Siena is a city with countless sights and cultural treasures, and at the same time the city is considered the wine capital of Tuscany. That way, you are never far from the nearest winery or for some tasty breaks in the city. Among the well-known wines from here is Chianti, which can be enjoyed hand in hand with the city’s atmosphere in the many old cozy streets.

Piazza del Campo is a beautiful square that forms the old center of Siena. The square is dominated by the city’s famous town hall, Palazzo Pubblico, which was built in an almost castle-like architecture in the years 1297-1310. It contains several distinguished halls from the Middle Ages, and there is a museum, the Museo Civico, where you can see paintings by great artists from Siena.

The town hall tower Torre del Mangia is 102 meters high, and from the top there is the city’s best view of the cathedral and the rooftops of the charming city. From the top, you can also get a great view of the pavement on Piazza del Campo, which radiates like a fan in nine fields from the town hall. The nine fields symbolize the Council of Nine, which governed the city in the Middle Ages.

Among the square’s other buildings are several mansions that help give the square its unique atmosphere, which you can enjoy from one of the many outdoor dining places. You can also see the fountain Fonte Gaiai, made by Jacopo della Quercia 1409-1419. The fountain is a copy from the 19th century, and the original still exists as well.

The city’s other major attraction is the Cathedral or Duomo, which is considered among Italy’s most beautiful. It was founded in the Romanesque style in the 12th century but changed into one of the best examples of Italian Gothic around 100 years later. The construction of the impressive church was completed in 1382, however some parts like the south nave was never built. It stands as a shell with the dimensions of 50×30 meters. It was supposed to be the largest Christian church, but a plague epidemic put an end to the plans.

The building material is mainly black and white stone. They were, for the most part, collected by local citizens in quarries outside Siena. The exterior of the church is richly ornamented, as is the beautiful, striped tower. Inside you can see the large marble floor mosaics, columns with inlays in black and white marble, stained glass and frescoes as well as reliefs by, among others, Donatello. The Piccolomini library is also worth seeing, and in the unfinished south wing, there is now a cathedral museum, Museo dell’ Opera del Duomo, where you can explore the history of the church.