Explore Pisa

First impressions of Pisa

Pisa is famous for one famous joke of architecture — but the city is far more rewarding than the single internet meme suggests. The Piazza dei Miracoli ('Field of Miracles') is one of the most photographed UNESCO sites in the world and genuinely sublime: a vast green field on which sit four masterpieces of medieval Italian architecture in their original Romanesque white marble brilliance. The Leaning Tower of Pisa itself (started 1173, finished 1372 after the tilt was discovered halfway through construction; now leaning a stabilised 4 degrees off vertical) is the bell tower of the Cathedral, and you can climb its 296 spiral steps for a panorama (book ahead, timed entry only). The Cathedral with its dazzling striped marble facade and Galileo's swinging lamp (which reputedly inspired his pendulum theory), the round Baptistery with its remarkable echo (the largest baptistery in Italy), and the Camposanto cemetery cloister with extraordinary frescoes by Buffalmacco — all are essential. Beyond the Piazza, the rest of Pisa is a pleasure: the Arno riverfront with the tiny Santa Maria della Spina chapel, the modern Tuttomondo mural by Keith Haring (his last public artwork), and the lively student bars around Borgo Stretto.