Night time guided tours in Siena in August
Posted on 31. Jul, 2017 by admin in Archive, Events
If you think that during summer the weather it is too hot to follow a guided tour in Siena’s historic center, there is an initiative that could make you change your mind because it allows you to enjoy the treasures of the town without getting tired and saving more time to do other activities during the day.
This is the series of tours called Scoperte (Discoveries) – a glimpse into the history of Siena, organized by Federagit Confesercenti Siena, a chance to catch on the way to visit the historic center and surroundings with the help of experts, able to reveal lesser knowns sights, usually not mentioned by travel guides.
Until August 31st there will be 4 tours, each one dedicated to a different topic; on Thursday 3rd August, you will visit Siena top sights of the XIV century, the Government of Nine Lords period, the most important that the city has ever had.
Did you know that Piazza del Campo was built right at that time? This became a symbol of Sienese identity, with the Public Palace in the forefront.
In addition, the Government of Nine Lords built the ramparts, which has remained largely unaltered until today, and the bottini system (water basins), which we talked about in the post Guided tours to the Santa Maria della Scala underground , a system that allowed Siena to have a constant water reserve.
The tour starts at 9:30 pm from Fonte Gaia, at Piazza del Campo.
The next meeting is on Thursday 10th August in Montepulciano, also known as the Pearl of the XVI Century.
Here you will discover the treasures of Piazza Grande, you will appreciate the vineyard tradition by visiting the Cantina de Ricci, you will enter the oldest cafeteria in town, the Poliziano Café, and you will arrive at Palazzo Avignonesi which can not be visited inside, but the guide will tell some of the most interesting curiosities about this venue.
This tour is scheduled at 9:30 pm at Fonte Grande and is a pleasant walk through a hamlet not far from Siena.
Piazza del Campo Credits: © José Luiz Bernardes Ribeiro, via Wikimedia Commons
On Thursday 24th August, you can join a route dedicated to centuries following the Middle Ages: Siena is a town where churches and palaces of different ages exist, such as San Raimondo al Refugio (a Baroque style church) and the Quattro cantoni pharmacy, which preserved the period furnishing (it was opened in 1718), designed by the architect Agostino Fantastici.
The guides will tell you about many prestigious characters, such as Giacomo Casanova, who stayed in Siena in 1770.
Farmacia Credits: By Sailko (Own work) [CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
The last guided tour is scheduled on Thursday 31st August, at 21:30 at Fonte Gaia, and will be focused around the 19th and 20th century palaces.
The peculiarity of the places you can visit is the reinterpretation of medieval architectural styles, as you can see in Piazza Salimbeni, which overlooks its modernity behind some elements of past centuries.
It was Giuseppe Partini who designed the square and restored a series of details in medieval style on the facades of the palaces, so the tour will be a surprising experience, looking for Siena’s unexpected glimpses.
For information on reservations and prices, please visit www.tasteintuscany.com/scoperte or email to info@tasteintuscany.com.
Preview photo Piazza Salimbeni Credits: Il Tesoro di Siena https://flic.kr/p/Jresw5
