Tuscany · Siena
San Gimignano
A walled hill town with 14 surviving medieval towers, UNESCO listed since 1990 and the home of Vernaccia.
Known for
FOURTEEN TOWERS
Surviving tower-houses out of 72 built between the twelfth and fourteenth centuries by patrician families, the skyline UNESCO listed since 1990.
VERNACCIA
White wine from local vineyards, praised by Dante in Purgatorio XXIV and the first Italian wine to receive DOC status in 1966.
1348
Year the Black Death halved the population and forced submission to Florence, freezing the medieval skyline in place.
ZAFFERANO DI SAN GIMIGNANO
The commune also lies inside the Zafferano di San Gimignano DOP production zone.
When to visit
Best · Apr–Oct
- J10°
- F13°
- M15°
- A18°
- M23°
- J28°
- J33°
- A32°
- S26°
- O21°
- N15°
- D11°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime averages, 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
San Gimignano sits in the Val d'Elsa, halfway between Firenze and Siena on the medieval pilgrim road to Rome. Patrician families built 72 tower-houses in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries as proofs of wealth and platforms for vendettas; 14 still stand, the tallest being the Torre Grossa. The town declared independence from the bishops of Volterra in 1199 and grew rich on saffron and Vernaccia, the white wine grown on the surrounding hills and praised since Dante.
The Black Death of 1348 broke the boom; San Gimignano lost more than half its population and submitted to Florence. That collapse is the reason the medieval skyline survived. UNESCO listed the historic centre in 1990 as a complete record of feudal architecture. Roughly three million visitors come each year, more than 400 times the resident population, and the centro storico empties into the surrounding olive groves once the day-trippers leave.
How to get there
From Florence / Pisa (PSA), about 1h 27m by car.
Bologna (BLQ) is about 2 hours away.
By car from the centre of Siena 48 minutes, Florence 1 hour or Pisa 1h 20m.
Coming by train into Firenze Santa Maria Novella? San Gimignano is about 1 hour away by road.
What to see
Torre Grossa
Fifty-four meter civic tower attached to the Palazzo Comunale, the tallest of the surviving 14, open for the climb to the panoramic terrace.
Piazza della Cisterna
Triangular medieval square paved in brick around an octagonal well of 1287, lined by tower houses and Romanesque palaces.
Collegiata di Santa Maria Assunta
Romanesque parish church on Piazza Duomo, walls covered by Bartolo di Fredi and Lippo Memmi frescoes of Old and New Testament scenes.
Palazzo Comunale
Thirteenth-century town hall on Piazza Duomo, holding the civic art collection with works by Lippo Memmi, Pinturicchio and Benozzo Gozzoli.
Chiesa di Sant'Agostino
Augustinian church at the northern end of town with a fresco cycle on the life of Saint Augustine by Benozzo Gozzoli from 1465.
Museo della Tortura
Private museum of medieval and modern instruments of torture, controversial but among the most visited collections in the town.
The slow-trip planner
Building a trip? Find where San Gimignano fits in a slow Italy circuit.
Answer five questions. We will shape a geographically coherent slow trip from the 1,000 Italian towns most travelers skip. Yours to save and share.
We recommend
Where to eat and stay
Not our picks, but places the guides put their name to: a Michelin star, a Gambero Rosso fork, a Slow Food snail, a Michelin Key for the hotels. Worth a table, a counter, or a night when you pass through.
San Martino 26Ristorante
San Martino 26 carries two Gambero Rosso forks (82/100), plus a spot in the Michelin Guide.
Da PodeRistorante
Da Pode has a Michelin Bib Gourmand to its name.
LinfaRistorante
Linfa carries one Michelin star.
La CollegiataHotel
A place in the Michelin hotel guide, at La Collegiata.
Through the year
What happens here
Feasts and festivals that come back year after year. We give the month rather than the date, because the date moves and the month rarely does. Check with the source before you plan a journey around one.
Fiere delle Messi di San Gimignanohistorical re-enactment
usually held in June. Borghi Toscana - Eventi
The Sunday letter
San Gimignano got its letter. One town every Sunday, free — the photo, the food, the festa.
Living here
- Population 7,480
- In-betweeni
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Nearest airport Florence / Pisa, 1 h 27 min drive
- Regional capital Firenze, 1 h 1 min drive
Common questions
- What is San Gimignano known for?
- San Gimignano is a walled hill town at 334 meters with 14 surviving medieval towers, UNESCO listed since 1990 and the home of Vernaccia.
- Where is San Gimignano?
- San Gimignano is a comune in the province of Siena, in Tuscany.
- What is the nearest airport to San Gimignano?
- Florence / Pisa (PSA), about 1h 27m by car.
- How long is the drive from Siena to San Gimignano?
- About 48 minutes by car.
- When is the best time to visit San Gimignano?
- Best in Apr–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 33 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 12 rain days.
- Is there a sagra or a festival in San Gimignano?
- Yes. Fiere delle Messi di San Gimignano. June is when the first of them falls.
- Which other towns are like San Gimignano?
- Massa Marittima, Pontremoli and Montaione.
- How many people live in San Gimignano?
- 7,480 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
The numbers
- Elevation: 334 m
- Population: 7,480
- Surface area: 138.6 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
Featured on
San Gimignano appears on 2 themed picks from our Collections:
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