Location: Siena
Top Things to do in Siena
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The 10 Best Sacred & Religious Sites in Siena, Tuscany
This Tuscan hill town will transport you back to the Middle Ages. Siena's grand cathedral, built in the 1200s, has treasured artworks and marvelous marble floors. The Piazza del Campo, the main town square, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It's also home to the Palio, perhaps the most infamous horserace in the world. No goofy hats and mint juleps here—this is a medieval tradition involving bareback riders racing on cobblestones (so as you might imagine, it's quite dangerous). Siena is an easy daytrip by train from Florence, just 43 miles away.
Restaurants in Siena
1. Cappella di Piazza
2. Battistero di San Giovanni
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 873 reviews
Reviewed By belleretraite - Montreal, Canada
a lot of people miss the visit of the Battistero because even though the entry fee is included on the same ticket as the Duomo , the Battistero is a separate building accessible by descending steps at the back of the Cathedral . The outside is very nice but the inside is striking , specially the ceiling !
3. Cripta del Duomo di Siena
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,040 reviews
Reviewed By K7787FEbrunol - Singapore, Singapore
Place was just recently discovered and it's really impressive to see how colors were well preserved. They really set-up the place well and you can enjoy a nice visit. Do note the drawings and other writings left by workers from other centuries
4. Sinagoga di Siena
5. Via Francigena Tappa 34 Siena - Ponte d'Arbia
6. Porta del Cielo
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 6 reviews
Reviewed By westy54 - Sydney, Australia
The Porta del Cielo is a tour inside the roof of the Duomo that allows you to look through openings high up in the walls of the Duomo and gain close-up views of the ceiling and wall decorations as well as the marble mosaic floor from an elevated height. You are also allowed to go briefly outside onto a walkway on the Duomo's roof that gives you views of the Torre del Mangia, Panorama dal Facciatone (also part of the Duomo) plus other parts of Siena. The tour is for small groups (there were about 15 to 20 in our group), is included in one of the combined tickets for the different Duomo sights and must be pre-booked for a specific time. The combined ticket that we purchased cost EUR 20-00 per person which, apart from the Porta del Cielo, also allowed entry to the Duomo, the Piccolomimi Library, the Musee dell'Opera, the Panorama dal Facciatone, the Crypt, the Bapistero and the Oratory of San Bernadino (which is a fair distance away from the Duomo complex but well worth a visit). The combined tickets are valid for one entry to each attraction over a three day period so we arrived at the ticket office early and booked a time that suited us to go up into the roof of the Duomo the following day. We were required to assemble 10 minutes before the time on your ticket at the stairway entrance to the roof which was on the right hand side just inside the main Duomo entrance. The ascent via the spiral staircase had just over 100 stairs. There were further stairs to climb once inside the roof but in total there were only 127 stairs both up and down as you descended via the same spiral staircase. The visit is guided for safety reasons but there was no commentary. Importantly at no stage do you go into the dome but you do effectively walk around the rectangular structure of the Cathedral and at a couple of points walk across narrow walkways high above the Cathedral's floor where you are clearly able to look down upon the proceedings below. I am not keen on heights but was not concerned at all by this. In the roof cavities there are also various displays of tools etc used in the construction of the Duomo as well as a board displaying all of the different types of marble that were used in its construction. Highly recommended if you have sufficient time.
7. Basilica di San Francesco
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 428 reviews
Reviewed By E8526ZTrichardd - Wake Forest, United States
This is a Basilica not to be missed. In the lower church you will find the tomb of St. Francis of Assisi, in the upper church are frescos depicting the life of Francis.
