YOUR VISIT

YOUR

VISIT

OPENING TIMES
From 
21.11.2025
 to 
24.12.2025

Monday, from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm
Tuesday and Wednesday closed
Thursday from 11:00 am to 9.30 pm
Friday, Saturday from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm
Sunday from 10:00 am to 7.00 pm

 

25/12/2025 closed

From 
26.12.2025
 to 
06.01.2026

Every weekly day from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm, sundays from 10.00 to 7.00 pm; on 06/1/2026 from 10.00 am until 6.00 pm;

 

From 
07.01.2026
 to 
31.03.2026

Monday, from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm
Tuesday and Wednesday closed
Thursday from 11:00 am to 9.30 pm
Friday, Saturday from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm
Sunday from 10:00 am to 7:00 pm

From 
01.04.2026
 to 
03.05.2026

Everyday from 10:00 am to 7:00 pm

 

From 
 to 
From 
 to 

Everyday from 10:00 am to 7:00 pm; Thursday from 10:00 am to 9.30 pm

Useful information
  • Access to Palazzo delle Papesse is located in Via di Città 126, Siena.
  • Entry is permitted up to 1 hour before closing time.
RATES
FULL PRICE
14€*
REDUCED PRICE

High school students and university students with certification, Over 65, born and/or residents in the Municipality of Siena, groups (min. 15 people), affiliated categories

10€*
CHILDREN

Minors from 7 to 14 years old

5€*
FREE

Minors from 0 to 6 years old, disabled individuals and their companions, licensed tour guides, accredited journalists (ufficiostampa@operalaboratori.com)

0€*
MEMBERSHIP

With the TESSERA DEL CURIOSO you can access Palazzo delle Papesse unlimited times and enjoy exclusive discounts. Discover more

GUIDED TOUR

Max. 30 pp. Not including entrance ticket to the Palace

PAPESSE LAB

Activities and workshop paths. Discover more

What’s included
  • Access to the Palace, the Caveau, and the Panorama.
  • Access to the current exhibition.
  • Access to the bookshop and the bistrot.
Useful information
  • You can buy the entrance ticket online or directly at the ticket office at the entrance to our bookshop.
  • * Presale costs (2€) and commission costs must be applied to the ticket price

TICKETS

DIRECTIONS

GOOGLE
MAPS

How to get there

Palazzo delle Papesse is located in the historic center of Siena, on Via di Città, and therefore it is not possible to reach it directly by car. The nearest parking areas are located near the city walls, particularly the Il Campo parking, the Duomo parking, and the Santa Caterina parking, which is connected to the city center by escalators.

By car

From the north: A1 exit “Firenze Impruneta,” Florence-Siena highway.
From the south: A1 exit “Valdichiana,” Bettolle-Siena connection.

It is recommended to exit at Siena Ovest to reach the Duomo parking or the Santa Caterina parking, and at Siena Sud to reach the Il Campo parking.

By train

The Siena station is in Piazza Carlo Rosselli, about 2 km from the historic center. From the station to the center you can use city buses or taxi service.

On foot you can take the Stazione-Antiporto ski lift, then walk along Viale Vittorio Emanuele II, Via Camollia, Via dei Montanini, Via Banchi di Sopra to reach Via di Città.

By bus

From Florence, you can take a direct bus of the company Autolinee Toscane from the station of Florence (SITA bus station) to Siena, with stops close to the center. The bus stops at Piazza Gramsci, which is about 10 minutes walk from Palazzo delle Papesse.

On foot

Palazzo delle Papesse is located in the heart of Siena’s historic center, just a few steps from Piazza del Campo. Once you reach Piazza del Campo, head towards Via di Città and follow the signs to the palace.

THROUGH THE PALACE

Palazzo Piccolomini is called “delle Papesse” because it was commissioned by the sisters of Pope Pius II. The first news of architectural commissions concerns, in 1459, the residence of the sister Caterina, widow of Bartolomeo Guglielmi. The family ancestry is evidenced by the “patronymic” of the palace called “delle Papesse”, partly inspired by the Medici Palace in Via Larga in Florence, with the rustication and the large round portals on the ground floor, while the mullioned windows with pointed arches are still partly linked to the Sienese Gothic style. A descendant of the Piccolomini, Archbishop Ascanio, hosted Galileo Galilei at the Palazzo delle Papesse, after his condemnation by the Holy Office in 1633. During his stay, the scientist devoted himself to observing the Moon from the loggia of the Palace in the month of August.

The internal courtyard of the Palazzo delle Papesse, with its marvelous frescoed loggia, in a joyful succession of grotesques, festoons of fruit and flowers, candelabras, allegorical and mythological figures, is the new vibrant meeting point in the heart of Siena, an intimate open-air space surrounded by historic buildings where you can enjoy an excellent coffee or take a lunch break.

Located in the courtyard, the bookshop of Palazzo delle Papesse offers the opportunity to enrich your visit with catalogs and products related to the current exhibitions, as well as books and essays on architecture, art, design, and photography. A selection of books and games is dedicated to younger visitors. The bookshop also features a wide range of original themed gadgets, t-shirts, bags, and an extensive assortment of postcards, posters, and stationery items.

The café, with its large rooms and outdoor loggia, is the ideal place for a pleasant relaxing break during a visit to Palazzo delle Papesse. The menu is designed to accompany visitors, who can enjoy a selection of fine coffees, stop for a light lunch, taste an excellent glass of wine choosing from the many labels on the menu or savor a delicious cocktail in a contemporary atmosphere.

The large staircase that opens into the atrium takes visitors to the upper floors dedicated to temporary exhibitions. The large rooms, all irregular and different from each other, with wooden, marble or grit floors, with stuccoes and pictorial decorations of the vaults made by the protagonists of the Sienese purist school, interact with the numerous temporary exhibitions, offering a double visit route, to the Renaissance palace and to the exhibition.
Furthermore, on the second floor there is a terrace from where it is possible to admire the medieval architecture of the city.

Interpreting a work of art should be simple for those who live in the same era as the artist, but we often feel insecure, not even knowing where to start. With PAPESSE LAB, we want to explore together, digging into the folds of reality, to offer a 360-degree view that involves spectators of all ages. As Galileo said, “it is not enough to look, you have to want to believe what you see”. A work of art is not just an object, but a source of stimuli for thought and action. Stay up to date and discover how our laboratory offering will grow over time.

A unique and unmissable view of the city of Siena welcomes the visitor at the top of the palace.
In 1633, Ascanio II Piccolomini hosted the scientist Galileo Galilei in the palace, who from the loggia made observations of the Moon using the telescope and discovered that this satellite was not perfect or spherical as was believed, but dotted on the surface with mountains and craters.

NOT TO BE MISSED

SUMMER DAYS

CURRENT EXHIBITION

I GIOVEDÌ DI HUGO PRATT

UPCOMING
EVENT

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THE PALACE

OVER TIME