DestinationsSan Gimignano
San Gimignano.
Where it sits
Chianti, half an hour eastSan Gimignano is the one with the towers: fourteen surviving stone towers spiking above a walled hill town, the last of the seventy-odd that rival families once built to out-do one another. From a distance it is unmistakable, the 'medieval Manhattan'; up close it is a small, intact and admittedly busy gem between Florence and Siena.
It is also a wine town: Vernaccia di San Gimignano, Tuscany's notable white in a land of reds, has been made here since the Middle Ages and is poured all over town. Go early or late to beat the day-trippers, climb the Torre Grossa for the view, and pair it with a Chianti villa half an hour east.
Don’t miss
- Fourteen medieval towers, the 'medieval Manhattan'
- Vernaccia di San Gimignano, Tuscany's notable white
- The Torre Grossa climb and Piazza della Cisterna
- Half an hour from the Chianti villa country
The Towers and the Town
The skyline is the thing — fourteen towers where there were once more than seventy, a snapshot of medieval one-upmanship frozen in stone. Climb the Torre Grossa for the view over the Val d'Elsa, walk the Piazza della Cisterna and Piazza del Duomo, and see the frescoes in the Collegiata. It is small; an afternoon does it.
Vernaccia, and When to Go
Vernaccia di San Gimignano was the first Italian wine to win DOC status, and a crisp white is a welcome change in a region of big reds; the enoteche pour it by the glass. The one rule is timing: the town is packed at midday with coaches from Florence and Siena, so come early or stay late, when it empties and the stone goes gold.
Villas near here
Frequently asked
- What is San Gimignano known for?
- Its skyline of fourteen surviving medieval towers, and for Vernaccia di San Gimignano, Tuscany's best-known white wine.
- Is San Gimignano worth it?
- Yes, but go early or late — it is small and very popular at midday. The towers and the view from the Torre Grossa are the draw.
- Where do you stay near San Gimignano?
- In Chianti, about half an hour east, which holds the densest part of our collection.
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