Pavia is a small yet lively city with an outstanding artistic, historical and cultural heritage that have survived the decay of the time and reached our days.
The city's layout and size mean that the best way to discover its exceptional attractions is on foot. However if you need a taxi at any point, please go to a nearby taxi stop and call a taxi from an official operating company. We suggest:
- Radio Taxi Pavia: +39 0382 576 576
- Taxi Radio Pavese: +39 0382 577 733
Places of interest:
Piazza della Vittoria: The most important square in the city and home to many local restaurants. It is surrounded by medieval buildings and full of characteristic porticoes of that age.
Duomo di Pavia: Dedicated to Santo Stefano Martire and Santa Maria Assunta is the most imposing church in Pavia and an important Renaissance building itself. It has a grandiose octagonal masonry dome, one of the largest in Italy in terms of height and width.
Ponte Coperto: Connecting the old town with the Borgo Ticino neighborhood, it is a very singular brick arch bridge containing a chapel in the middle of it.
Castello Visconteo-Civic Museum: Originally a court residence, then a military barracks, and now a cultural venue. Today this site hosts Pavia's Civic Museum, containing rooms divided by historial period and temporary exhibitions.
Medieval towers: 3 near the university and 2 in L. Porta street. They date back to the 11th-12th centuries and were the symbol of the powerful families they belonged to.
Basilica di San Michele Maggiore: A few steps from the Ponte Coperto, this basilica is one of the most striking example of Lombard-Romanesque style. Dated back from the 11th-12th centuries, is the place where the kings of the Lombards were crowned.
Certosa di Pavia: situated 8km north of the city, this large monastery and complex was built in 1396-1495. Certosa is the Italian name for a house of the cloistered monastic order of Carthusians founded by St. Bruno in 1044.
With a Gothic and Renaissance style, it is worth the ride to admire the beautiful church, cloisters, its painted masterpieces and the important collection of stained glass windows that it possesses.