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battistero duomo & leaning tower of pisa tuscany italy

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Overview

Once a maritime power to rival Genoa and Venice, modern Pisa is best known for an architectural project gone terribly wrong. But the world-famous Leaning Tower is just one of many noteworthy sights in this compelling city. Education has fuelled the local economy since the 1400s, and students from across Italy compete for places in its elite university. This endows the centre of town with a vibrant cafe and bar scene, balancing an enviable portfolio of well-maintained Romanesque buildings, Gothic churches and Renaissance piazzas with a lively street life dominated by locals rather than tourists – a charm you will definitely not discover if you restrict your visit to Piazza dei Miracoli.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • The last of the three major buildings on the piazza to be built, construction of the bell tower began in 1173 and took place in three stages over the course of 177 years, with the bell-chamber only added in 1372. Five years after construction began, when the building had reached the third floor level, the weak subsoil and poor foundation led to the building sinking on its south side 1264707656

    Leaning Tower

    Pisa

    One of Italy's signature sights, the Torre Pendente truly lives up to its name, leaning a startling 3.9 degrees off the vertical. The 58m-high tower,…

  • Leaning tower of Pisa, Italy Piazza del Duomo ; Shutterstock ID 456166966; your: Bridget Brown; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI Image Update

    Duomo

    Pisa

    Pisa's magnificent duomo was begun in 1064 and consecrated in 1118. Its striking tiered exterior, with green-and-cream marble cladding, gives onto a…

  • battistero duomo & leaning tower of pisa tuscany italy

    Battistero

    Pisa

    Pisa's unusual round baptistry has one dome piled on top of another, each roofed half in lead, half in tiles, and topped by a gilt bronze John the Baptist…

  • Mura di Pisa (Main Entrance)

    Mura di Pisa (Main Entrance)

    Pisa

    For an alternative bird's-eye perspective of the Leaning Tower and grandiose Piazza dei Miracoli rooftops, take a walk atop Pisa's medieval city walls,…

  • Italy, Tuscany, Pisa, View to Cathedral and Leaning Tower of Pisa at Piazza dei Miracoli Geographical Locations Built Structure History Architecture Travel Destinations Horizontal Outdoors Tilt Italy Church Cathedral Blue Famous Place International Landmark Italian Culture Tuscany Pisa Leaning Tower of Pisa Sky Day Meadow Idyllic Religion Christianity Color Image Twilight Incidental People Building Exterior Photography Travel Clear Sky Campo Dei Miracoli Evening Mood World Cultural Heritage World Religion UNESCO World Heritage Site

    Piazza dei Miracoli

    Pisa

    Pisans claim that Campo dei Miracoli is among the world's most beautiful urban spaces. Its walled lawns provide a photogenic setting for the candy-striped…

  • Pisa, Tuscany, Italy

    Camposanto

    Pisa

    Soil shipped from Calvary during the Crusades is said to lie within the white walls of this hauntingly beautiful resting place for many prominent Pisans,…

  • Museo Nazionale di San Matteo SOURCE: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pisa_-_Museo_Nazionale_di_San_Matteo,_Polittico_di_Santa_Caterina,_S._Martini.jpg

    Museo Nazionale di San Matteo

    Pisa

    This inspiring repository of medieval masterpieces sits in a 13th-century Benedictine convent on the Arno's northern waterfront boulevard. The museum's…

  • Pisa / Tuscany / Italy / May 2018 : Palazzo Blu is a center for temporary exhibitions and cultural activities in Pisa Italy; Shutterstock ID 1170554812; purchase_order: 65050; job: POI; client: ; other: 1170554812 abstract, architectural, architectural photography, architecture, blue, building, city, design, designer, europe, facade, italy, lookup, minimal, minimalism, minimalist, palazzo blu, pisa, sky, street, surreal, toscana, tourism, travel, tuscany, urban, windows

    Palazzo Blu

    Pisa

    Facing the river is this magnificently restored 14th-century building with a striking dusty-blue facade. Inside, its over-the-top 19th-century interior…

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Plan with a local

Articles

Latest stories from Pisa

World famous leaning tower in Pisa in Piazza dei Miracoli. Tuscany, Italy; Shutterstock ID 2209603923; purchase_order:65050 - Digital Destinations and Articles; job:Lonely Planet; client:A first-time guide to Pisa; other:Sasha Brady 2209603923

Art and Culture

A first-time guide to Pisa

May 29, 2025 • 9 min read

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