The Leaning Tower of Pisa: The Field of Miracles and What Else to See

Most people who visit the Leaning Tower of Pisa spend 90 minutes, take the pushing photo, climb the tower, and leave without seeing the rest of the Piazza dei Miracoli (Field of Miracles). The other buildings in the square are the reason the site is UNESCO-listed, and they receive far less attention than they deserve.

The Piazza dei Miracoli

The Piazza dei Miracoli contains four buildings: the Cathedral (Duomo), the Baptistery, the Tower, and the Camposanto (cemetery). They were built over a period of three centuries (1063-1350) in the same Romanesque marble style - white Carrara marble, blind arcading, columns - giving the square a visual unity that is rare in Italian medieval architecture.

The Cathedral (Duomo di Pisa, begun 1063) is the oldest of the four and the most important architecturally: a five-aisled basilica with one of the finest Romanesque interiors in Italy. The bronze doors by Bonanno Pisano (1180) were damaged in a fire in 1595 but the ones on the transept facade survive. The pulpit by Giovanni Pisano (1302-1311) inside is considered one of the masterpieces of medieval Italian sculpture - more dynamic than his father Nicola Pisano’s work in Siena. Entry is included with the Piazza ticket.

The Baptistery is the largest in Italy, begun in 1153. The acoustic inside is unusual: the domed interior creates an echo and overtone effect that tour guides demonstrate by singing a note - the building sustains the sound for seconds. Climb to the upper gallery for a view over the piazza and the tower. The pulpit by Nicola Pisano (1260, older than the one in Siena) stands inside: the relief of the Nativity on the south panel is crowded with figures that show the influence of Roman sarcophagus reliefs.

The Camposanto (cemetery) encloses a large courtyard on the north side of the square. Legend says the soil was brought from Calvary in the Holy Land. The galleries contain Roman sarcophagi and medieval frescoes, most famous of which is the “Triumph of Death” (14th century, artist uncertain) - a large fresco showing Death harvesting souls, with remarkable observation of human expression. Significant WWII bombing damage occurred in 1944 when incendiary bombs set fire to the lead roof and the molten lead fell on the frescoes; the surviving fragments are displayed in the Museo delle Sinopie (the preliminary sketches) and the Camposanto itself.

The Leaning Tower: begun 1173, immediately began to lean because the foundations were inadequate for the soft ground. Construction halted several times over centuries. The lean reached 5.5 degrees at its maximum; stabilisation work completed in 2001 reduced it to 3.97 degrees - a deliberate and at the time controversial decision. The straightening has not made it any less striking to look at. Climbing the 294 spiraling steps takes you to the top at 55 metres, with the city and the piazza visible through the bells.

Tower tickets cost €20 in 2026, with timed entry every 30 minutes - groups of roughly 30 people with 30 minutes inside including the climb. Children under 8 cannot climb for safety reasons. No bags of any kind are permitted inside the tower. Book online at opapisa.it up to 90 days ahead; peak season slots sell out early.

Combined ticket: a Full Pass (around €27) covers the Cathedral, Baptistery, Camposanto, Museo delle Sinopie, and the Cathedral Museum. Worth buying even if you don’t climb the tower, and better value than choosing individual sites.

A Few Honest Observations

The piazza is set apart from the city centre in a park-like open space. It is a 20-minute walk from the railway station or a 5-minute taxi. The surrounding streets are entirely given over to restaurants, gelato stalls, and souvenir sellers. None of this affects the quality of what is inside the square itself.

Most guided day trips from Florence spend about two hours here and leave. The full site requires three to four hours to see properly. If you are genuinely interested in what you’re looking at - and you should be, because the Nicola and Giovanni Pisano pulpits alone constitute two of the most important works of medieval sculpture in existence - you need more time than the tour bus allows.

The Rest of Pisa

Pisa has a proper city centre beyond the piazza that most visitors never reach. The Piazza dei Cavalieri is 700 metres away: a Renaissance square designed by Vasari for the Knights of St Stephen, founded by Cosimo I de’ Medici, with the Palazzo dei Cavalieri covering a building where, according to Dante’s Inferno, a treasonous count was starved to death.

The Lungarno (the embankment of the Arno) is pleasant for a walk in the early evening. Pisa is a university city and the streets south of the Arno around the university are genuinely local - bars and trattorias aimed at students rather than tourists, at prices that reflect the fact.

Eating

La Buca (Via Galli Tassi 6, Pisa centre): straightforward Tuscan trattoria, pappardelle al cinghiale (wild boar ragu), good value at around €15-25 per person. The kind of place that gets quietly better after the tourists leave for the day.

Osteria dei Cavalieri (Via San Frediano 16): slightly more formal, consistent Pisan cooking including cod in the traditional local preparation. Around €25-35 per person.

For a quick lunch near the piazza: the takeaway windows on Via Santa Maria sell focaccia and filled rolls that are better and cheaper than the sit-down restaurants in the tourist zone.

Getting There

Train from Florence: 1 hour, frequent departures. From Pisa Centrale station, 20 minutes’ walk north to the piazza, or bus LAM Rossa. By car from Florence: the A11 or the Fi-Pi-Li dual carriageway, 1-1.5 hours. Parking in Pisa is paid and the areas closest to the piazza fill early on weekends.

Pisa has its own airport (Galileo Galilei, PSA) with European connections; it is arguably the most convenient entry point into Tuscany if your primary destination is Florence or the Arno valley towns.