A plan for Pisa

Pisa would not be Pisa without the university. The city is animated by the students, who organize parties, shows, and cultural events, and fill the central street of the city at night. The University of Pisa has 60,000 students in a city of 90,000 inhabitants (200,000 in the metropolitan area). You'll notice the student flair in the city once you leave the touristy Campo dei Miracoli.

Climate

The climate of Pisa is something in between the one in the north and in the south of Italy.

Winters are mild: not as warm as in Catania nor as cold as in the Po Valley in the north. Temperatures almost never drop below zero. Snow is very rare.

Summers are warm, if hot, and sometimes very humid, although they are nowhere near as intolerable as in cities such as Milan, Turin and Ferrara, because they are mitigated by the wind and the sea (which is about 10 km (6.2 mi) away from the city centre). Rainfall in July and August is rare.

Spring and autumn are very pleasant, although most rainfall occurs in these seasons.

Pisa is divided into 4 historical quarters. There is much more than the leaning tower in the city and several different walking itineraries are available.

Piazza dei Miracoli

The Piazza dei Miracoli or Field of Miracles is to the North of central Pisa. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site and contains the city's most famous sights:

3 Torre Pendente (Leaning Tower), Piazza Arcivescovado 1, ☏ +39 050 835011, info@opapisa.it. Daily 09:00-19:00. The structure was conceived as the cathedral's bell tower. Construction began in 1173 and the tower started leaning soon afterwards due to subsidence of the ground underneath its base. A project to keep the tower from leaning more and tipping over finally reached a successful conclusion in 2001, and the tower is again open to those wishing to climb it. Climbing the tower requires a reservation-based ticket for €18. Tickets can be bought for the tower on the day, for a specific entry time. This could be 45 min-2 hr after the purchase time, but there is a lot to see while you wait. It is better if you buy tickets online for €18 well in advance (up to 20 days). The tickets are non-exchangeable, effectively non-refundable, and only good for the tower, so they're a bit of a risk to purchase in advance. Make the effort to climb, though, and you'll be rewarded by the view.

Take a photo of yourself holding, leaning against, or "anthropologically appropriating" the leaning tower of Pisa.

Take a stroll along the central shopping roads of the city, Corso Italia and Borgo Stretto, both pedestrian-only.

Enjoy an aperitivo (evening drink with a light dinner buffet) in one of the many bars and pubs that offer it, around Piazza Gambacorti, Piazza delle Vettovaglie o Via delle Case Dipinte.

Football: Pisa SC were relegated in 2026 and now play soccer in Serie B, the second tier. Their Arena Garibaldi (capacity 25,000) is just north of the historic centre.

Events

On June 16th Pisa hosts the Luminara festival, held for the patron saint's day (San Ranieri). At sunset, all the lights along the Arno are dimmed and more than 10,000 candles are lit, which makes for some spectacular sights from the Ponte di Mezzo. Various activities are organized in the streets and the night ends with a big firework show.

Another summer attraction is the Gioco del Ponte (Game of the Bridge), a historical event held yearly on the last Sunday of June. The two sides of the city (Tramontana and Mezzogiorno, geographically split by the Arno river) participate in a historical parade, with 709 walk-ons, then challenge each other to a physical match in which their teams, each composed of 20 members, try to conquer the "Ponte di Mezzo" (the main bridge in Pisa) by pushing a trolley in order to force the rival team off the bridge. The parade is very colorful and can be enjoyed for free from anywhere along the river; on the other hand the Gioco itself is hard to see unless you get a ticket in advance to sit in the stands, and it is quite boring for outsiders, as some of the 7 'battles' can last more than 20 minutes. It is better to sit down at a bar and watch it from a TV screen.

On March 25, a smaller historical parade takes place, to celebrate the traditional Pisan new year.

Pasta and pizza are among the tourists' favorites like everywhere in Italy, but Tuscan and Pisan cuisine has more to offer: several kinds of soups made with bread (for instance, pappa al pomodoro, or kale-based bordatino), meat dishes (chianina and mucco pisano are renowned beef breeds; game such as boar or hare can be found in various restaurants), and cold cuts. The traditional street food is cecina, a chickpea flour pancake, served inside focaccia with a sprinkle of pepper.

Traditional Tuscan bread is without salt (pane sciocco); this surprises most visitors.

As for alcoholic beverages, Tuscany is renowned for red wine (Chianti, Brunello, Morellino) but nowadays many establishments also offer a good selection of local craft beers.

If you have access to transport, an alternative to eating in Pisa is to take the relatively short drive to Marina di Pisa, the harbor of Pisa at the Mediterranean sea some 15 km (9.3 mi) from central Pisa. Just follow the SS224 road west on the south side of River Arno and you are there in 20 minutes. There are several restaurants by the seafront, and having your dinner here, outside and when the sun sets in the west, is a rewarding experience. Parking and tables may be out if you arrive late, so check the opening hours (many restaurants do not open until around 19:00) and be there early. Even better, spend an hour or two just walking along the beach before the restaurants open. Try Roca de Mar.

During summer nights, everybody stays around the banks of the rivers, sipping drinks bought from the several bars in the area. A few very good wine bars are also available for colder, winter nights.

1 Orzo Bruno, Via Case Dipinte 6/8 (A bit tricky to find but worth it), ☏ +39 050 578802. Sun-Thu 19:00-01:00, Fri Sat 19:00-02:00. Artisan organic beer and organic food. €4.5 for a pint, €4-8 for food.

Bar Mocambo, Via S. Bernardo, 29. Cozy cocktail bar with a vast selection of drinks. Outstanding signature cocktails. Serves more than 100 kinds of rum from all over the world, often paired with treats such as specialty chocolate. Ask the bartender to help you choose!

Pisa Caffè dell'Ussero, Lungarno Pacinotti, 27. It is a monument to Italian culture in the 1400s Palazzo Agostini, on Lungarno. Its walls are covered with glorious mementos from its most famous visitors of the Risorgimento when they were students: Carlo Goldoni, Gacomo Casanova, Vittorio Alfieri, Filippo Mazzei, John Ruskin, Domenico Guerrazzi, Giuseppe Giusti, Renato Fucini, Giosuè Carducci, Cesare Abba, Giuseppe Montanelli. In 1839, it was seat of the meetings of the first Italian Congress of Scientists.

Vineria di Piazza, Piazza delle Vettovaglie. Serves great wine and very few dishes. You can find very traditional food here.

Nightlife

For nightlife, there aren't many clubs or live music places in Pisa: the usual night in Pisa is having a dinner of pizza or a cheap kebab, a beer in Borgo Stretto, Piazza delle Vettovaglie, Piazza Gambacorti or a pub in the surrounding areas, and a walk in Piazza Garibaldi, Piazza dei Cavalieri or the Lungarni, where the spallette (the low brick walls around the river) are full of students.

Some alternative clubs in the centre where you can find live music are:

Ex-Wide (jazz/swing)

Borderline (rock/metal; closed June to September, when they move to an alternative location on the seaside at Eliopoli/Calambrone).

Lumiere (dance/electronic)

Less alternative clubs are found at the seaside, about 8 km (5.0 mi) from Pisa, in Marina di Pisa and Tirrenia. For instance

Pappafico (a disco with house music and the like)

PIA (a disco/bar on the sea)

Sunset (mainly an aperitivo/happy hour/chill-out location on the sea)

Outside the city centre but reachable on foot, in the north-eastern outskirts of the city, is

In the city centre, just walk.

By bus

The LAM or city buses run frequently to 18:00 then sparsely to 23:00. The most useful route is LAM Rossa, the red line, between railway station, riverside (stop Lungarno Pacinotti 2) and Leaning Tower (stop Piazza dei Miracoli). LAM Verde runs near the airport.

Tickets for both LAM and out-of-town buses are €1.50 single, a pack of ten is €14. Single tickets can also be purchased from the bus driver for €2.50. Tickets must be validated on boarding the bus; they are then valid for 70 minutes.

By bicycle

Pisa has a public bicycle service called Ciclopi which allows travellers pick up and drop cycles to and from 15 points around the city. They have a mobile app Bicincittà, but the only way to register is to come in person to their point of sales: INFOPOINT piazza del Duomo 7 (in front of the Cathedral), every day 09.30 - 17.30; LA GALLERIA DEL DISCO via San Francesco 96, every day 09.00 - 20.00; SOLFERINO TABACCHI piazza Solferino 11, from Monday to Saturday 08.00 - 13.00 and 15.30-20.00. Possible subscriptions:

Daily: €5, including €1 of credit.

Weekly: €10, including €2 of credit.

Subscriptions include unlimited free rides up to 30 minutes. And then €0.9 for the second half hour, €1.5 for the third half hour, €2 for all subsequent half hours.

By car

Not in the city centre: many streets are either pedestrianised or restricted to residents (ZTL, Zone a traffico limitato, camera-enforced but easy to stray into accidentally). Those streets that you can drive into are narrow, one-way, congested, and with next-to-no parking. Ask ahead at your accommodation for parking and permitted approach routes. For day-trips, Pisa Tower Parking is €1.80 per hour and close to the main sights.

You do however need a car to explore the villages in the hills of Tuscany. Consider hiring from the airport and either picking up late or dropping back early there, and just use public transport for Pisa, Lucca and Florence.

By taxi

Taxis can be an expensive way to move around the city. They aren’t really needed in the center due to the size of Pisa, but if you are arriving at the airport and don’t want to walk they are a good option. If going to anywhere near the train station they would only be better than the Pisamover costwise if you are travelling in a group of 3 or more people.

Pisa is a safe city. You do not need to worry about your safety (except in some zones at night, such as the area surrounding the station). However, you should take the obvious precautions (like, if you stay in a very cheap hotel, take your valuables with you) and watch out for pickpockets in the touristy areas.

As stated in the Buy section, avoid purchasing sunglasses, umbrellas, and other trinkets from illegal sellers. Definitely steer clear of counterfeit luxury goods. Upon arriving to Pisa, it is not uncommon for tourists to be swarmed by African vendors. Some vendors can be pushy or even downright aggressive. Even saying "no thank you" can bring unwanted attention. It's much better to ignore them entirely. Don't worry about being rude.

Even though cheap prices are tempting, especially when travelling on a budget, the Italian police have fined tourists for buying from illegal sellers. These fines can be very steep (up to €1,000). In front of the Tower, there are several legal vendors who have permits to sell items to tourists or anyone else. Be responsible and buy from them. Legal vendors have stalls lined along the main road whereas illegal vendors keep merchandise in a sack, cardboard boxes, or (in the case of fake purses) on their arms.