Siena Cathedral Tickets: how to buy, prices and discounts

The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption is, along with the Torre del Mangia and Palazzo Salimbeni, one of the main attractions of Siena and one of the most beautiful religious temples in Italy, especially for its architectural design combining Gothic and Romanesque styles, but it is also one of the best museums in the city.

Located in the old part of the city, visiting the Cathedral is one of the best things to see and do in Siena to discover the local history and also to see some of the most outstanding works of art by Pinturicchio, Michelangelo, Raphael Sanzio and Amico Aspertini.

The answer will depend on the ticket you choose and the access it allows, as you can buy a ticket for the Siena Cathedral and for the museums in the complex or a ticket that only includes entrance to the exhibitions.

The approximate starting price for a full ticket is 21 euros for adults and 5 euros for children between the ages of 7 and 11. Children under the age of 6 are free, provided they are accompanied by an adult.

Exclusive admission to the museums of the complex costs approximately 13 euros for adults and 2 euros for children between 7 and 11 years of age. In this case, children under the age of 6 also get in free.

All tickets also give you access to the audio-guided tour or you can sign up for the excursions with an expert local guide, which is one of the best tours in Siena

You can buy tickets in advance online or directly from the ticket office at the time of your visit, although you should be aware that if you plan to visit Siena during the Christmas or summer months there may be long queues at the entrance.

If you still want to buy tickets at the ticket office , you will have to enter from the left side of the Cathedral up to the gift shop, where you can also book guided tours.

You can also buy tickets at the ticket office in the crypt at the back of the Cathedral, next to the Baptistery of St. John. The approximate cost is the same as for online tickets.

The Siena Pass, which is a tourist card valid for 3 days, does not include the entrance to the Cathedral but it does include a 50% discount for the Duomo and also for the Baptistery, the Crypt, the Piccolomini Library and the Oratory of San Bernardino, so if you buy it you can save money during your visits to the complex.

Note that with the Siena Pass you will also be able to enter the Cathedral without queuing, which in high season will be very beneficial as the historic centre of the city contains the most visited attractions.

The Siena Pass also includes discounted admission to the Museo dell'Opera Metropolitana, which contains the city's largest and most famous art gallery.

Interesting details

• Price: The tourist card has an initial cost of approximately 21 euros per person.
• Duration: The Sienna Pass is valid for 3 days from first use.

Tickets for the Siena Cathedral are discounted for children between 7 and 11 years old. This means that the full visit ticket has an initial cost of approximately 5 euros, while for adults the cost is 21 euros.

For tickets that include the tour of the museums of the complex, but without access to the Cathedral, the ticket for children aged 7-11 has a starting cost of approximately 2 euros, while adults pay approximately 13 euros, making it an excellent opportunity to combine a trip with children with a visit to the best museums in Siena.

Please note that children under the age of 6 are free and must be accompanied by a responsible adult.

With your ticket to Siena Cathedral you can opt for a free self-guided tour, which is available in 8 languages and can be requested at the ticket office in the gift shop on the left side of the main door of the Duomo.

You can take tours of the Cathedral and the museums of the complex with an expert local guide by joining a group at an extra cost, although please note that you can only sign up for a guided tour once you are at the entrance to the Duomo, so if you did not buy your tickets in advance online, you may have to wait your turn and queue at the ticket office.

A guided tour is the best way to get to know the museum complex and the Cathedral because it will save you time and make your tour more effective, especially if you are planning a quick trip to the city. If that is your case, here is a list of activities to get to know Siena in 1 day.

The Siena Cathedral is located in the heart of the historic centre of the city, so by car you can only get to the Duomo car park and then you will have to walk 5 streets to the entrance of the complex. However, you can easily reach the complex by public transport.

If you combine bus lines 60N and 131 you can get from any point in the city to Piazza San Domenico, which is located in front of the Artemio Franchi stadium. From there you will have to walk 2 streets to the entrance of the Cathedral.

You can also enter some parts of the old town by bike, especially on tours starting in Piazza del Campo, which is the epicentre of Siena's best food tours.

The Cathedral of Siena is considered a UNESCO World Heritage Site and, in addition to an architecture that is striking for its harmonious combination of Gothic and Romanesque styles, has some of the most important works of the most outstanding Italian artists, both in the pavement of the central nave and in the frescoes and sculptures inside.

The floor of the cathedral is rated as the most beautiful in the world and has a Roman mosaic layout that was largely designed by Pinturicchio. The pulpit, which was made by the sculptor Nicola Pisano, is another of the Duomo's masterpieces and the two most famous sculptures inside the building are those of St. Peter and St. Paul, which were designed by Michelangelo.

In addition, you can also visit the Museo dell'Opera Metropolitana, which gathers some of the most important Renaissance works of Tuscany, the Piccolomini Library, which was decorated by Raphael Sanzio, and if you visit Siena at night, you can also discover the illuminated front of the Crypt.

Note also that all the buildings in the complex respond to the same architectural style that evolved as a whole, so in addition to the museum displays and the works of art inside the Cathedral you will also marvel at the façades, columns and constructions of all the buildings.

Touring the Cathedral and the museums of the complex will take approximately 3 to 4 hours, although if you are planning a short stay in the city you can opt for a quick tour of the Duomo without visiting the exhibitions, which will take approximately 1 hour and a half.

You can also choose to visit only the museums and in that case you will have to do a visit of about 2 hours, although I recommend that if you have the possibility to visit the historic centre of Siena you reserve some time for the cathedral building.

If, in addition to the Cathedral and the museums, you would also like to visit the other religious sites in Siena, such as the Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta in San Gimignano, the complex of Sant'Agostino and the Benedictine Abbey of Sant'Antimo, you should plan a half-day excursion.

Siena Cathedral is open to tourists every day from 10.30 am to 5.00 pm and visits are scheduled every half hour, with the 4.30 pm visit being the last. The schedule of the museums in the complex follows the same timetable as that of the Duomo, although it is modified on public holidays.

Masses in Siena Cathedral are celebrated every weekday at 9:30 a.m. and on public holidays in four shifts, at 8:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 12:15 p.m. and 6:00 p.m.. In summer, the last mass of the last shift is at 18:30.

In addition, during the summer season the closing time of the Cathedral is extended by 2 hours to 19:30, so you can make the most of your visit by taking a full day tour of Tuscany from Siena or other excursions around the city and visit the Duomo in the late shifts.

Within the Siena Cathedral complex there are two main shops. One is located in the Museo dell'Opera Metropolitana and the other inside the Duomo and both offer souvenirs, themed gifts, ornaments, decorations and miniatures of Michelangelo's sculptures and the cathedral buildings.

The shops are open daily during the opening hours of the Cathedral and the museums, with extended opening hours during the summer and limited on public holidays. Opening hours may be altered during particular events taking place in the complex.

Inside the shop you can also visit the Historical Archive, the Library and the Photo Library, where you can buy some of the best photographs and postcards of the city.

Please note that you can also find souvenirs and decorations in the nearby shops outside the Cathedral, which in some cases may have cheaper prices.

Details of interest

• Price: Entrance to the shop is free, although you should note that you must have purchased a ticket for the Cathedral or the museums in the complex to enter.
• Opening hours: daily from 10.30am to 5pm. Shop opening hours are subject to change on public holidays.
• Location: Piazza del Duomo 8, Siena.

Siena has a long tradition of Italian gastronomy, so in the historic centre area, very close to the Cathedral and the museums of the complex, you will find some of the best restaurants and bars in the city.

Highlights include Ristorante La Finestra and Taverna di San Giuseppe and Zest, which is also a winery that is often included in the itineraries of Siena's best wine tours.

You can make the most of your visit to the city by also seeing the Torre del Mangia, the bell tower in Piazza del Campo which offers one of the most beautiful open views of the city from its top and is ideal to visit after lunch to wait for the sunset and enjoy the sunsets.