Siena

Siena lies 70 kilometres south of Florence in the heart of Tuscany, reached most efficiently by the direct SITA/Autolinee Toscane bus from the Autostazione at Piazza Adua — a journey of approximately 1 hour 15 minutes costing €7 (~$8)–9. The bus is faster and cheaper than the train, which requires a change at Empoli and takes around 1 hour 45 minutes. Arriving at Piazza Gramsci in Siena, the historic centre is a 10-minute walk through the medieval gates. Siena is Italy's most completely preserved medieval city and the ancient rival of Renaissance Florence, built on three hills and radiating down from the famous shell-shaped Piazza del Campo — one of the greatest urban spaces in Europe, free to enter and to sit on. The Torre del Mangia (102 metres, 503 steps) rises from the south side of the Campo and offers sweeping views over the terracotta rooftops and the surrounding Tuscan countryside. A well-planned day begins with the Campo and Torre in the early morning before tour groups arrive. The Duomo di Siena rivals any great Italian church: the extraordinary inlaid marble floor — a unique cycle of 56 panels depicting biblical and classical scenes in stone marquetry — is uncovered annually from mid-August to late October; the Piccolomini Library contains Pinturicchio's vivid fresco cycle (1502–1509); and the carved pulpit by Nicola Pisano (1265) is one of the masterpieces of medieval sculpture. Tickets for the Duomo complex are bookable at operaduomo.siena.it (OPA SI Pass, €14 (~$15)). Lunch is best found in the narrow side streets radiating from the Campo, where traditional osterias serve ribollita, pici al ragù di cinghiale, and local Morellino di Scansano wines; restaurants directly on the Campo charge premium prices. The afternoon is well spent in the Museo Civico in the Palazzo Pubblico, which houses Ambrogio Lorenzetti's Allegory of Good and Bad Government (1338) — the greatest cycle of secular medieval frescoes in Italy — and at Santa Maria della Scala, the former medieval hospital opposite the Duomo now containing an archaeological museum, a contemporary art wing, and the extraordinary Pellegrinaio fresco cycle documenting 15th-century hospital life. The Palio horse race on July 2 and August 16 draws enormous crowds and requires completely separate planning, with grandstand seats booking up to a year in advance.