In this guide
💡 The Short Version: San Gimignano has no station. Take the direct regional train from Firenze Santa Maria Novella to Poggibonsi-San Gimignano: hourly at :10, 1 hour 4 minutes, from €8.90 each way, then an Autolinee Toscane bus up to the town. The Palazzo Comunale, Pinacoteca and Torre Grossa are €10 and the Collegiata €7; the three-day pass is €15. The museums close at 17:30 from 1 November. Or book a tour: Day Trip with Free Time in San Gimignano and Sienaad is €60 for 9 hours, and Siena, San Gimignano and Monteriggioni with a tastingad is €65 for 11. A tour replaces the bus connection (GetYourGuide).
Getting there on your own
Fares are Trenitalia’s “from” fares for a second-class single; the Trenitalia app shows the exact fare for your date.
| Route | Times | Journey | Fare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florence Santa Maria Novella to Poggibonsi-San Gimignano, direct | Hourly at :10: 08:10, 09:10, 10:10, 11:10, 12:10, 13:10 | 1 hour 4 minutes | From €8.90 |
| Siena to Poggibonsi-San Gimignano | 09:18, 11:18, 12:18 and others | 23 to 26 minutes | From €4.10 |
- No station in the town. Poggibonsi-San Gimignano is the railway station for the bus; Autolinee Toscane lines 130 (Siena to San Gimignano via Poggibonsi) and 133 (Poggibonsi to San Gimignano) serve the town. Buy the ticket and read the timetable in the at bus app, and plan the return bus before you leave the town.
- Both towns by public transport. The train to Poggibonsi, the bus to San Gimignano, the bus back to Poggibonsi and the 23-minute train to Siena make the day; the Siena guide has the trains back to Florence.
Tours from Florence
San Gimignano is on most Siena tours and on the Chianti coach days. Prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” prices for one adult.
Free time in San Gimignano and Siena
From €60 · 2,351 reviews · 9 hours
Florence: Day Trip with Free Time in San Gimignano and Sienaad gives free time in each town, with a tour leader and an optional audio guide. From Florence: Siena & San Gimignano Tour with Chianti Viewsad is also 9 hours, from €49 (196 reviews).
Siena, San Gimignano and Monteriggioni
From €65 · 3,911 reviews · 11 hours
Florence: Siena, San Gimignano & Monteriggioni with Tastingad adds the walled village of Monteriggioni and a Chianti wine tasting.
With Chianti wine and lunch
From €71 · 4,230 reviews · 11 hours
Florence: S. Gimignano, Siena, Chianti Wine Tasting & Lunchad stops at a Chianti winery for a typical lunch and a guided tasting, and is listed as likely to sell out. The Chianti guide compares the winery tours.
With Pisa
From €55 and €49 · 9,617 and 11,882 reviews · 12 hours
Florence: Pisa, Siena, San Gimignano with Light Lunchad is from €55, and Pisa, Siena and San Gimignano with Lunchad from €49. San Gimignano is a stop rather than the day.
What to see in San Gimignano
The town is known as the Manhattan of the Middle Ages for its towers, and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1990 (whc.unesco.org). The civic museums sell their own tickets.
The towers of San Gimignano. Photo: Thomas Quine, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.
Palazzo Comunale, Pinacoteca and Torre Grossa
€10, reduced €8 · €1 booking fee online · one day
One ticket covers the town hall, its art gallery and the Torre Grossa, the tower you can climb. Open 10:00 to 19:30 from 1 April to 31 October, with last entry at 19:00, and 11:00 to 17:30 from 1 November to 31 March, with last entry at 17:00. From 26 December to 6 January it is open 10:30 to 18:30, and it is closed on 25 December (sangimignanomusei.it).
The Palazzo Comunale and the Torre Grossa in San Gimignano. Photo: Photo2023, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.
The Collegiata
€7 · €1 booking fee online
The Collegiata complex and the Museum of Sacred Art are on one €7 ticket. Its hours differ by weekday and change with services (sangimignanomusei.it).
The nave of the Collegiata in San Gimignano. Photo: Mongolo1984, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
The San Gimignano Pass
€15 · junior 6 to 17 €12 · three days
The pass covers the Collegiata, the Palazzo Comunale and Torre Grossa, Santa Chiara and San Lorenzo in Ponte. The Torre Grossa museums and the Collegiata cost €17 separately, so the pass saves €2 and adds two more sites.
Before you go
- Hours. The civic museums close at 17:30 from 1 November, with last entry at 17:00.
- The Collegiata. Its hours depend on the day of the week and on services.
- The bus. Autolinee Toscane lines 130 and 133 connect Poggibonsi and the town; plan the return before you go up.
San Gimignano is one of the day trips from Florence. Siena is the usual pairing, Chianti by tour the wine, and Pisa the third town on the long coach tours. From Rome, Tuscany by coach tour covers Montepulciano and Pienza. Florence public transport covers the way to Santa Maria Novella, what to book before you go to Florence has the city tickets, and 3 days in Florence shows where a day away fits. Where to stay in Florence compares the areas.
Common questions
How do I get from Florence to San Gimignano?
Take the direct regional train from Firenze Santa Maria Novella to Poggibonsi-San Gimignano, hourly at :10, 1 hour 4 minutes, from €8.90. From Poggibonsi, Autolinee Toscane buses 130 and 133 run to San Gimignano. There is no railway station in San Gimignano itself.
Can you do San Gimignano and Siena in one day?
Yes, on a tour or by train and bus. Siena is 23 to 26 minutes from Poggibonsi by train, from €4.10, so you can see San Gimignano first and take the train on to Siena. The tours that cover both are 9 hours from €49.
How much does it cost to go up the Torre Grossa?
€10 for the Palazzo Comunale, the Pinacoteca and the Torre Grossa, valid for one day; reduced €8. An online ticket carries a €1 booking fee. Open 10:00 to 19:30 from 1 April to 31 October and 11:00 to 17:30 from 1 November to 31 March.
What is the San Gimignano Pass?
A €15 ticket valid for 3 days that covers the Collegiata, the Palazzo Comunale and Torre Grossa, Santa Chiara and San Lorenzo in Ponte. A junior ticket for ages 6 to 17 is €12. The Collegiata alone is €7 and the Torre Grossa museums €10, so the pass pays once you visit both.
Is San Gimignano worth a tour?
A tour saves the bus connection at Poggibonsi, and most pair the town with Siena or Chianti. By train the day is 2 hours 8 minutes of travel and a bus, about €17.80 in return train fares.
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