Pisa

Home to one of the most enduring and beloved symbols of Italy, Pisa is not just a one-hit wonder - the city is also bestowed with Renaissance architecture, Romanesque churches and a liberal dose of Tuscan charm.

Nevertheless, the ambitious architectural quartet spread over Pisa's Campo dei Miracoli (the Field of Miracles) does constitute one of the most photographed places in the country and is Tuscany's favourite day trip.

Tucked away just inside the northwest corner of the city walls - the centrepiece is the drunken Leaning Tower of Pisa. Begun in 1173 the bell-tower's soggy foundations meant that it began leaning even before it was finished, and by the end of the 1980's the tilt was so pronounced it looked like it might topple. After ten years of architectural head scratching the tower was finally 'corrected' to a respectable lean of 5.5 degrees, and opened for visitors to hike the 294 steps to the top.

While the tower steals the show it really ought to be the neighbouring Duomo that wins all the prizes. With a façade of dressed black and white marble (an idea borrowed from Pisa's trading past with Islamic Arabia and North Africa) the Duomo sets the standards for the Pisan Romanesque architectural movement.

Completing the ensemble is the largest Baptistry in Italy and the cloistered collection of Roman tombs and sarcophagi in the Camposanto. Most of the frescoes that inspired Ruskin to praise the Camposanto as one of the most 'precious buildings in Italy' were torched by Allied incendiary bombs in WWII, but sketches can be found across the piazza in the Museo delle Sinopite.

With one of the oldest universities in Italy (Galileo used to lecture physics here) Pisa has a reputation for her lively café culture, otherwise afternoons tick pleasantly by wandering the tangle of narrow back streets, discovering sleepy churches or visiting one of the city's museums (for art lovers the Museo Nazionale di San Matteo is a must).