Prato · Tuscany
Things to see in Prato
In Prato the atlas lists 94 historic places: 51 historic villas and palaces, 14 museums, 12 fortresses and towers, 9 abbeys and monasteries, 5 historic theatres, 2 archaeological sites and 1 castle.
Of these, 1 has free entry.
Don’t miss: Castello dell'Imperatore (1240), medieval castle in Prato, Italy.
By date of construction, the most common period is the Modern era (78% of dated places) and the Middle Ages (22% of dated places).
- 94historic places
- 195,736inhabitants
- 72 maltitude
The town
Prato is a city of about 195,000 inhabitants in Tuscany, immediately to the west of Florence, and also the capital of the Province of Prato. The city is famous in Italy and beyond for textile production and for the biscotto di Prato (biscuit with almonds better known as "cantuccio").
In the last few decades, Prato has enjoyed a significant population boom and increased immigration. It is now the second largest city in Tuscany, third largest in central Italy (after Rome and Florence) and the eighteenth largest in Italy.
Text from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA, abridged · Wikivoyage
94 places
Villas and palaces 51
Show all 51 places
Palazzo Vestri 
Palazzo Banci Buonamici 
Palazzo Dragoni 
Palazzo Vescovile 
Villa del Palco 
Palazzo Bocchineri o Gatti 
Villa Martini 
Palazzo Buonamici Nencini 
Palazzo Buonamici degli Innocenti 
Palazzo della Misericordia di Gonfienti 
Palazzo delle Scuole 
Palazzo Martini in Via San Giorgio 
Villa Fiorelli 
Villa Morghen 
Palazzo Martini 
Palazzo Leonetti Villa Gherardi del Turco Villa Kössler Mayer Villa Rucellai Villa la Grande Quercia Villa Maria Assunta Villa Romei Villa Salvi Cristiani Villa Baciocchi Il Pino Villa Baroncelli Villa Bartolini Carlesi Villa Becherini Guasti Badiani Villa Calosi Villa Canovai Villa Carlesi Fossombroni Villa Cipriani Villa Fiorita Villa Gini Villa Guasti Villa Inghirami Villa Leonetti alla Torricella Villa Niccolini Villa Nocchi Ristori Villa Organi Villa Pieri de Peon Villa Salvi Cristiani Villa Santa Cristina Villa Soldi Villa Tintori Villa Verzoni Da Filicaia Museums 14
Fortresses and towers 12
Abbeys and monasteries 9
Historic theatres 5
Castles 1
Getting there
By plane: The nearest airports are Galileo Galilei di Pisa close to Pisa and Amerigo Vespucci di Firenze close to Florence.
From the airport of Pisa to Prato: The train station at Pisa airport is directly connected with the Santa Maria Novella station in Florence and Pisa Central Station (line Pisa - Lucca - Pistoia - Florence). The airport is very close to the Pisa Nord motorway. From the Pisa Nord motorway take the A11 motorway and continue towards Florence. West Lawn toll is about 65 km from Pisa, while the exit Prato Est is about 73 km away.
From the airport of Florence to Prato: The Amerigo Vespucci Airport is located in Peretola and is as close to the province of Prato. The airport is not directly connected to the railway line. You can reach the station of Firenze Santa Maria Novella and Florence Rifredi using the bus. Arriving by car from Florence in Prato is very simple: the airport is the A11 motorway exit "Firenze Nord", which is only 5 km from the exit Prato Est and 13 km from the exit West Prato. There is a bus service between the airport and Prato (Prato Central Station) operated by Cap Autolinee Prato.
By car: Driving in Italy is not for the faint-of-heart and Prato is no exception especially in the old center of the city where the city walls, narrow streets, and ubiquitous pedestrian zones make navigating and parking particularly difficult.
By train: There are three train stations in Prato.
Text from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA, abridged · Wikivoyage
What to see, according to Wikivoyage
Churches: Duomo of Prato (Cathedral of Santo Stefano) (leaving the Piazza of Comune and leaving along the Corso Mazzoni you reach the large Piazza del Duomo). At the large Piazza del Duomo is the Cathedral of Santo Stefano. A splendid example of Romanesque - Gothic Tuscan, the Cathedral is characterized by clever use of two colors on alberese clear and serpentine green marble from Prato, typical materials of the town until 1400. On the right side of the front is the famous pulpit, built between 1433 and 1438 by Michelozzo and decorated by Donatello. The pulpit was designed specifically for the Exposition of the Holy Girdle of the Virgin Mary, preserved in the chapel inside the Basilica. There are splendid, precious frescoes of the "Dance of Salome" by Filippo Lippi in the Cappella Maggiore.
Bishop's Palace. Adjacent to the cathedral is the Bishop's Palace (14th-17th century), part of which is occupied by the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo.
Text from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA, abridged · Wikivoyage · Underlined names link to our own pages.