Crusades. Many of its frescoes were destroyed in WWII, but some are displayed in the Sala Afreschi.
Palazzo Blu
56125 Pisa
Italy
Tel: +39 050 220 4650
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Opening times:
Tue-Fri 1000-1900
Sat-Sun 1000-2000
An ornate, riverside palace filled with elaborate 19th-century décor and Pisan artworks from the 14th to the 20th centuries.
Museo Nazionale di San Matteo
56127 Pisa
Italy
Tel: +39 050 541 865
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Opening times:
Tue-Sat 0900-1900
Sun 0900-1400
Pisa’s collection of medieval sculpture and Tuscan artworks is housed in this Benedictine monastery. Highlights of the collection include works by Masaccio and Fra Angelico, and sculpture by Nicola and Giovanni Pisano.
Museo delle Sinópie
56010 Pisa
Italy
Tel: +39 050 835 011
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Opening times:
Daily 0800-2000 (Apr-Sep)
Daily 0900-1900 (Oct)
Daily 0900-1800 (Mar)
Daily 1000-1700 (Nov-Feb)
This fascinating museum explores the fresco technique, with the aid of several sinópie (preliminary sketches), scale models and a film. The museum lays bare the methods behind the artwork.
Museo dell’Opera del Duomo
56126 Pisa PI
Italy
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Opening times:
Daily 0800-2000 (Apr-Sep)
Daily 0900-1900 (Oct)
Daily 0900-1800 (Mar)
Daily 1000-1700 (Nov-Feb)
This museum is home to all the most valuable artworks that were designed for the cathedral and baptistry. They include Giovanni Pisano’s ethereal ivory carving of the Madonna and Child, created for the high altar.
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Italy / Country Information
Country overview
Despite incessant praise, travelling in Italy remains one of those rare experiences in life – like a perfect spring day or the power of first love – that cannot be overrated. In few places do history, art, fashion, food and la dolce vita (the good life) intermingle so effortlessly.
There are sunny isles and electric blue surf, glacial northern lakes and fiery southern volcanoes, rolling vineyards and an urban landscape that harbours more UNESCO World Heritage sites than any other country in the world. Few places offer such variety and few visitors leave without a fervent desire to return.
Geography
Italy is situated in Europe, with a long coastline of approximately 7,600km (4,720 miles) stretching into the Mediterranean Sea and a mountainous northern border adjoining France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia. This northern Alpine region contains some of the highest peaks in Europe and is a good area for winter sports.
In central Italy, Tuscany has a diverse landscape composed of fertile rolling hills, lush river valleys, minor mountain ranges and a long sandy coastline. To the east is Umbria, known as the ‘green heart of Italy’; hilly with broad plains, olive groves and pines, and Le Marche – a region of gentle mountains, rivers and small fertile plains.
Further south lies Rome, Italy’s capital city. Within its precincts is the Vatican City. The south of the country is hotter, wilder and much, much drier than the north, characterised by dry sierras, rocky mountain ranges and volcanic outcrops, including three of Europe’s most active volcanoes: Vesuvius, Etna and Stromboli. Puglia, the ‘heel of the boot’, is a mixed landscape of fertile plateaus, expansive olive groves and flat, ochre-coloured plains. The islands of Sicily and Sardinia lie offshore to the southwest and west respectively.
General knowledge
Key facts
Area: 301340 sq km (116348 sq miles).
Population: 60.5 million (2015).
Population density: 204.0 per sq km.
Capital: Rome.
Language
The state language is Italian. South Tyrol is officially a bilingual province, where German is the language mainly spoken. In Trentino, Ladin is taught in some schools.
Currency
Euro (EUR; symbol €) = 100 cents. Notes are in denominations of €500, 200, 100, 50, 20, 10 and 5. Coins are in denominations of €2 and 1, and 50, 20, 10, 5, 2 and 1 cents.
Electricity
230 volts AC, 50Hz. Plugs are of the two round-pin type.
Public holidays
In addition to public holidays, local feast days are held in honour of town patron saints, generally without closure of shops and offices.
Below are listed Public Holidays for the January 2019 – December 2020 period.
2019
Capodanno (New Year’s Day): 1 January 2019
Epifania (Epiphany): 6 January 2019
Pasqua (Easter Sunday): 21 April 2019
Lunedì dell’Angelo (Easter Monday): 22 April 2019
Festa della Liberazione (Liberation Day): 25 April 2019
Festa del Lavoro (Labour Day): 1 May 2019
Festa della Repubblica (Republic Day): 2 June 2019
Assunzione di Maria Vergine (Assumption): 15 August 2019
Tutti i santi (All Saints’ Day): 1 November 2019
Immacolata Concezione (Immaculate Conception): 8 December 2019
Natale (Christmas Day): 25 December 2019
Santo Stefano (St. Stephen’s Day): 26 December 2019
2020
Capodanno (New Year’s Day): 1 January 2020
Epifania (Epiphany): 6 January 2020
Pasqua (Easter Sunday): 12 April 2020
Lunedì dell’Angelo (Easter Monday): 13 April 2020
Festa della Liberazione (Liberation Day): 25 April 2020
Festa del Lavoro (Labour Day): 1 May 2020
Festa della Repubblica (Republic Day): 2 June 2020
Assunzione di Maria Vergine (Assumption): 15 August 2020
Tutti i santi (All Saints’ Day): 1 November 2020
Immacolata Concezione (Immaculate Conception): 8 December 2020
Natale (Christmas Day): 25 December 2020
Santo Stefano (St. Stephen’s Day): 26 December 2020
All information subject to change.
Flight and accommodation
Nightlife in Pisa
Much of Pisa’s drinking scene is centred around the university, which is scenically situated on the Arno. Other hot spots are pretty Piazza Dante and Piazza delle Vettovaglie.
In summer, many people decamp to the beach bars in Marina di Pisa, 10km east of the city centre.
Sottobosco
56127 Pisa PI
Italy
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A boho bar and café serving up wine and jazz surrounded by vintage décor.
Bazeel
56126 Pisa
Italy
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A good riverside spot with a generous aperitivo buffet and live music on the terrace.
Sunset Café
56013 Marina di Pisa
Italy
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Lounge on white sofas with cocktails and candles at this hip beach bar.
Arno Vivo
56125 Pisa
Italy
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Enjoy a beachside vibe and DJs at this popular riverside venue.
Millibar Wine & Cocktail Bar
56127 Pisa
Italy
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This place offers cocktails, karaoke and live music beneath medieval vaults.
Flight and accommodation
Restaurants in Pisa
Being a university town, Pisa has a good range of reasonably priced eateries, many of them on Borgo Stretto and south of the river in the San Martino quarter.
Food is typically Tuscan, focusing on vegetables and high-quality pork and beef dishes.
Si e No
56122 Pisa
Italy
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Price: Expensive
Superb seafood and homemade pasta like lobster tagliatelle.
Osteria Bernardo
56127 Pisa
Italy
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Price: Moderate
Short, creative menu combining informal dining with gourmet standards.
BIOsteria 050
56126 Pisa
Italy
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Price: Moderate
Contemporary dining on organic dishes with ingredients sourced within 50km of Pisa.
Il Crudo
56100 Pisa
Italy
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Price: Cheap
Gourmet sandwiches dished out beside the river with good glasses of wine.
Il Montino
56121 Pisa
Italy
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Price: Cheap
A Pisa institution serving regional specialities such as chickpea pizza and chestnut cake.
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Calendar of events
Regatta and Luminaria Di San Ranieri
7 June 2019
Venue: Banks of River Arno
Each June Pisa honours its patron saint – San Ranieri – with a great regatta and a night-time ‘luminaria’ along both banks of the River Arno. Historic buildings are romantically lit with candles or burning torches – some 50,000 in all – creating a most evocative mood, reflecting softly in the placid waters. The regatta takes place on the evening of 16 June and the illuminations are enhanced by a parade of antique boats with costumed crews. A historical river race takes place on the following day, contested by teams from the four quarters of the city. The luminaria are repeated in the evening, to commemorate the 1688 moving of the ashes of the Saint, the first occasion on which the city was bathed in lights.
Battle of the Bridge (Gioco del Ponte)
June 2019
Website
Venue: Central area of Pisa
Its origins may be lost in the mists of time, but this summer pageant with a cast of thousands is still the most important annual event in Pisa. Armies representing the Mezzogiorno (south of the River Arno) and Tramontana (north of the river) neighbourhoods of the city meet at the Ponte di Mezzo, where the opposing teams demonstrate their physical strength and prowess. No longer do they bludgeon each other with maces and pointed shields (as they did in days of yore), but instead they take turns to push an immense cart weighing several tons, and they are judged by the force of their efforts. Before the “battle” there is a grand procession along the banks of the Arno with hundreds of participants wearing medieval costume, many of them in the Spanish style of the late 16th-century. Approximately 100,000 turn out for the event each year.
All information subject to change. Please check the dates on the relevant event organizer’s website.
Flight and accommodation
Hotels in Pisa
There’s a huge array of accommodation in Pisa, ranging from characterful bed and breakfasts and boutique hotels in the city centre to established chains and nearby country villas.
Relais dell’Orologio
56127 Pisa
Italy
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Category: Expensive
A 14th-century fortified palace with frescoed interiors and a flower-decked patio restaurant.
Hotel Bologna
56125 Pisa
Italy
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Category: Moderate
A swish, professional 4-star hotel in a tranquil spot south of the Arno.
Hotel di Stefano
56127 Pisa
Italy
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Category: Moderate
A charming family-run place with characterful rooms sporting murals of Pisa.
Relais I Miracoli
56100 Pisa PI
Italy
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Category: Moderate
Serene, all-white rooms in a historic 12th-century structure overlooking the Leaning Tower.
Hotel La Pace
56125 Pisa
Italy
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Category: Cheap
Spruce, pastel-coloured rooms and smiling service characterise this budget place.
Flight and accommodation
Best time to visit
Today: Thursday, 21.02.2019 21:00 UTC

cloudy
temperature
11°C
wind speed
6.875 mphhumidity
84%7 days forecast
Saturday
23.02.2019
9°C / 3°C
Sunday
24.02.2019
10°C / 1°C
Monday
25.02.2019
13°C / 1°C
Tuesday
26.02.2019
15°C / 5°C
Wednesday
27.02.2019
15°C / 6°C
Thursday
28.02.2019
18°C / 9°C
Friday
01.03.2019
16°C / 9°C
Climate & best time to visit Italy
Italy is a great destination to visit year round, particularly if taking a city break, though for the warmest and most reliable weather April to June is the prime tourist season. Most Italians take their holiday in July and August so prices, and crowds, can soar during these months, which are also the hottest of the year. If you’re keen to avoid the main scrum of peak season but still bank on mild weather, late September to October is a good choice.
Flight and accommodation
Telephone & Internet
Telephone
Country code: +39
Mobile telephony and Internet
Since June 2017, EU citizens traveling within the EU, and also in Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein have been able to use their cell phones and surf the Net without incurring any extra charges: In other words, customers pay the same price for phone calls, text messages and data volume as they do at home. Restrictions do apply to the constant use of SIM cards abroad, however, and caps may be set on data packages. For full details, contact your mobile telephony provider in your country. Travelers using a SIM card from a non-EU state do not benefit from the new arrangement.
Free Internet access via Wi-Fi is possible in many busy tourist spots. When using public Wi-Fi networks, it is a wise precaution to ensure encryption of all passwords, credit card details and banking TANs entered. Use of a VPN app or security software to check the safety of a hotspot is recommended.
Flight and accommodation
Shopping in Pisa
Key Areas
Pisa offers some excellent shopping alongside a lot of tourist tat. For interesting, high-end boutiques, bookshops and antique showrooms, the medieval Borgo Stretto is the place to go, particularly Via Mercanti and Via dei Rigattieri. For cheaper, high-street brands, head to Corso Italia.
Markets
Pisa’s main fruit and food market is held in Piazza delle Vettovaglie from Monday to Friday. On Wednesday and Saturday there are flea markets on Via Buonarotti and Via San Martino. And a great open-air antique and craft fair takes place every second Saturday and Sunday of the month in Piazza dei Cavalieri.
Shopping Centres
Pisa has a small Coin department store (Corso Italia 118) with men’s and women’s clothing and beauty products. Otherwise the nearest luxury outlet mall, with over 100 high-end brands, is located 100km east of Pisa at Barberino del Mugello.
Flight and accommodation
Traveller etiquette
Social conventions
The social structure is heavily influenced by the Roman Catholic Church and, generally speaking, family ties are stronger than in most other countries in Western Europe. Normal social courtesies should be observed. Dress is casual but smart in most places, and beachwear should be confined to the beach. Conservative clothes are expected when visiting religious buildings and smaller, traditional communities.
Formal wear is usually indicated on invitations. Smoking is prohibited in public buildings, transport and cinemas. When visiting an Italian home for dinner, bring a small gift of sweets or chocolate, and dress well. Let your host lead when sitting and starting the meal. Take a small portion of what’s on offer as you will surely be cajoled into having another helping. If you do not want more wine, leave your glass full so it cannot be refilled.
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Health
Main emergency number: 112
Food & Drink
Tap water is generally safe to drink. Bottled water is available. The inscription ‘Acqua Non Potabile’ means water is not drinkable. Milk is generally pasteurised and dairy products are safe for consumption. Past outbreaks of brucellosis in southern regions means unpasteurised buffalo mozzarella is best avoided. Local meat, poultry, seafood, fruit and vegetables are considered safe to eat.
Other Risks
The World Health Organisation (WHO) also recommends vaccinations for measles, mumps, rubella, polio and hepatitis B.
Flight and accommodation
Visa & Immigration
IATA Travel Centre
The IATA Travel Centre delivers accurate passport, visa and health requirement information at a glance. It is a trusted, centralized source for the latest international travel requirements. The IATA Travel Centre is the most accurate source available because it is based on a comprehensive database used by virtually every airline, and information is gathered from official sources worldwide, such as immigration and police authorities.