The Guaita Fortress in San Marino

Two years ago I visited San Marino. It was a short solo trip in the northern part of Italy, visiting the foodie cities of Bologna, Parma, and Modena. I squeezed in San Marino since it’s not too far away and the little country has fascinated me for some time now. I really wanted to check it out.

At the top of the Guaita Fortress on Mount Titano in San Marino!

Trivia: Did you know that San Marino is the 3rd smallest country in Europe? After Monaco and the Vatican. In the whole world, San Marino ranked as the 5th smallest country.

So of course, visiting San Marino means walking on the ramparts of its world-renown fortifications. The most popular, a postcard-perfect landmark of the country is the Guaita Fortress, also referred to as the First Tower (of the Three Towers) sitting on Mount Titano.

Guaita Fortress is the oldest of the three tower fortresses in San Marino. It is also the biggest and the first tower to be reached. The tower was built around the 11th century, although San Marino goes back to 301.

I just had my delicious lunch at the main square, the Piazza della Liberta and was ready to go for some fortress sightseeing and panoramic views of this landlocked country.

Visiting the tower fortress is not free. There is a however discount if you visit all three towers, but I reasoned out in my head that if you have visited one, you have probably seen them all. Well, I actually borrowed that wisdom from the satirical Dutchman. But yeah, in this case, he is correct. I mean what else can you see in a fortress? If it wasn’t for the views, I would have my doubts.

So I picked Guaita from the three tower fortresses to check it out. Good decision.

The views from Guaita did not disappoint. I guess that would be the case from every angle of the tower and from any higher vantage point of San Marino really. I am sure the views are equally marvelous in the two other towers as well.

More Trivia: Did you know that the Guaita Fortress is listed in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites? Well, now you know.

Loads of pictures here:

Entrance to the Guaita Fortress Tower.

The inner courtyard of the fortress, which is what people see when they get in.

Guaita Tower looks over to the second tower, the Cesta Tower, the highest peak of San Marino. The three towers of San Marino are connected to each other with a fortification rampart.

Climbing all the way up to get more fantastic views.

The higher you go, the better the vantage point.

The tower here at Guaita fortress functioned as a prison tower and these are some of the prison rooms, some of which have sketches of military action.