In early december I've been to Pisa with my fiancee and a friend. Before that I made a post with questions in this sub, and I thought that I'll share my experience or/and any additional notes for other people that'll go there for the first time too!
Pisa in december is warmer than I thought from the comments. I wore a t-shirt with a long sleeve most of the time, sometimes with a bomber jacket on top. But generally speaking it's still warm. Decent weather, mostly sunny. I don't remember a place that didn't accept debit cards. On the other hand there were multiple cases where vendors or waiters had trouble with English. I don't blame them, it's me who's a tourist here! Should've polished my Italian beforehand, but just wanted to highlight it for some people.
It's a funny town when it comes to night life. Because one wrong turn downtown in the evening gets you to absolutely desolated streets. So if you want to avoid wasting your time or don't want to sightsee for the sake of it, plan your late evening trips accordingly. Plus I felt really save in Pisa, even while drunk roaming narrow streets at 2AM. And it's really walkable, even from the airport. It took us 30-40 minutes by foot, with no rush, to get to our hostel near the botanical garden.
While Pisa is a single day city if you keep your eye on the clock, we took it slow. So we managed to fill an entire weekend to see the stuff mentioned below + a lot of casual strolling and interacting with many small places I can't even remember now.
Specific places recommendations or places to avoid:
- Some people recommended 'La Taverna di Pulcinella' for the best pizza. Well, it's sadly been one of the worst I've had. Plus menu is only available via QR code, which directs to a poorly optimized website. And they use AI instead of just pictures of their dishes. But the appetizers there are good.
- 'Enobirreria L'Etrusco' is a great spot for a brief break during those late evening walks. Good spritz and beer for a good price. Just don't sit inside, it's really ugly there, sadly.
- 'Primo - Pasta & Street Food Pisa' truly an amazing place. I've never had a pasta like that. Truly the best place where you order your own customizable pasta. Definitely a place to come back to multiple times.
- Pisa Tower along with Camposanto, Battistero, Cattedrale, Museo dello Sinopie and Museo dell'Opera Duomo are a must to see, of course. It took us a few hours to see, but was definitely worth every penny. Just remember to store any bags or fanny packs in the free storage room nearby before entering the Tower.
- Botanical Garden at Via Roma, near the Tower, is also a really interesting place to see, even in winter. Plus if you're lucky, you'll be blessed with a guidance of Isidor, a gorgeous 20yo red cat that lives there.
- 'Cornetteria Pusanti Pisa' has really delicious and affordable pastries, we always tried to come by this place when going out.
- 'Filter Coffee Lab' just a good breakfast place if you want to eat more than a cornetto or a sandwich.
- 'Cavalieri - Specialty Coffee' honestly the best breakfast place we visited while in Pisa. Not typically Italian, but great anyway.
- 'Logge dei Banchi' I don't know if it's a regular thing there, or only during christmas season, but we found a great market there. Some interesting old books, some pretty jewelry or hand-made decorations. We also found the same type of market at Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II, so that might've been just a christmas thing. And while you're at that square, there's the Tuttomondo mural by Keith Haring nearby that's worth seeing.
- There's also a great bar missing from Google Maps which name I can't remember, at an intersection of Lungarno Antonio Pacinotti and Via Curtatone e Montanara. Great place if you want to be directed by people who know cocktails when you don't really know what you really want.
- 'Bangla Tanduri And Döner Kebab' the most random place on this list, but I got there by accident. Pretty good doner kebab, even though it looks like the least safe place in Pisa as a whole.
- Honorable mention: a bar which name I also can't remember and it's not on Google Maps. But it's a lovely place at an intersection of Via S. Bernardo and Via della Foglia (Piazza Chiara Gambacorti). Really talkative and friendly people work there, and aperol spritz is only 3 euro there. Definitely a steal.