Overview to Pisa: Travel Guide and Tourist Information

  Pisa's River Arno

While it may be famous as the home of a ‘Leaning Tower’, there’s nothing remotely uneven about the rest of Pisa. The city is exceptionally beautiful and full of less prestigious, but no less striking, attractions for the discerning traveler to stumble upon.

Nestled amongst the Tuscan hills, Pisa is often viewed as the ideal destination for a day trip from Florence and Milan. Such trips inevitably head for the breathtaking Pisan-Romanesque architecture of the Campo dei Miracoli, and a visit of any length should probably start here.

The Campo’s most prominent attraction obviously needs no introduction. Known around the world for its delicate white marble architecture and gravity-defying slant, the Leaning Tower is one of the world’s most visited tourist sites.

Whilst the tower gets all the press, the Campo in fact features three other impressive structures. Many would argue that the vast Duomo boasts even more astonishing architecture than its tilting bell tower, whilst just behind sits the truly stunning Baptistery.

The Campo is completed by the massive Gothic Camposanto, which sits on the field’s northern edge. The tranquil atmosphere common to cemeteries may be shattered by the hordes of tourist, but it’s still an enormously evocative place.

The Campo sits to the north of the city center, where an altogether different experience lies in store. The cultured and welcoming nature of Pisa proper may just prove the perfect antidote to the tourist babble of the Campo.

Directly south of the Campo lies the Orto Bonantico; Europe’s oldest botanical gardens, they feature a huge collection of plants and flowers from all over the world, and offer the visitor a wonderful chance to relax amongst natural splendor in the middle of the city.

From here, the Via Mille heads towards the Piazza Dei Cavalieri – another collection of remarkable Romanesque buildings built around one impressive square. The highlight is the Palazzo de la Carovana, which houses the prestigious Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa.

On the south side of the Piazza Santo Frediano, a large market takes place on the banks of the River Arno for one week of every month. If your trip doesn't coincide with this large open-air bazaar, though, the nearby arcaded streets offer a similarly enjoyable shopping experience.

Pisa is famed within Italy for its university, and much of the real essence of the city can be tapped by spending some time around the river banks where the students congregate. It’s a reflection of a vital, energetic city that’s far from just the site of a world-famous landmark.

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