Top Things to Do in Siena — Complete Guide 2026

1. Piazza del Campo

One of Europe's greatest medieval squares, the shell-shaped Piazza del Campo has been Siena's civic heart since the late 1200s. The red-brick pavement is divided into nine segments representing the Council of Nine, the medieval government that ruled during Siena's golden age. At the lower edge stands the Palazzo Pubblico (town hall), and soaring above it, the Torre del Mangia. Sit at a café on the perimeter — Caffè Fonte Gaia or Bar Il Palio — and absorb the scene. The Fonte Gaia (Fountain of Joy), a rectangular marble fountain adorned with relief sculptures of biblical and mythological scenes, sits at the upper edge. The original 15th-century panels by Jacopo della Quercia are preserved in the Santa Maria della Scala museum; what you see here is a 19th-century replica, but it's still beautiful.

The Campo is also where the Palio takes place twice each summer (2 July and 16 August), when a thick layer of tufa earth is laid over the brick and horses thunder around the perimeter at breakneck speed. Even if you miss the Palio itself, the Campo alone justifies the trip to Siena.

2. Duomo di Siena (Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta)

Siena's cathedral is one of Italy's greatest Gothic churches, and its façade — a dazzling geometric interplay of white Carrara, green Prato, and red Siena marble — is an architectural masterpiece in its own right. The lower façade was completed by Giovanni Pisano in the late 13th century; the upper section was finished in the 14th century. Both are covered in sculptural detail and mosaic work.

Inside, the highlights are almost too numerous to list: Nicola Pisano's octagonal marble pulpit (1265–1268), supported by lions and carved with dense narrative scenes; Donatello's bronze statue of St John the Baptist in the Chapel of St John; the breathtaking Piccolomini Library, frescoed floor-to-ceiling by Pinturicchio (1502–1507) with scenes from the life of Pope Pius II; and the inlaid marble floor, a 56-panel masterpiece of Renaissance craftsmanship executed over two centuries (fully uncovered only from late June to late July and late August to late October). The Porta del Cielo (Gate of Heaven) rooftop walk, accessible with the Opa Si Pass, offers spectacular views across the nave, the city, and the Chianti hills beyond — and a rare close-up look at the cathedral's upper architecture.

3. Torre del Mangia

The 87-metre bell tower of the Palazzo Pubblico, built between 1325 and 1348, offers the finest panoramic view in Siena. The 400-step climb is steep and narrow — not for the claustrophobic or vertigo-prone — but the reward at the top is unforgettable: the entire Campo spread below like a tilted amphitheatre, the Duomo's striped campanile punching through the terracotta rooftops, and the Chianti hills rolling away to every horizon. The tower was named after its first bell-ringer, Giovanni di Duccio, nicknamed Mangiaguadagni ("profit-eater") for his love of spending money. Tickets are timed — book ahead in high season, especially summer mornings before the sun hits full force.

4. Palazzo Pubblico & Museo Civico

Siena's Gothic town hall contains one of the most important fresco cycles in European art. Ambrogio Lorenzetti's "Allegory of Good and Bad Government" (1338–1339) — the Sala dei Nove — is a secular masterpiece depicting the effects of wise and corrupt rule on city and countryside. It's one of the earliest examples of landscape painting in Western art and a powerful political statement that still resonates. In the same building, Simone Martini's Maestà (1315) covers an entire wall of the Sala del Mappamondo with a glittering enthroned Madonna surrounded by saints and angels — the pinnacle of Sienese Gothic painting. The museum also contains original wooden panels from the Fonte Gaia, bronze sculptures, and a loggia with Campo views.

5. Santa Maria della Scala

Directly opposite the Duomo, this former hospital — one of Europe's oldest, founded in the 9th century and operating continuously until the 1990s — is now a vast, rambling museum complex that many visitors miss entirely. Its centrepiece is the Pellegrinaio (pilgrims' hall), a long vaulted hall with extraordinary 15th-century frescoes by Domenico di Bartolo, Vecchietta, and others depicting the hospital's charitable work — tending the sick, feeding the poor, caring for abandoned children. The complex also includes the Oratory of St Catherine, the atmospheric Old Sacristy with Vecchietta's frescoes, an archaeological museum (Etruscan and Roman finds from the province), and the interconnected subterranean spaces carved into the tufa hill beneath the cathedral — a labyrinth of medieval tunnels, chapels, and grain stores. Budget at least 90 minutes; two and a half hours if you want to explore the archaeology properly.

6. Basilica of San Domenico

This massive brick church, built between 1226 and 1265, is the city's Dominican mother church and the resting place of St Catherine of Siena (1347–1380), one of Italy's two patron saints. Her preserved head and thumb are displayed in a gilded reliquary in the Cappella di Santa Caterina — a sobering sight that draws pilgrims from across the world. The chapel itself, frescoed by Sodoma in the 1520s, stands on the site of Catherine's cell. The basilica's austere Gothic interior, with its vast single nave and exposed brick, is a striking contrast to the ornate Duomo. The view from the churchyard — across the Fontebranda valley with its medieval wool-washing fountain still running — is one of the best in Siena and entirely free.

7. Fortezza Medicea

The Medici fortress, built in 1561 to subdue the Sienese after Florence's final conquest of the Republic of Siena, is a powerful symbol of the city's political history — the Sienese themselves dismantled its predecessor during an earlier revolt. Today it houses a public park with walking paths along the ramparts, an enoteca (wine bar) in the former powder magazine, and occasional open-air cinema and jazz concerts in summer. The rampart walk is free and offers 360-degree views over the city and countryside. It's an especially good sunset spot with a bottle of Chianti Classico from the enoteca.

8. Pinacoteca Nazionale

Siena's national gallery, housed in the 14th-century Palazzo Buonsignori and adjoining Palazzo Brigidi, holds the world's finest collection of Sienese painting from the 13th to 17th centuries. The collection traces the entire arc of the Sienese school: the gilded solemnity of Duccio di Buoninsegna (the father of Sienese painting), the elegant Gothic line of Simone Martini, the narrative power of the Lorenzetti brothers, and the mystical late Gothic of Sassetta and Giovanni di Paolo. Unlike the Uffizi in Florence, the Pinacoteca is almost never crowded — you can stand in front of Duccio's Madonna dei Francescani in near solitude. Essential for art lovers, and a calming antidote to the Campo crowds.

9. Contrada Museums

One of the most fascinating and least touristy things you can do in Siena is visit the museums of the individual contrade (neighbourhoods). Each of the 17 historic districts has its own church, fountain, and tiny museum displaying Palio banners (palii or drappelloni) won over centuries, along with costumes, weapons, and memorabilia. The Museo della Contrada del Bruco (Caterpillar) on Via del Comune and the Museo della Contrada della Tartuca (Tortoise) near Porta Ovile are particularly good. Many museums are only open by appointment or on specific days — ask at your hotel for which ones are accessible during your stay. Visiting a contrada museum gives you a window into Siena's soul that the Duomo and Campo alone can't provide.

10. Orto de' Pecci

A hidden green valley just behind Piazza del Campo, the Orto de' Pecci was once the orchard and garden of the city's medieval psychiatric hospital. Today it's a peaceful community garden with a small farm (chickens, goats, donkeys), vegetable plots, a café, and views of the Torre del Mangia peeking above the trees. It's the perfect escape when you need a break from stone and crowds — and an ideal picnic spot. The café serves simple lunches with produce from the garden.

San Gimignano (45 km NW — 45 min drive/bus)

The famous "medieval Manhattan" with 14 surviving tower houses. San Gimignano is touristy for good reason — the skyline is genuinely extraordinary, and the frescoed Collegiata church is stunning. Go early or late to avoid the midday coach-tour crush. The local Vernaccia di San Gimignano (Tuscany's best white wine) is worth a tasting at the enoteca in the fortress at the top of town. Direct buses run from Siena's Piazza Gramsci (about 1 hour, change in Poggibonsi).

Monteriggioni (15 km N — 20 min drive)

A tiny hilltop village so perfectly preserved that Dante mentioned its ring of towers in the Inferno ("as with its towers Monteriggioni crowns itself"). The entire circuit of 13th-century walls can be walked (ticketed, about 30 minutes), and the views from the ramparts stretch across the Chianti hills. Monteriggioni is small — you'll see it in an hour — so combine it with a Chianti wine tasting or lunch in nearby Castellina. The Via Francigena walking trail from Siena to Monteriggioni (20 km, 5–6 hours) is a magnificent day hike for walkers.

Montalcino (40 km S — 50 min drive)

Home of Brunello di Montalcino, arguably Italy's greatest red wine. The town itself is a handsome hilltop settlement with a massive 14th-century fortress offering panoramic views over the Val d'Orcia — a UNESCO World Heritage landscape of cypress-lined ridges, isolated farmhouses, and rolling wheat fields that looks exactly like a Renaissance painting. The fortress enoteca offers tastings of over 200 Brunello producers. The drive from Siena — through the Crete Senesi badlands that glow grey-blue in certain lights — is part of the experience.

Pienza (55 km SE — 1 hour drive)

The "ideal Renaissance city", redesigned from scratch by Pope Pius II in the 1450s as a utopian urban project. The result — a perfectly proportioned piazza with a cathedral, papal palace, and town hall in harmonious dialogue — is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The views from the panoramic terrace behind the Duomo are among the most photographed in all of Italy. Pienza is also famous for pecorino di Pienza, the local sheep's milk cheese sold in dozens of varieties at the shops lining the main street. The combination of cheese-tasting, architectural beauty, and landscape photography makes Pienza one of Tuscany's most satisfying day trips.