Why getting married in Pisa is a great idea
Everybody knows the Italian leaning tower. It is located in Pisa, a city in central Tuscany, not far from the sea. If your dream is to get married near this UNESCO World Heritage site, this post will give you all the information you need to know.
Weddings in Pisa
Pisa offers a romantic setting for your wedding ceremony and reception. As in other Tuscan cities, here too you can have a civil ceremony in a gorgeous city villa or choose to have your symbolic ceremony in a typical Tuscan venue that will make you feel part of traditional Italy.
Many couples who choose Pisa as their wedding location, do it for the amazing views of the Piazza dei Miracoli (The Miracles Square), where the leaning tower is located, but Pisa can also offer other places for your unique wedding in Italy. Let’s see where you can get married in Pisa.
Best wedding locations in Pisa
Here are the villas where you can have a civil wedding in Pisa. There are also many more lovely wedding venues in the towns nearby, like Lucca, the seaside with Livorno, Viareggio and the luxury location Forte dei Marmi where local and international stars love to spend their summer holidays.
Civil weddings in Pisa can take place in three historic venues:
1. The Gambacorti Palace with 3 halls. One of them is suitable for big ceremonies, others for smaller ones.
2. San Zeno Abbey – if you want to have a civil wedding in a church. The abbey is deconsecrated, so you can’t organize a catholic wedding here.
3. Giardino Scotto is perfect for an outdoor wedding if your date is from late May to September.
Things you probably didn’t know about Pisa
Pisa is usually associated with the leaning tower and the Miracles Square, but there is so much more to do here and to learn about this city.
Galileo Galilei was born in Pisa
The father of modern science, who improved the telescope, introduced the scientific method and a series of fundamental studies on the motion was born in Pisa.
You can still visit the places that keep his memory, like via dei Mercanti, where his father opened a school of music, the Battistero where he was baptized or the foundation Domus Galilaeana, where some of his letters and other documents are still intact.
Pisa has ancient walls you can walk on
Walk on Pisa’s walls to get a unique perspective over the leaning tower and the city. The walls are from 1200, and they have been open to the public only for a few years now.
Many people don’t know about this opportunity and only visit the square, so you won’t probably see crowds out there.
Ancient ships museum
Pisa also hosts an ancient ships museum. It is a work in progress and quite an ambitious project.
When this archaeological exhibition, the so-called “Pompeii of the sea”, will be completed, it will host 30 boats from the Roman era, 11 of which intact, and about 8000 items.
This museum can now be visited only upon reservation. Your guide will be an actual archaeologist who will tell you the story of every ship you see.
A walk on Lungarno
You can walk near the Arno river, a place loved by locals and tourists, that becomes special during sunsets, where you can admire the city and other local monuments, like a small Gothic church that faces the river.
The view is lovely especially during summer evenings when you can treat yourself with an aperitivo, near the river after a day of sightseeing and history.
How to arrive to Pisa
Pisa has an airport that hosts flights mostly from Northern Europe and the United Kingdom. Alitalia, Ryanair, Easyjet, Lufthansa, Eurowings, and Vueling use it for flights within Europe.
From Rome, it is a 3 and a half-hour drive, from Milan, a 3-hour drive, from Florence, it will take you 1 hour to reach Pisa by car.
Must-see in Pisa and nearby
Besides the places we mentioned in Pisa, there are so many lovely towns nearby you can choose for your wedding. Pisa is not far from the sea and close to some spectacular spots. Here are some of them.
Viareggio
Viareggio, a Tuscan seaside resort, is best known for its carnival celebrations. The Cittadella is a complex inside which is set up the Carnival Museum, which displays scale reproductions of the allegorical floats that won’t leave anyone indifferent.
The Civic Museums preserve musical instruments from all over the world. In the nearby Torre del Lago, you can visit Villa Puccini, a museum dedicated to the great Italian composer in his former residence on the lake.
Forte dei Marmi
This luxury seaside location offers beautiful beaches, pine forests, caves, small Versilia villages nearby and luxury boutiques. If you aim for an exclusive location for your wedding or vacation, where you can run into local and international stars, you will probably like Forte dei Marmi.
Cinque Terre
This place is located in Liguria but you can easily reach it from Pisa. The Cinque Terre are ancient fishing villages located along the rugged Italian coast. Each of these villages is characterized by colorful houses and vineyards clinging to the steep terraces carved on the coast.
The harbors are crowded with fishing boats and in the typical trattorias it is possible to try seafood specialties, as well as the famous Ligurian condiment: pesto. The Sentiero Azzurro (Blue Path), a hiking trail that extends along the coast, connects the Cinque Terre and offers splendid sea views.
Volterra
Volterra is a walled town not far from Pisa with a long Etruscan history. The Palazzo dei Priori, in the center, has medieval frescoes and a bell tower from which you can see the surroundings.
This lovely city has a beautiful Duomo with a gilded coffered ceiling and the vestiges of an Etruscan Acropolis. The local Etruscan Museum has a very rich collection.
There is even a Roman Theatre including the ruins of thermal baths of the third century.
Lucca
Lucca is only half an hour drive from Pisa. This lovely city is perfect if you love history, medieval buildings, and views over the rolling hills. I wrote more about weddings in Lucca here, don’t miss this lovely city if you want to get married in Tuscany.
Now let’s see what you can do in Pisa and nearby.
Activities you can do near Pisa
Cooking classes
Since Pisa is near the sea, its food is an excellent combination of land and sea recipes. You can learn to cook the famous Pisan dishes, like the Pisan soup made with corn flour, beans and kale, or mucco pisano – a typical Pisan breed steak with a lot of pepper.
Another typical local recipe is stoccafisso alla pisana – a dried hard codfish stew with onions, potatoes and tomatoes.
If this part of the post made you hungry and you are not in Italy yet, here you can find a 4-course dinner idea from an Italian chef for a romantic date with your beloved.
Wine tasting
In Pisa and nearby you can have a wine tasting tour. Pisa’s wines aren’t as famous as the nearby Montepulciano or Chianti areas, but they are good. This area produces mostly white wines, the most known are Bianco Pisano di San Torpè, Bianco Pisano di San Torpè Vin Santo and Bianco Pisano di San Torpè Vin Santo riserva.
Marble cave tour
The Carrara area is famous for its marble used by the main Renaissance artists, like Michelangelo. You can visit the caves, in a Jeep or on a walking tour, and witness how the most beautiful marble in the world is extracted.
The caves are mostly pleasant in summer, because the internal temperature is 59-62 °F (ca. 17 °C).
Do you like the Pisa area? Would you like to get married here? Contact me, I will be happy to assist and to make your wedding day unique and memorable.
PS: I’m thrilled to announce that my blog has been featured on the Top 30 Luxury Wedding Blogs!