🇮🇹 Italy · Places to discover
What to see in Arezzo ?
18 places curated by Hozy - landmarks, nature, hidden restaurants and activities. Click to discover each address in detail.
Arezzo keeps at bay the crowds that saturate Florence and Siena, which grants it a rare quality of life for a Tuscan art town. Its medieval centre, built on a slope up a hillside, revolves around the Piazza Grande—an inclined square bordered by Renaissance façades that Giorgio Vasari helped shape. The town owes much of its worldwide reputation to the frescoes of Piero della Francesca preserved in the basilica of San Francesco, a fifteenth-century pictorial cycle of striking formal coherence.
Spring (April-May) and September offer pleasant weather without summer's stifling heat. Two days suffice to explore the town on foot without rushing. Arezzo is well served by train from Florence in forty minutes, making it easily accessible. Avoid concentrating your visit on the first weekend of the month: the Fiera Antiquaria crowds the Piazza Grande and complicates access to the frescoes, unless the market itself is your objective.
Landmarks & heritage (10)
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Roman Amphitheatre of Arezzo
2nd-century amphitheatre, partially excavated and integrated into the archaeological museum's gardens. Entry included with museum admission, often deserted except for school groups.
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Casa Vasari
The house of Giorgio Vasari, architect and art historian, which he himself decorated with allegorical frescoes. An intimate museum revealing the inner world of a sixteenth-century Tuscan artist.
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Pieve di Santa Maria
Romanesque façade with stacked arcading, among Tuscany's finest. The bell tower, known as the 'Hundred Holes Tower', is unmistakable; inside hangs a polyptych by Pietro Lorenzetti.
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Palazzo della Fraternita dei Laici
Gothic-Renaissance building on Piazza Grande, a unique blend of styles constructed over two centuries. The lay fraternity founded in 1262 remains active today—one of Italy's oldest charitable organisations.
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Piazza Grande
Arezzo's sloping medieval square, surrounded by Renaissance palaces and Vasari loggias. The first weekend of each month hosts one of Italy's largest antique markets.
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Museo Nazionale d'Arte Medievale e Moderna
Remarkable collections housed in Palazzo Bruni, spanning the Middle Ages to the nineteenth century with works by Vasari and Signorelli alongside exceptional majolica. Seldom crowded, it's a hidden gem.
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Museo Archeologico Nazionale Gaio Cilnio Mecenate
Situated in a former convent overlooking a second-century Roman amphitheatre, this museum displays Aretine coral-red ware, exported throughout the Roman Empire. An archaeological site within the museum itself.
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Cathedral of Saints Peter and Donato
Gothic cathedral dominating the city from its elevated position, featuring stained glass by Guillaume de Marcillat and the tomb of Pope Gregory X. The interior strikes you with its austere beauty.
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Basilica of San Francesco
Masterpiece by Piero della Francesca with the fresco cycle of the Legend of the True Cross. Booking is mandatory but essential: this is one of the greatest works of Italian Renaissance art.
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Fortezza Medicea
Sixteenth-century fortress built by the Medici after their conquest of Arezzo, now transformed into a public park. Exceptional panoramic views across the city and the Casentino valley.
Nature & parks (1)
Viewpoints (3)
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Monte Lignano – Panorama sulla Valdichiana
Wooded hillside south of Arezzo offering sweeping views across the Valdichiana plain and Lake Trasimeno on clear days. Starting point for mountain-bike trails and hiking routes that are unmapped but authentic.
Viewpoint
Way of the Cross on the Hill – San Donato
Winding path ascending between medieval ramparts and the cathedral, lined with centuries-old cypress trees. Little known to visitors, it's the route locals use to reach the summit of the old town.
Viewpoint
Terrazza della Fortezza Medicea
The summit terrace of the fortress commands the finest 360° panorama across Arezzo, the Arno valley and the Casentino hills. Free admission, pleasantly uncrowded outside weekends.
Activities (4)
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Fiera Antiquaria di Arezzo
One of Europe's largest antiques markets, held on the first weekend of each month across Piazza Grande and adjacent streets. Over 500 dealers offering everything from bric-à-brac to Renaissance furniture.
Wikipedia (fr) - CC BY-SAActivity
Giostra del Saracino
A medieval joust where the city's four quarters compete, staged twice yearly in June and September on Piazza Grande. Historical costumes, horses and genuine popular fervour—no tourist spectacle.
Activity
Goldsmiths' Workshop – Corso Italia
Arezzo is the world capital of goldsmithing: several workshops along Corso Italia offer tours and introductions to artisanal jewellery-making. An overlooked industrial tradition that has shaped the city.
Activity
Percorso Ciclabile Lungo Arno – Pista di Rondine
A cycle path running alongside the Arno north from Arezzo's gates, passing through wetlands and poplar groves. Bike hire is available in town, and the flat route makes for an easy morning out of the city.