Discover Buonconvento: City Walls, Museum and Via Francigena

Buonconvento between City Walls and Architectural History

Buonconvento is the place for you if you would like to combine historic buildings with a journey on foot, by bicycle or through the rural culture of Tuscany. Buonconvento is still surrounded by city walls built in the late Middle Ages. This architectural framework, still visible today, gives the town a historical profile that can be traced through several distinctive buildings.

Church, City Gate and Rural Culture

The Chiesa dei Santi Pietro e Paolo has a brick façade that was redesigned in neoclassical forms at the beginning of the 18th century. The Porta Senese features a Sienese arch, Guelph merlons, and the coats of arms of Siena and Buonconvento. These two buildings reveal different layers of the town’s history: the medieval city gate and the church façade, which was altered later.

The Museo della Mezzadria di Buonconvento focuses on the rural world, the landscape and the community of the Tuscan countryside up to the 1960s. The two-storey exhibition includes historical photographs, original objects, films, archival documents and multimedia stations. The Museo della Mezzadria also offers educational activities for children. This makes it possible to combine a visit to the museum with a family-oriented activity, without limiting the town’s history to individual buildings.

Via Francigena Toscana: Long Routes on Foot or by Bicycle

The southern section of the Via Francigena Toscana passes through Buonconvento along the route from Ponte d’Arbia to San Quirico d’Orcia. The section is suitable for long journeys on foot or by bicycle. For your planning, the connection between the route stages and the town’s history is particularly interesting: after travelling through the landscape, you reach Buonconvento, a place whose city walls, church, Porta Senese and museum offer different ways to engage with the culture.

Castles, Monastery, Mountains and Park in the Surrounding Area

In the wider regional area around Buonconvento are the Fortezza di Montalcino, Castello Banfi and Castello di Capraia; all three are castles. The surroundings of Buonconvento also include Abbazia di Monte Oliveto, a monastery, as well as Poggio Napoleone and Poggio Cerrete, both mountains. Bosco della Ragnaia, a park, is also located nearby. Around the local cultural offerings, you will therefore find various landscape-related and historical themes that can be given different emphasis depending on your interests.

Getting to the Starting Point of the Stage

The starting point of the stage can be reached via the Siena–Grosseto railway line, with Buonconvento railway station, as well as via bus route 112. This information is useful for practical planning when you are considering Buonconvento in connection with the southern section of the Via Francigena Toscana and weighing up whether to travel by train or bus.

Other Destinations in the Same Region

If you would like to compare other places for your trip to Italy in addition to Buonconvento, continue with these destinations: Scalvaia, Radda / Chianti, Radicondoli, Murlo, Montepulciano, Pienza, Sarteano and Sovicille.

For the higher-level travel overview: Siena.