Historical Maritime Republics

Pisa was one of the four main historical Maritime Republics of Italy. Pisa is known worldwilde for its Leaning Tower which is situated in the beautiful framework of the Cathedral Square. A good way to appreciate the city is to walking around the historical citycenter, going through Santo Stefano Knights’s Square, Vettovaglie’s market Square, the Borgo Stretto and the Mercanti Streets, close to the Arno River. In the Lungarni, the avenues along the river, the ancient structure of the medieval typical tower houses can be noticed among modern palaces. In the left side of Pisa, the San Francesco quarter is the heart of the city, rich in wonderful medieval religious buildings. In the right side, there is the San Martino quarter, whose exhibitions inside the Cittadella Nuova animate the summer seasons of the Pisans. The other quarter of the right city side is Sant’Antonio, the newest among the city quarters, where the American artist Keith Haring painted his last master-work, the big mural painting Tuttomondo.

HALF DAY TOUR : the tour guide is at your disposal for maximum three hours, starting from the time that guide and visitors agreed for the appointment.
The length of the tour may differ according to the different itineraries the client agrees with the guide. A customized tour may be created on request, starting from classic tours showed in this website: www.visitapisa.com .
There is also the opportunity of booking a tasting of local typical products or a full meal

Tour of Piazza dei Miracoli, Square of Miracles, with description of all the monuments of the square. You may wish to extend your stay visiting the Cathedral (in this Pisan romanic master-work you will find one of most beautiful pulpits made by Giovanni Pisano, the paintings of Andrea Del Sarto, Domenico Beccafumi and Passignano, an exquisite panelled ceiling and the famous lamp of Galileo Galilei), the Baptistery (with the pulpit sculpted by Nicola Pisano; the notable acoustics of the place is showed by attendants every 30 minutes) and the Cimitero Monumentale, monumental cemetery, (with one of the most important medieval frescoes cycle, brought back to the original state thanks to a restoration that became necessary after the Second World War).
Little walking tour in Santa Maria Quarter and visit of the Santo Stefano Knights’s Square (Piazza dei Cavalieri di Santo Stefano).

TICKETS:
Tickets are required to visit the monuments of Piazza dei Miracoli. Combined ticket are available. Tariffs can change according to the period of the year and the combination of monuments chosen. Please, contact me for more information.

FULL DAY TOUR: the tour guide is at disposal of the clients for maximum six hours. The six hours can be diveded in two parts or more, according to the itinerary chosen or for having a break (a launchbreak or shopping time, for exemple)
The length of the tour may differ according to the different itineraries the client agrees with the guide. A customized tour may be created on request, starting from classic tours showed in this site: www.visitapisa.com .
There is also the possibility of reserving a tasting of local typical products or a full meal.

Tour of Piazza dei Miracoli, Square of Miracles, with description of all the monuments of the square and visit of the Cathedral, the Baptistery and the Cimitero Monumentale, monumental cemetery. It is also possible to visit the Museum of the Sinopie ( it conserves the preparatory sketches for the Camposanto frescoes) and the Museum of the works of the Cathedral (with sculptures, paintings and furnitures from the monuments of the Square and a small Etrurian-Roman part).
Walking tour through the most important sites in the four quarters enclosed by the medieval walls: on the right city side, called Tramontana, starting from Santa Maria (the Santo Stefano Knights’s Square -Piazza dei Cavalieri di Santo Stefano-, via di Borgo, the medieval street of commerce) to San Francesco (the theatre, the Synagogue); on the left city side, called Mezzogiorno, starting from San Martino (the church of the Santo Sepolcro, in the development of the “Ordine degli Ospitalieri di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme”, and the Giardino Scotto, a garden in a building of the 16th century) to Sant’Antonio ( the Keith Haring’s mural painting, the Municipality and the delightful gotich Santa Maria della Spina’s Church).

TICKETS:
-tickets are required to visit the monuments of Piazza dei Miracoli. Combined ticket are available. Tariffs can change according to the period of the year and the combination of monuments chosen. Please, contact me for more information.
-tickets are required to visit (only if you wish):
the Santo Stefano Knights’s Church: budget on demand
the Santa Maria della Spina’s Church: budget on demand

The FULLDAY solution can also include the visit to one museum. You can choose between:

The SAN MATTEO MUSEUM: housed in the ancient Benedictine sisters’ monastery, the museum keeps a rich set of sculptures and paintings from the most important churches in Pisa and Tuscany too and a remarkable collection of ceramic bassins and painted crosses.
TICKETS: budget on demand.

The PALAZZO BLU (Blue Palace): an ancient exclusive palace finely restored, with a Cassa di Risparmio di Pisa‘s collection of works: great works of excellent quality of Pisan art since the 14th century.
TICKETS: free for the Cassa di Risparimio di Pisa collections

March, 25th:
the CAPODANNO PISANO. The celebrations of Pisan New Year include a picturesque procession and the mass in the Cathedral. In the course of the mass celebration, a ray of light filtered by a Cathedral window passes between the nave and the transept and strikes the same place every year at 12 o’clock: the Pisan New Year starts. Many restaurants propose a New Year menu of traditional dishes on the New Year eve.

June, 16th:
LUMINARA DI SAN RANIERI. In the evening of the San Ranieri day eve, thousands of little lights draw the architectural lines of buildings of riverside avenues Lungarni. At midnight a spectacular show of fireworks is offered to people waiting for it in a friendly and magical atmosphere.

June, 17th:
REGATA DI SAN RANIERI. Four boats, one for each city quarter, challenge for the conquest of the San Ranieri trophy. The last-placed team wins a pair of gosling!

June, Last week:
GIOCO DEL PONTE. The two opposite sides of the city, Tramontana and Mezzogiorno, defy each other on the Ponte di Mezzo. The winning team becomes the “master of the bridge”. A parede in historical costumes on the Lungarni precedes the clash.