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Voykit pocket guide · Italy
Buonconvento
Half a day: walk the medieval walls, see the religious art museum and the parish church, then lunch. Not a base unless you want a quiet night in the Crete Senese.
Buonconvento is a walled hill town in the Crete Senese, 30 km south of Siena. Its compact centre holds a small museum of religious art and a baroque church with a notable Matteo di Giovanni painting. Most travellers stop for an hour or two on a drive between Siena and the Val d'Orcia, or stay one night for the countryside peace.
- Country
- Italy
- Best months
- Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct
- Avoid
- Jul–Aug (heat), Nov–Feb (cold, some closures)
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- EUR
- Money
- Currency is the euro (EUR, €). Cards and contactless are widely accepted in cities; small cafés, markets and rural places may prefer cash.
- Daily spend
- Budget €60–90 excl. bed · Mid €90–150 excl. bed · High €150+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- TIM, Vodafone, WindTre and Iliad sell prepaid SIMs in shops and at airports; a passport and an Italian tax code (codice fiscale, issued in-store) are needed.
- Emergency
- Police 113 · Fire 115 · Ambulance 118 · General emergency 112
- Plugs
- Types C, F, L · 230 V · 50 Hz · Italian type L plugs have three pins in a row; most sockets also take two-pin Europlugs (C), and bivalent sockets take Schuko (F).
- Tipping
- Bar: Leave €0.10–0.20 of change on the counter if you like.; Restaurant: Coperto or service may already be on the bill; leave €1–2 a person or round up for good service.; Taxi: Round up to the next euro.; Hotel porter or housekeeping: €1–2 per bag or per night.; Tour guide: €5–10 per person for a half day.
- Water
- Tap water is safe unless signed otherwise; Rome's nasoni fountains run all day. Restaurants serve bottled water (naturale or frizzante) unless you ask for tap (acqua del rubinetto).
- Toilets
- Few public toilets; use bars (buy a coffee), museums and stations, where some charge €1.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee at a bar | €1.20–1.50 |
| Glass of house wine | €4–6 |
| Pasta dish at a trattoria | €12–16 |
| Pizza margherita | €8–12 |
| Gelato (two scoops) | €3–4 |
| Taxi from Buonconvento to Siena | €50–70 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- FLR · Florence Peretola
- About 1.5 h by car or bus via Siena
- PSA · Pisa Galileo Galilei
- About 2 h by car or train via Siena
Typical fares
- Train Buonconvento → Siena
- about €5–7, 30 min (check)
- Bus Buonconvento → Siena
- about €4–6, 40 min (check)
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
Walkable centre. For the countryside or Bibbiano Castle, you need a car or a taxi.
See and do
Known for
- Museo d'Arte Sacra della Val d'Arbia
- Santi Pietro e Paolo church
- Crete Senese landscape
- Bibbiano Castle
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Siena | Bus (Tiemme line) or train from Buonconvento station, about 30 min | About 40 min |
| Montalcino | Car via SS2 Cassia, about 20 min | About 25 min |
| Montepulciano | Car via SP146, about 30 min | About 35 min |
| Pienza | Car via SP146, about 25 min | About 30 min |
Sleep
- Town centre
- Within the walls; walk to everything, but parking is limited.
- Countryside around Buonconvento
- Agriturismi and villas like Villa Armena; need a car.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello / Goodbye | Ciaochow |
| Thank you | Graziegraht-see-eh |
| How much is it? | Quanto costa?kwahn-toh koh-stah |
| Where is the station? | Dov'è la stazione?doh-veh lah stahts-yoh-neh |
| I'd like this one | Vorrei questovor-ray kweh-stoh |
| Can I pay by card? | Posso pagare con carta?poh-soh pah-gah-reh kon kahr-tah |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Say buongiorno (until mid-afternoon) or buonasera on entering shops and bars; avoid: Walking in and pointing without a greeting
- Cheek kisses: Two kisses, right cheek first, among friends; follow their lead; avoid: Kissing strangers or in business settings
- Dress: Smart-casual in cities; covered shoulders and knees in churches; avoid: Beachwear, bare chests and flip-flops away from the beach
- Queues: At delis and pharmacies take a number (numerino); avoid: Assuming the crowd at a bar counter is chaos — pay at the till first where asked
- Restaurants: Wait to be seated and ask for the bill; avoid: Splitting a bill item by item with a large group
- Conversation: Food, football and family are safe openers; avoid: Mafia jokes and north–south stereotypes
- Dinner at a home: Bring pastries, wine or flowers (not chrysanthemums, which are for funerals); avoid: Refusing seconds too firmly
Scams and watch-outs
- Parking outside the walls: ZTL (limited traffic zone) inside the historic centre; park in the free lot near Porta Sant'Antonio.
- Bibbiano Castle is private property; check if it's open to visitors before going.
- Restaurant hours: many close for a midday break (14:00–19:00) and on Sundays.
Very safe. The main risk is traffic on the SS2 Cassia and parking fines in the ZTL.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Buonconvento yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Museo d'Arte Sacra della Val d'Arbia
- Santi Pietro e Paolo church
- Crete Senese landscape
- Bibbiano Castle
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Wikivoyage: Buonconvento, revision 5239566 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5239566
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Printed from Voykit (/buonconvento). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.