Who the Opera della Primaziale Pisana is
The Opera della Primaziale Pisana, known to everyone as OPA, is the body that runs the Piazza dei Miracoli: the Duomo, the Leaning Tower, the Baptistery, the Camposanto, the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo and the Museo delle Sinopie. Legally it is a fabbriceria, the institution that for centuries has looked after the building and upkeep of the cathedral, where work began in 1064. Today it is governed by the Concordat of 1929, has a seven-member board appointed by the Ministry of the Interior and is registered as a social enterprise, after a long spell as a non-profit (ONLUS).
For anyone visiting Pisa, one thing matters: only the Opera's website and its ticket offices on the square sell at the base price. Everyone else, from the big platforms to the sites that borrow the Tower's name, resells the same entry with a mark-up or as part of a package.
Official Leaning Tower of Pisa tickets: the OPA price list
| Ticket | Official price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Tower + Duomo | €20 | Tower climb at a fixed time, Duomo pass |
| Full ticket + Tower | €27 | Tower, Duomo, Baptistery, Camposanto, Museo dell'Opera, Museo delle Sinopie |
| Full ticket without Tower | €11 | all the monuments except the Tower |
| Duomo + one monument | €8 | Duomo plus the Baptistery, the Camposanto or one of the two museums |
The old €5 or €7 prices still circulating online no longer apply. The Duomo is free, but you need a pass: every paid ticket includes it with no fixed time, while the free pass for the Cathedral alone has a fixed time, is limited in number and can only be collected at the ticket offices on the square.
On reductions the Opera is clear: there are no reduced tickets for the Tower, and under-18s pay the full price too. At the monuments other than the Tower, children under 11 with an adult and people with disabilities together with a companion get in for free.
How to buy on the official site
- Go to the purchase page on opapisa.it and choose your combination. The buyer must be an adult.
- For the Tower, choose the day and the time slot. Slots are limited in number.
- Pay with Visa or Mastercard: other card networks are not accepted.
- The ticket arrives by email as a PDF. Only that original PDF is valid, on your phone or printed.
How far ahead sales open isn't clear even on the Opera's own site (90 days according to the terms of sale, 15 according to the FAQ). In high season and at weekends the best slots sell out days or weeks in advance, so don't leave it until later.
The Tower rules that make a difference
- Age: children who do not turn 8 by the end of the year of the visit cannot climb. It is the year of birth that counts, not the birthday. Under-18s may only climb with an adult, and ID may be requested.
- Punctuality: if you arrive after your slot you won't get in and you won't be refunded. Be there 15 minutes early.
- Bags: all bags go in the free left-luggage area reserved for Tower visitors; then there is a check with a hand-held metal detector. Small bags, up to 20×30×38 cm, are allowed in the other monuments.
- Length: the visit lasts about half an hour. There are roughly 250–270 steps: the Opera gives 251 on one page and 273 on another.
Opening hours change with the seasons: from mid-June to the end of August the Tower stays open until 22:00 and the other monuments until 22:30, and anyone with a Tower slot from 19:30 also gets into the Camposanto without paying. The official calendar is the only reliable reference, especially for the Duomo, which has shorter visiting hours.
Changes, cancellations and support
On this point no reseller comes close. For an order that includes the Tower you can change the time (not the date) or cancel everything up to 2 hours before, with a refund to your card. Orders without the Tower can be cancelled until midnight on the day of the visit, Greenwich time. Monument tickets without the Tower are valid for a year from the chosen date.
The weak spot is support. The Opera's switchboard (+39 050 835011) does not deal with tickets: you have to write to bigliettionline@opapisa.it, which replies within 72 hours. For a same-day problem, the answer is the ticket office on the square, open from half an hour before the monuments open. For lost property the office is at Piazza Duomo 17.
When a reseller makes sense
Resellers don't sell a better entry: they sell availability, an app and sometimes a guide. At our last check Tower + Duomo started from €24 on GetYourGuide (from €20.10 for the version with an audio guide), €25 on Tiqets, non-refundable, €24 on Musement, €25.50 on Tickitaly and €29 on Civitatis. These figures move often, and we update them at every check. None of these is an "official" ticket, even when the supplier listed is the Opera.
Going through a reseller makes sense in three cases:
- the official slots for the day you need are sold out, and a platform still has places;
- the Opera's online payment is suspended, or your card isn't Visa or Mastercard;
- you want a guide: the Opera does not run guided tours, so a guided visit has to be bought elsewhere.
Otherwise you pay more for worse conditions: the Tiqets ticket, for example, cannot be changed or refunded, while the official one can. If you're coming from Florence on a half-day tour, always check whether the Tower ticket is included or only "optional".
Watch out for sites that look official
Search for "Leaning Tower of Pisa tickets" and you'll find domains such as pisatowertickets.com or leaningtowerofpisa-guide.com, with designs that look like a public body's. They are not the Opera's. Some independent guides openly state that they earn commissions, as this one does too: you'll find it explained in the review of leaningtowerpisa.org. The practical test is simple: if the domain isn't opapisa.it, it isn't the official ticket office.
Who should buy from the Opera
The official site is the right choice if you travel independently and can commit to a time, even a few weeks ahead. It's ideal if you want to see the whole square: €27 gets you everything, and the monuments without the Tower stay valid for a year. Families with children too young for the Tower save with the full ticket at €11.
It suits less well those who decide at the last minute in high season, those who only have cards from other networks and those who want a guided explanation. In those cases a reseller or a tour from Florence solves the problem, at a higher price.
Other reviews and useful pages
To plan the visit you'll find everything on the page about Pisa and the Piazza dei Miracoli, with trains, buses and the rest of the city. If you're combining Pisa with other towns, have a look at the day trips from Florence and the chapter on Lucca, half an hour away by train.
On the platforms that resell the Tower: Tiqets, GetYourGuide and Civitatis. A similar story applies to Siena Cathedral: read the guide to the Opera della Metropolitana di Siena.