Where to stay in Pisa
Pisa is small enough to walk, and its centre never opens to unregistered cars. The areas below differ in how close they sit to the Tower, the station and the sea, and in where the car can stay.
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How the areas differ
Santa Maria runs from the Leaning Tower down to the Arno along Via Santa Maria, with cafés and the Piazza dei Miracoli at one end. Borgo Stretto and Piazza dei Cavalieri are the medieval centre north of the river, arcaded and busy with students.
South of the Arno, Sant'Antonio takes in Corso Italia, the pedestrian shopping street that leads to Pisa Centrale and the PisaMover to the airport. Porta a Lucca lies outside the walls, north of the Tower, near the stadium.
Marina di Pisa and Tirrenia are the outliers: the comune's own coast, with a harbour and beaches, about 11 km from the Tower.
Staying with a rental car
The historic centre has four camera-controlled zones, San Francesco, Santa Maria, Sant'Antonio and San Martino, and their gates run from 00:00 to 23:59. There is no evening or Sunday window, and a fine goes to the car's owner, which for a rental is the company. The temporary permits the city sells are for removals, weddings and trades, not for visitors.
The legal way in is registration. A garage inside a zone puts a customer's plate on the white list by midnight of the next day, and the 120 minutes before the car reaches the garage count as authorised. Hotels apply to the city for the right to register plates, so give the plate when you book and ask the hotel to confirm it. Since 15 March 2026 a separate ZTL covers the Porta a Lucca district on Pisa SC home match days, from two hours before kick-off.
Outside the walls, the Via Pietrasantina park and ride costs EUR 0.75 an hour on weekdays from 08:00 to 20:00, and bus 1+ runs to the Tower and the station every 10 minutes. The Via Cammeo and Via Piave garages cost EUR 3.50 an hour and never close. Blue bays run from EUR 0.75 an hour in zones A1 and B to EUR 2.50 and then 3.50 around the station and on the Lungarni. GetCar's guide Driving in Pisa: the Airport and the PisaMover, the FI-PI-LI and the Motorways, the Round-the-Clock ZTL, Parking, Lucca, Livorno and the Ferries covers the roads in full.
What the tourist tax and registration rules mean for a guest
Pisa charges an imposta di soggiorno per person per night on hotels, other lodgings and short lets of up to 30 days. The 2026 rates are EUR 2.00 in a one-star hotel, EUR 2.50 in a two or three-star, EUR 3.00 in a four or five-star, and EUR 2.50 in B&Bs, room lets, holiday homes and holiday lets. From the seventh day before Easter to the first Sunday of November it is charged for at most 5 consecutive nights in the same place, and for at most 3 in the rest of the year. The regulation lists no age exemption.
Every licensed stay in Italy, hotel or short-let flat, has a national identification code (CIN), shown outside the building and in every listing, under rules applied since 2 November 2024.
Italian law lets a host accept only guests with an identity document or passport, and the host registers each guest with the police within 24 hours. Holiday lets in Pisa also report guest numbers for statistics every month. A 2024 Interior Ministry circular, upheld by the Council of State in November 2025, requires identification in person or by a video link at the door.
When to book what
The tax cap changes with the calendar: five taxed nights from the seventh day before Easter to the first Sunday of November, three in the rest of the year.
On the coast, street parking is paid from 1 June to 15 September and free the rest of the year. On Pisa SC home match days, the stadium ZTL affects the streets of Porta a Lucca.
For a month or longer, the lease type matters more than the date; the monthly guide below covers it.
Which area for which trip
A first visit and the Tower at dawn: Santa Maria.
A lively centre with student bars: Borgo Stretto and Piazza dei Cavalieri.
A train in the morning or the PisaMover to the airport: Sant'Antonio and the station.
A car kept close without the ZTL: Porta a Lucca.
The sea: Marina di Pisa and Tirrenia.
Questions
Is the Pisa ZTL ever switched off?
No. The gates of the four historic-centre zones run from 00:00 to 23:59, every day.
How does a hotel guest drive to a hotel in the centre of Pisa?
Hotels apply to the city for the right to put guests' plates on the white list. Give the plate when booking and ask the hotel to confirm it; without that, park outside the walls.
How much tourist tax does a family pay for a week in a Pisa holiday flat?
EUR 2.50 per person per night in 2026, for at most 5 consecutive nights from the seventh day before Easter to the first Sunday of November, 3 in the rest of the year. The regulation lists no age exemption.
Is there free parking on the coast near Pisa?
Outside the summer: street parking in Marina di Pisa, Tirrenia and Calambrone is paid only from 1 June to 15 September.