Tuscany pre-wedding photoshoot on foot: Pienza and Siena walking route

Most Tuscany locations are scattered between hills and every one of them needs a car, but Pienza and Siena are the exceptions. Park outside the walls and the rest of the day happens on foot. This is the field note we wrote after shooting both towns many times: useful as a half-day inside a bigger Tuscany itinerary, or as the whole plan for couples who would rather go deep in one place than drive all day.

Pienza: walls, lanes and the tower light

Before nine in the morning Pienza's lanes are basically empty and the light comes in low from the east, so the ochre walls bounce a soft fill onto faces — the most flattering hour of the day for portraits. The viewpoint outside the walls faces straight down the Val d'Orcia and puts the stone parapet and the hills in one frame. The narrow lanes block the harsh midday sun, which makes them usable all day. Around the bell tower the steps are many, and a long train needs a hand holding it up there. Park at the lot at the edge of town and walk in for five minutes — never drive into the old centre.

Siena: the Duomo and the two quiet windows at the Campo

The striped black-and-white marble of the Duomo facade is at its best before ten, while the sun is still sideways to it. When the square in front fills up, the side of the steps and the lane to the right photograph just as well. The shell-shaped Piazza del Campo gets swallowed by tour groups from eleven onwards; the only quiet windows are before eight, or the forty minutes after six in the evening when the lamps are on and the crowds thin out. Siena's centre is a ZTL restricted zone, so leave the car in the car parks outside the walls and walk in about ten minutes with the dress over your arm.

The walk out to the Vitaleta chapel

From Pienza, the dirt road towards San Quirico reaches the front view of the little Vitaleta chapel in about half an hour on foot, and it is gentle enough in flat shoes. From four in the afternoon the light swings from backlit to side-lit and the stone facade lights up — the best single hour of the day. The chapel itself is private and closed to visitors; every position we use is on the public track or the verge, so no climbing fences.

Outfits and the rhythm of the day

Both towns are cobbled, so flat bridal shoes for the main gown and heels only at the car. A day that works: the Pienza lanes and viewpoint in the morning, lunch back at the car, the Vitaleta walk after four, sunset to finish. Keep Siena for a separate evening. With two outfits, save the pale gown for the hills and the chapel and the darker look or suit for Siena's stone alleys.

If you are still building your itinerary, the fuller location-by-location guide lives on our Tuscany pre-wedding photography page. Once your dates are set, send them through the contact page and we will turn Pienza, Siena and Vitaleta into a route planned hour by hour.