Car Hire Pisa

Pisa is a surprisingly small city, home to less than 100,000 people and relatively easy to drive around as a result. With the airport close by, Pisa is often used as the perfect base for a trip to wider Tuscany, close to the sea but also to many other wonderful cities. It’s also well connected, so you can kick off the dream Italian road trip right here. 

Italian road rules apply, so you’ll be driving on the right-hand side of the road, overtaking on the left. All of the autostrada – the motorways connecting the major cities – are toll roads. There are often more scenic – and slower – routes to take for free, but if you want to use the autostrada you’ll have to pay. Speed limits are 130km/h, while in towns and cities, such as Pisa, it’s 50km/h.

The very historic heart of Pisa is a ZTL – Zone a Traffico Limitato. This means cars are banned during certain times except for permit holders. If you’re staying at a hotel within this area, simply call ahead with your car details and they’ll ensure you’re able to enter without being fined.

If not, there is plenty of parking just outside the ZTL and the centre is easy to explore on foot. There’s a paid parking garage on the Via Cammeo, just behind the tower, which charges €2 per hour.

If you want to see more of Tuscany, then join the A12 and head south-west to Livorno, or take the SCG Firenze east to Florence, passing Empoli on the way – it should take about 90 minutes. Even closer is Lucca, with its magnificent Renaissance-era city walks – it’s 30 minutes north-east on the SS12 and Via Statale 12.

Pisa is almost synonymous with its iconic Leaning Tower, but to only explore this part of the city is to overlook countless other sights. It shares the River Arno with Florence but has a vibe that is very distinct. Pisa’s university drives a youthful, while the ancient buildings remain polished and preserved for posterity.

Lean into Pisa

The tower can’t be ignored, an accidental masterpiece that has rendered it iconic than it would otherwise have been. Its history is worth delving into, with work on the Torre Pendente beginning as far back as 1173. It wasn’t opened until 1372 due to various problems, and the lean started soon after.

At one point it seemed to be in genuine danger of toppling over, and the tower was closed for repairs in the 1990s. It’s open again but limited to 40 people at a time. Children under 8 aren’t allowed into the tower, and the top is only accessible by climbing the 251 stairs. Your best bet is to book your ticket in advance, to get a guaranteed slot.

I believe in Miracoli

The Leaning Tower sits on the Square of Miracles – Piazza dei Miracoli – where it rubs shoulders with a clutch of other essential sights. Assembled here are the Duomo, Camposanto and Battistero, all highly photogenic and each with their own story to tell.

The striped marble Duomo is the oldest, with building being completed in 1118 after construction began in the mid-11^th century. The Camposanto, with its impressive frescoes, arches and cloisters, serves as a monumental cemetery and it’s rumoured that soil here was taken from Calvary.

The Battistero is the real show-stopper here, however. The Pisa Baptistery was also 200 years in the making and, as a result, spans a few architectural styles, notably Gothic and Romanesque. It’s a stirring sight, vast in scope and majestic in design, even if it too leans a little bit.

Unsung Pisa

Away from the Piazza dei Miracoli, some of Pisa’s most quirky sights reward the more intrepid visitor. Head to Palazzo dell’Opera and look for two large white objects seemingly marooned in the city. These two guy-rope anchors played a vital role in straightening the Leaning Tower in the 1990s when it seemed destined to crumble completely.

History of a different kind is on display at a pair of unusual museums. At the Museum of Pathological Anatomy, you’ll come across six-legged dogs and other unfortunate acts of nature, while at the adjacent Museum of Human Anatomy there’s a great display of mummies from ancient Egypt and decorative death masks.

If you’re in Pisa on the second weekend of the month, you can scour Piazza dei Cavalieri’s antique market for a singular souvenir. If you’ve got a taste for vintage Italian style, hire a car and park up near Via San Martino’s flea market on Saturday or Wednesday. Do as the locals do and throw yourself into the hustle and bustle wholeheartedly.

Discover the many delights of Pisa and the wider areas of Tuscany with car hire in Pisa.