Explore Italy: San Gimignano
/New post series!
In honor of everyone’s favorite year ever, 2020, and all of our hopes and dreams being smashed, batted down, trampled on, and flippantly disposed of, I’m starting a new series on travel. If that seems uncorrelated or insensitive as I live in Italy and much of the world is still banned from entering the EU, allow me to explain.
Because traveling is severely diminished these days, vacations and adventures delayed, cancelled, or no longer optional due to income loss, I hoped to write some simple posts exploring my favorite cities in Italy to bring Italy to YOU. Of course a blog post will never come close to actually traveling, but maybe one of these posts will bring to light a city you’ve never been to and inspire you to start thinking about your next trip. Or cross it off your list, ha! It helps me, too, since I will not be taking any grand holidays this year. This is not all due to coronavirus, but also given we just moved apartments and we’ll be having a baby in September, it’s probably best to stay put for now and plan and prepare since we haven’t been able to do any of that yet! Ironically, I’d love to be in the US right now with my family, because having a baby is so much better with family around, ya know? But I’m not, so here’s a little trip down memory lane of some of the beautiful cities I have gotten to see in my time here in Italy!
Enjoy, and if you ever have any questions, you can always reach out to me! I love helping people when possible.
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Piazza della Cisterna
San Gimignano is a little walled town near Siena perched on one of the rolling hills of Tuscany famed for its medieval charm, beautiful views, wine, and one of the best gelato shops in Italy. That last one is reason enough for me to visit a place!
San Gimignano in a nutshell
Location: Tuscany, Italy
Best known for: Its medieval charm, tall towers, and gelato
Days needed to explore: 1+ - makes for an excellent day trip
What to see and do:
Piazza della Cisterna
Climb the tallest tower, Torre Grossa, for a fee somewhere around 5euro I believe. It’s been standing since 1298, so super safe, right? No, I’m sure it’s fine, and the views are spectacular.
Established: San Gimignano has a somewhat complex history with Etruscan roots, as testified by some of the Etruscan tombs you can still see today.
Two brothers who fled Rome built two towers, one which would eventually be called San Gimignano, and the city has been called so since at least 929 AD. It developed into a thriving city, until the plague of 1348 decimated two-thirds of its population and it submitted to Florentine dominance, never quite to return to its former independent glory. It is known for its fine towers, there were once 72, and today you can still admire 14 of them, which gives it a uniquely medieval skyline perched on its little hill. It has numerous examples of Romanesque and Gothic architecture.
Exploring off the beaten track
Being quite small, it feels like there is one main street, a large principal piazza, and the rest little side streets to wander. This makes it a very easy day trip or possibly somewhere to stay and take a few breaths away from the larger cities. Personally, I really enjoyed San Gimignano as a day trip and didn’t feel the need to stay overnight or even all day. In fact, getting up early my husband and I saw San Gimignano and Siena all in one day and didn’t feel overly rushed. It’s very easy to go back and forth between Siena and San Gimignano by bus or car.
Places to eat:
Gelateria Dondoli. If you’re looking for the world’s best gelato, you’ve found it at Gelateria Dondoli, or so they say! I really don’t know how you decide these things, because there is an awful lot of gelato in the world, and good stuff at that, so how do you choose which is THE best?! Regardless, I had heard from people that it truly was delicious, so I went in with rather high expectations, even if I expected to be at least somewhat disappointed. Well, l will tell you, it was truly delicious gelato. Even for being hyped as the best, I didn’t leave scoffing one bit. So definitely stop and get at least one gelato. It’s found in Piazza della Cisterna. There will probably be a line, and don’t get confused by the other gelateria just on the other corner that has a large sign “World’s best gelato.” This can be very confusing for those looking for the real one, so follow the line if in doubt. They’re famous for a few flavors, including Crema di Santa Fina (cream, saffron, pine nuts), Champelmo (sparkling wine and grapefruit), and Vernaccia Sorbet (made with the famous Vernaccia wine). I particularly recommend the Champelmo and any flavor you normally like! I’ve purposefully gone away from the flavors they’re known for, to see if they put as much finesse into the lesser known flavors. And they did. YUM.
Typical foods to try:
Saffron - a spice, not a dish, but something San Gimignano is known for. Order dishes that feature “zafferano” or take some home with you!
Olive oil - San Gimignano produces a wonderful extra virgin olive oil. Another great product to take with you.
Wine - While you are here you should try the DOCG white wine for which San Gimignano is known: Vernaccia di San Gimignano. For more on this wine and where to have some tastings, check out this site.
How to get there from Florence:
Porta San Giovanni where the bus will drop you off
By car: The quickest and maybe easiest way is by car.
By train: There is no direct train, so you’ll actually need to take a train to Poggibonsi from the main Santa Maria Novella train station, followed by a bus. Once you get to Poggibonsi you’ll get the 130 bus, San Gimignano-Siena line to Porta San Giovanni. Total time will be around 2 hours, depending on how quickly the bus comes. Train ride is about an hour, bus ride is about 20 minutes.
By bus: To get there you will need to get two buses. There is a bus station behind the Santa Maria Novella train station from which you can take a 131 Florence-Siena Busitalia bus to Poggibonsi, where you will transfer buses. Once at Poggibonsi take the 130 San Gimignano-Siena bus to Porta San Giovanni. Total time will be about 1hr 45minutes. First bus takes about 50 minutes, second bus will be around 25 minutes. Buses are my preferred method of travel to get to San Gimignano and also the cheapest. Tickets don’t need to be purchased in advance, but buses run about once every hour on weekdays, less on Saturday and much less on Sundays and holidays, so it’s best to check the schedules ahead of time.
Where to find bus schedules? As with many things in Italy, your safest bet is to go straight to the source to get correct information, in this case the bus station behind the train station in Via Santa Caterina da Siena. Maybe check out the station and get bus departures while you’re out exploring Florence. This way you will also know where to head the morning of your trip to San Gimignano, save some time and stress.
Why I like San Gimignano
While big cities may be more adrenaline inducing for the traveler with all the activity, abundance of restaurants and shops, and sites of interest, the lovely part of these tiny cities is that there isn’t really anything you need to see or do to check off your bucket list. This creates more of a stress free, wander as you will type of experience which I think is very refreshing after running around a city like Rome or Florence. You can put away your phone or map and just enjoy. No matter where you go, you will see ancient and beautiful Italian buildings, shutters, flowers, and local goods. It is very hard to get lost here. There a few museums, of course restaurants, and the main towers and piazzas that are hard to miss.
