Pisa is the city of the Leaning Tower, the birthplace of Galileo Galilei and the seat of the University Normale, one of the most prestigious universities in Italy. Pisa is this and much more. Although its beauty is often overshadowed by nearby Florence and Siena, there are many reasons why it is really worth visiting Pisa at least once in a lifetime. We’ll tell you five of them!

1.    Climb the Leaning Tower

It will be obvious, but climbing the Leaning Tower is certainly the first reason to visit Pisa.

The famous Tower of Pisa is actually the bell tower of the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta.

Its construction began in 1173 and was interrupted almost immediately because of the slope of the building. The sandy ground on which it was built, in fact, made the tower incline already from the third floor. Work resumed in 1275, but was still slowed down and interrupted.

Even in recent years the tower has undergone restoration work: between 1990 and 2001, for example, work was once again carried out to consolidate the inclination of the building. In 2008 it settled at 3.97°, a value that should remain unchanged for another 300 years.

While visiting the city you should climb the Tower before discovering all the other things to see in Pisa, don’t you think?

2.    Walking in Piazza dei Miracoli

Right at the foot of the famous Leaning Tower is Piazza dei Miracoli, a true symbol of Italian artistic beauty.

Only few places in the world are so rich in wonder.

Here you can visit the other symbols of Pisa: the Duomo, the Baptistery and the Campo Santo Monumentale.

The Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta was built in 1063 and by looking at it you can see the presence of classical, Norman, Byzantine, early Christian and Arabic elements. This building tells the whole history of Pisa and the prestige it reached when it was still a Maritime Republic.

The Baptistery dedicated to St. John the Baptist, instead, tells something else: the shortage of money. Precisely because of the lack of money, in fact, the builders had to use different materials to erect it: you will easily notice the contrast between white marble and red tiles.

Finally, before leaving Piazza dei Miracoli, visit the Campo Santo Monumentale: here are buried illustrious Pisan characters, but you can also admire ancient sarcophagi dating back to the Etruscan, Roman and medieval ages.