Florence · San Lorenzo & Mercato Centrale

Siena Day Trip from Florence

Siena is 75 km south of Florence and 75 minutes by bus (SENA/Tiemme express, EUR 9 one way, book online).

About Siena Day Trip from Florence

Siena is 75 km south of Florence and 75 minutes by bus (SENA/Tiemme express, EUR 9 one way, book online). The Piazza del Campo is the most beautiful public square in Italy - a shell-shaped medieval square surrounded by palaces on three sides and the Palazzo Pubblico on the fourth. The Duomo of Siena is more ornate and more personal than the Florentine cathedral, with the Piccolomini Library (EUR 4 supplement) containing 15th-century Pinturicchio frescoes that are remarkable. The Pinacoteca has Duccio and Simone Martini, the founders of Sienese painting. The city is car-free in the centro storico and easy to navigate on foot. Allow a full day - take the 8:30 AM bus, return on the 6 PM or 7 PM bus.

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The place

Getting there

Address

Via Camillo Cavour, 18, 50129 Firenze FI, Italy

Neighborhood

San Lorenzo & Mercato Centrale →

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Good to know

Tips, answered

Bus from Florence SMN station (SENA/Tiemme, EUR 9, book online). Take the 8:30 AM bus, return at 6 or 7 PM. The Campo at midday in summer is hot and crowded - be there at 9 AM. Lunch in the streets south of the Campo (avoid the piazza restaurants). The crypt under the Duomo (separate ticket EUR 8) has 13th-century frescoes in an extraordinary state of preservation. Closed during the Palio (July 2 and August 16) when accommodation is impossible to find.

Plan for about 9 hours. Morning visits are typically less crowded.

Siena Day Trip from Florence is in the San Lorenzo & Mercato Centrale neighborhood of Florence. The address is Via Camillo Cavour, 18, 50129 Firenze FI, Italy. The area is well-served by metro.

Morning visits, especially early, mean fewer crowds and better light for photos. Weekdays are significantly quieter than weekends.

Comfortable shoes are recommended. Parts are outdoors, so bring a light layer.

Around the corner

Nearby in San Lorenzo & Mercato Centrale

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Museum

Basilica di San Lorenzo & Medici Chapels

San Lorenzo is the parish church of the Medici family, rebuilt by Brunelleschi from 1419, and the complex includes some of Michelangelo's most important architectural and sculptural work. The church (EUR 9.50) has Brunelleschi's Old Sacristy and Michelangelo's New Sacristy (also called the Medici Chapel), where the tombs of Lorenzo and Giuliano de' Medici are crowned by Michelangelo's allegorical figures of Day, Night, Dawn, and Dusk. The staircase leading to the Laurentian Library (EUR 9.50 separate or combined) was designed by Michelangelo and is considered a mannerist masterpiece - the staircase flows like a cascade of stone. The outdoor leather market around the church is commercial but lively.

1.5-2 hoursExplore

Museum

Cenacolo di Sant'Apollonia

This tiny former convent houses Andrea del Castagno's 1447 Last Supper fresco, one of Renaissance art's most psychologically intense works. You'll find yourself face to face with a masterpiece that influenced Leonardo da Vinci himself. The fresco covers an entire wall of what was once the Benedictine nuns' dining hall, showing Judas isolated on the viewer's side of the table while the other apostles react with shock and anger. The painted marble backdrop and brutal emotional realism make this work more raw and powerful than most religious art in Florence. The museum consists of just two small rooms, making your visit intimate and focused. You'll have the fresco mostly to yourself, able to study every detail of the apostles' expressions and Castagno's revolutionary perspective techniques. The silence in the former refectory adds gravity to the scene. Above the Last Supper, three smaller frescoes show the Crucifixion, Deposition, and Resurrection, completing the narrative. Most guidebooks barely mention this place, which keeps crowds away but means you might walk right past it. Admission is completely free, making it one of Florence's best art bargains. The visit takes 20 minutes maximum, so don't plan your whole morning around it. Pair it with the nearby Mercato Centrale or use it as a quiet break between the chaos of San Lorenzo's markets.

20-30 minutesExplore

Tour

Florencephototour

This golden hour photography workshop takes you to Florence's most photogenic spots with actual professional photographers who know the technical side inside out. You'll hit Piazzale Michelangelo for the classic skyline shot, then move to Ponte Vecchio and along the Lungarno Torrigiani as the light changes. They provide camera equipment if you don't have your own, and the instruction covers real technical skills like HDR, manual exposure, and composition tricks that work specifically in Florence's tricky lighting. The 2.5 hour session follows the light as it changes, starting before sunset and continuing into blue hour. Your guide positions the group at each location's sweet spots and actually demonstrates settings on your camera rather than just talking theory. The pace feels relaxed but purposeful, moving between viewpoints as the light shifts from golden to deep blue. You'll end up with genuinely better photos than the usual tourist snapshots, plus you'll understand why certain settings work. Most photography tours rush through too many locations, but this one gets the timing right by focusing on just three prime spots. The guides are working photographers, not just tour leaders with cameras, which shows in their technical advice. Book directly through their basement office to avoid markup from booking sites. Skip this if you're already comfortable with manual camera settings, the instruction level is aimed at enthusiastic beginners to intermediate photographers.

2.5 hoursExplore

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