Information for Travelers Touring the Leaning Tower of Pisa
The Tower of Pisa is built using medieval architecture design and is located in the city of Pisa, Italy. It is one of the monuments in Piazza Dei Miracoli translated as Square of Miracles. It started its construction on August 9, 1173, and is said to have stood upright for five years before it began to lean. The reason for it leaning is attributed to the dense clay the foundation was built in. The clay was not strong to hold the tower upright, and it began leaning after the third floor was completed. The government halted the construction for 100 years hoping that the clay would settle and have strength to hold the tower’s weight. Five architects and engineers are credited with building the Tower of Pisa. The first phase was constructed by Bonanno Pisano or Gherardo di Gherardo while the second phase was built by Giovanni Pisano and Giovanni di Simone. Tommaso Pisano finally finished the building. This famous monument was completed in the 14th century, the year 1399 and was declared a world heritage site by UNESCO in 1987.
Here are interesting facts about Tower of Pisa that you should know of;
1. The name Pisa means Marshy Land.’
2. The Tower of Pisa is not the only leaning tower in Italy. The others are bell towers of St.Michele de Scalzi church and St.Nicola church.
3. The cathedral and baptistery that are adjacent the tower of Pisa are equally sinking.
4. In 1565, Galileo Galilei was baptized in the baptistery
If you are planning to visit Tower of Pisa, then it is advisable to book online since it is cheaper at 15 € while you will pay 18 € when bought on site. When booking online, you will be required to provide either an ID number or passport number. It is fun to climb the tower which has 251 steps so come prepared to have an excellent view. You can carry a camera to document the monument’s architectural design since it is unique and one to die for.
The baptistery and cathedra are equally fantastic tourist attractions which are not as famous as the Tower of Pisa. If you are planning o visit them, you will be happy to know that the queue is not as big as the tower. You can pay 6 € for both Baptistery and Cathedral, and can get to view the Cathedral free of charge between November 1 to March 1.
The tower of Pisa is open daily except on specific public holidays; thus I am important to Google on their official site to know the days they will not be opened. You can access the tower by taking a train to Pisa train station then walking from there to the tower. One can also take a bus or a taxi o the venue if they do not desire to walk. If one is planning o visit the tower of Pisa and the surrounding monuments, then it is good to have ample time o visit them. The beauty of the architectural designs in Romanian style require time, thus book a hotel in the outskirts of Pisa and have the time of your life. For a double room with breakfast, you can get at the rate of 80€.You can equally check booking.com that has over 200 hotels o choose from.
You need to have comfortable flat shoes if you are planning on climbing the stairs to the highest one to have a panorama view of the city. Since the climbing requires a lot of physical effort, be sure to leave your luggage at the bag drop area that is provided free of charge and manned by security personnel.
There are a wide variety of things to do apart from climbing the tower of Pisa such as dining, dancing and enjoying life in Pisa. Carry enough cash to be able o enjoy yourself and attend a variety of events that are prepared by university students in Pisa.