Tuscany Tour 2026 - Day 11
San Gimignano
After a relaxed and quiet night, we continued to San Gimignano.
San Gimignano is a small Italian town located on a hill, featuring a medieval town center. It is also referred to as the “Medieval Manhattan” or the “City of Towers.”
It ranks among the most visited destinations in Tuscany, alongside Florence, Siena, and Pisa. And we noticed that. It’s early May now, and I can’t even imagine how it is here in the summer.
We found that these hotspots are not for us at this time, so we passed on Siena, Pisa, and Florence. Although we visited Siena and Pisa about 25 years ago, we still don’t know Florence.
Well, back to San Gimignano, whose historic town center has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1990.
San Gimignano still has some of the medieval towers, which in other cities remain only as stumps. In the Middle Ages, patrician families attempted to outdo each other with the height of their family towers, even though living luxuriously in them wasn’t possible. The rooms in the towers of San Gimignano were often very small. On the upper floors, they were usually only one to two meters wide. Of the originally 72 towers, only 15 remain today.
San Gimignano is said to have been settled by the Etruscans around 300 to 200 B.C.
Today, one can stroll through charming alleys lined with artisan shops and traditional trattorias. Furthermore, impressive palaces and some churches can be admired. The architecture and building style from that time certainly have a charm.
Besides the towers, the Cathedral (Collegiate Church of Santa Maria Assunta) is one of the most significant buildings in San Gimignano. It has stood on Piazza del Duomo since the 12th century and features a traditional basilica floor plan characterized by 14 classic Tuscan stone columns. However, the main attraction is the magnificent frescoes on the walls of the cathedral, depicting stories from the New and Old Testament, as well as colorful, typical medieval motifs. Here, one can also admire a gem of the Renaissance, the Chapel of Santa Dina, where three artists collaborated to create a masterpiece dedicated to the most beloved saint of San Gimignano.
After exploring the town, we retreated to our vacation home on wheels to discover more the next day.
