Siena on 6 January 2014

Sarah

New member
We arrive in Siena from Florence on 5 January and leave for Rome on 8 January. We were hoping to do a day trip to San Gimignano on 7 January but I've since realized that 6 January is a national holiday in Italy. Will anything be open on 6 January? Should we skip San Gimignano if sights in Siena are closed. Any advice most welcome!
 
Car in Sienna

Hi Sara - are you planning on having a car while in Sienna? If so - where are you staying. I am also possibly looking at Sienna as a home base for my trip next September - but noticed not many places in Sienna have parking.

Be glad to hear from another vacationer.
 
Hi Sara - are you planning on having a car while in Sienna? If so - where are you staying. I am also possibly looking at Sienna as a home base for my trip next September - but noticed not many places in Sienna have parking.

Be glad to hear from another vacationer.

Hi Charlie - no, we won't have a car. We're travelling there by bus. I understand you have to park outside the city walls if you have a car.
 
Ciao Sarah,

While January 6 is a holiday and many places will be closed, there will still be some restaurants and museums open for eating and visits. San Gimignano and Siena are particularly important for tourism, so both have a general greater number of places open than the smaller towns. Expect many shops and grocery stores to be closed, but also expect to find coffee shops and restaurants open.

Since you arrive on the 5th in Siena, make sure to ask where you're staying at - they'll likely know of special events tied to the Epiphany you can also take part of, as well as restaurants or other places nearby that are open for sure on the 6th. Then you can decide what to do on the 7th, if you want to head to San Gimignano then or not... I'd say it is likely you'll find a good amount to do regardless.
 
Charlie - hotels in the center will almost specifically say whether you can reach them with your car to drop off luggage regardless of the ZTL and say whether they offer parking or not... some do, some don't and in that case you need to go back out to the lots around the walls and leave the car there. Depends on how many days total you're looking at. If you're staying for a whole week, I'd recommend staying near Siena so that you can take advantage of its central position but not in town.
Take a look at the farmhouse apartments near Castellina to the north of Siena here
http://www.tuscanyaccommodation.com/castellina-in-chianti/
as well as to the south of Siena in the area known as the Crete Senesi here:
http://www.tuscanyaccommodation.com/crete-senesi/
 
Ciao Sarah,

While January 6 is a holiday and many places will be closed, there will still be some restaurants and museums open for eating and visits. San Gimignano and Siena are particularly important for tourism, so both have a general greater number of places open than the smaller towns. Expect many shops and grocery stores to be closed, but also expect to find coffee shops and restaurants open.

Since you arrive on the 5th in Siena, make sure to ask where you're staying at - they'll likely know of special events tied to the Epiphany you can also take part of, as well as restaurants or other places nearby that are open for sure on the 6th. Then you can decide what to do on the 7th, if you want to head to San Gimignano then or not... I'd say it is likely you'll find a good amount to do regardless.

Thank you Lourdes! We're looking forward to just walking around and soaking up the sights.
 
yep, all of Italy is an open air museum so most of the time can be enjoyed by just walking around and seeing the sights... particularly comparing to what things are different than back home :)
 
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