Things to know about Pisa

The Leaning Tower of Pisa

There are also plenty of fantastic architecture and churches in Pisa of course the most iconic being The Leaning Tower of Pisa. The Leaning Tower of Pisa is really interesting to visit because from some angles it does not look like it leans at all – but from others it is really obvious. You will be amazed at how many people are there trying to get the iconic selfie shot – some finding very creative ways to do so.

“It is not just the inclination that is interesting about the Leaning Tower of Pisa but also its high historical and artistic value of its forms, and peculiar location. Usually a tower would be built along one side of the church or by the façade – instead it was built far from the cathedral. The central body is composed of a hollow cylinder with an outward facing of shaped ahlers in white and grey San Giuliano limestone, an interior facing, also made of textured verrucana stone, and a ring-shaped stone area in between. This stone area accommodates a winding staircase with 293 steps leading up to the sixth open gallery, where the inner shaft is closed by a vault with a central hole to let light in, providing access to the belfry on top and, in the lower mezzanine floors, to the open galleries. The six open galleries resting on the bottom shafts, with this one and the belfry, divide the tower into eight segments that are called orders.” This information, along with much much more is available on boards located next to The Leaning Tower of Pisa.

There is a minimum age of 8 years old to go up the Leaning Tower of Pisa. We really wanted to go up the Leaning Tower of Pisa but we couldn’t when we arrived because there’s a minimum age of 8 years old (our son had his eight birthday on the day we left), with all children under the age of 12 having to hold an adult’s hand).

• Tickets are limited and booked in strictly observed half an hour time slots and no bags are allowed. We saw that the queues were very long so it is also worth considering buying a skip the line ticket option.

Things for Tourists to Note whilst in Pisa

Be aware that to enter places of worship in Italy you are expected to dress appropriately, this means being covered up (for women especially) and by this I mean they cannot wear a vest top and shorts.

Pisa was by far the pushiest place for street sellers and beggars. One man put things over the heads of my youngest two children telling them they were free and it was a gift. When I went to sort this out he tied string around my wrist and was very assertive and told us he was hungry. We took the things off the children and gave him a Euro but still couldn’t get the string off – but he was still not wanting to leave us alone and my husband had to be very insistent that we were not giving him more money. There were people like this literally everywhere in Pisa; even a trip to McDonalds had people begging whilst we tried to eat with no-where to sit! My advice is firmly say no and try to avoid stopping making, eye contact or even letting them know that you speak English if you can help it.

Pisa was cheap to fly into and it is easy to get around. It is worth checking Groupon also as they often do great value trips to Italy: If you visit VoucherButler to find a Groupon promo code too. We found it easy to get to the airport and train station on foot to and from the Leaning Tower of Pisa. We stayed the night in Pisa when we arrived in a lovely place; where the owner spoke mostly Italian but wemanaged to get by and had a lovely stay. Again within very close proximity to the airport.

This is a collaborative post.