This website uses cookies

We use cookies to offer you the best browsing experience. What do we use them for?
To allow you to use some features of the site, to collect anonymous statistical data or for marketing purposes. The choice remains yours.

Cookie Policy
Cookie preferences
Necessary

The necessary cookies help to make the site usable by enabling basic functions such as page navigation, access to protected areas and to collect data on the navigation path. The site cannot function properly without these cookies and they do not require your consent.

See the full list
Analytical

Statistical cookies help website owners understand how visitors interact by collecting and transmitting information anonymously.

See the full list
Marketing

Marketing cookies are used to track visitors across websites. The intent is to display relevant and engaging ads for the individual user and therefore those of greatest value for publishers and third party advertisers.

See the full list
Get discount code!
Discount
10%
Subscribe our Newsletter
and immediately get a 10% discount
for your next getaway in the Tuscan hills!
close

Get a quote
Best price guaranteed


Adults
Add
Remove
Children
Add
Remove


Enter coupon

Enter your email address

Child  - 
Child 1

Child 2
Child 3



San Gimignano

San Gimignano
The Relais Santa Chiara is immersed in the nature of the Tuscan hills in a strategic position that allows you to experience all the magic of the countryside, just a few minutes' walk from the medieval walls of the centre of San Gimignano, an enchanting village that has been declared a Unesco World Heritage Site.

 

San Gimignano


With its forest of towers looming on the horizon, San Gimignano is one of the most iconic and recognisable destinations in all of Tuscany. From all over the world, there is someone who dreams of reaching this ancient Val d'Elsa village to experience a perfect medieval postcard. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1990, San Gimignano is also known as the 'Manhattan of the Middle Ages' and owes its fame to the incredible number of towers that towered over the roofs of the town.

In its heyday, San Gimignano counted up to 72 towers: the oldest among them is the Torre Rognosa, also known as the Clock Tower, which was built in the early 13th century. In medieval times, in fact, the towers owned by the wealthy families of the city were built to symbolise the power and economic wealth of their lineage.
As time went by in the 16th century, due to the depopulation of the city and the economic crisis, little less than half of them remained: many towers collapsed and many were instead scapitozzate (i.e. deprived of the upper part), such as the Twin Towers of the Salvucci family. Today, thirteen remain and contribute to a certainly unique skyline.

A visit to the historical centre of San Gimignano does not end with the contemplation of its verticality. Also not to be missed is the Duomo: completed in 1148, it is considered one of the most prestigious in Tuscany. Divided into three naves, the Cathedral is a true anthology of frescoes of the Florentine school: from Benozzo Gozzoli's Saint Sebastian, to Domenico Ghirlandaio's Stories of Santa Fina - inside the Chapel of Santa Fina - to the Wooden Statues by Jacopo della Quercia.

The Palazzo Comunale (also known as the Palazzo Pubblico) is also interesting. It currently houses the Civic Museum and Art Gallery, where works by artists such as Pinturicchio, Benozzo Gozzoli, Filippino Lippi, Domenico di Michelino and Pier Francesco Fiorentino can be admired. Also inside the Palazzo Comunale, it is possible to visit Dante's room with Lippo Memmi's Majesty and to access the Torre del Podestà - or Torre Grossa - which, at 54 metres, has been the tallest tower in San Gimignano since the year of its erection in 1311. But there is much more. At the Museum of Torture and Death Penalty you will find a special collection of instruments dating back to the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.

Continuing through the historical centre, you will come across the Piazza della Cisterna, which owes its name to a public cistern built in the medieval period for public use and topped by a famous and iconic travertine well. 

A stop at the documentation and tasting centre for wine and local products Vernaccia di San Gimignano Wine Experience-La Rocca, with its tasting counter and multimedia itinerary to discover the history of wine through images, lights, sounds, voices, videos, holograms, and viewers with 360-degree films, is a must.