Confused about Siena's OPA Si Pass or want to know if you really need to buy it? Our short explainer guide for travellers will give you a clear overview of this combined visitor ticket and your options.
The Piazza del Duomo is the cultural and religious heart of Siena.
Every visitor to the city will spend time here marvelling at the interior and exterior of the stunning Cathedral which dominates, but the relatively small square is also home to several other popular sites to give you a deeper appreciation of Siena's art, history, faith, wealth, and culture.
And, slightly hidden away on the rooftop of a ruined church, there's also one of the best viewpoints in the whole city.
However, in order to visit most of them and avoid long lines for the Cathedral, it's required to have the OPA Si Pass. This official tourism ticket covers the six sites within the area known as 'The Siena Cathedral Complex', and combines entry for all of them under a single pass.
It does not however include every place you'll want to visit in Siena, and is not the only official combination ticket available for the city.
After our own experience (and confusion), we've written this short explainer post on the OPA Si Pass to help you make the right decision for your own visit to Siena. We'll cover what it includes and what it doesn't, where to buy it, and our view on whether the pass actually provides good value and is necessary to buy for your day trip or stay in Siena.
This is everything you need to know about the OPA Si Pass.
What Is The OPA Si Pass
It's a single combined ticket for visitors to Siena, available to buy online, which provides access to six points of interest within the Siena Cathedral Complex*.
In addition to entry, it provides 'express' or 'skip-the-line' access for the Cathedral (Duomo), which is the most visited attraction in the city.
The pass lasts for 72 hours / 3 days from the time + date of your Cathedral visit, and costs €15 for adults, €4 for children aged 7-11, and €2 for disabled visitors and children under 7.
*The Complex is simply the collective name for the sites located within the Piazza del Duomo; it is also often referred to as the 'Opera Duomo Siena' or the 'Duomo Complex'.
What Does It Include + Benefits
The OPA Si Pass includes entry to the following:
The Cathedral / Duomo of Siena (via the 'express' queue)
Piccolomini Library
The Baptistery
The Crypt
The Facciatone viewpoint
The Museo dell'Opera (Cathedral Museum)
Comprising several of the best things to do in Siena, we have given a more in-depth look at each in our travel guide to Siena.
The Pass also includes a free digital smartphone audioguide, but one of the main benefits of buying it is that it lets you 'skip-the-line' and access the express queue to enter the Cathedral. We stayed in Siena for four nights, and the line for people who don't have this priority entry or advance ticket gets very long, with wait times of up to an hour in the high summer season.
The Pass also extends to include entry for the annual uncovering of Siena Cathedral's magnificent floor (usually mid-August to mid-October), but the price of the Pass increases by a few euros at this time to reflect the increased standard entry price to the Cathedral for day visitors.
Importantly, standalone entries + tickets for several of the attractions included in the OPA Si Pass - such as the Facciatone viewpoint - are not possible; you need to have the pass in order to access them.
What It Doesn't Include
Although buying the OPA Si Pass allows convenient and fast-track access to several of Siena's most popular attractions with a single pass, it does not include everything you'll wish to visit in the medieval Italian city.
When planning your time, itinerary, or budget, it's important to understand this before you arrive!
Firstly, it does not include entry to the excellent Santa Maria della Scala gallery, which is actually within the Piazza del Duomo. This is covered by a standalone ticket of €9 for adults, or within another official combination ticket for visitors to Siena - the Municipal Museums / Civitas Senensium ticket.
(as we explain in 7 Things To Know Before You Visit Siena, this city does many things well, but clear, and uncomplicated ticketing systems is not one of them...)
The standard OPA Si Pass also doesn't include the 'Porta del Cielo' specialist tour of the upper area of the Cathedral. Known as the 'Gates of Heaven' experience, we did this during our stay but had mixed thoughts on it (we explain more in the 13 Wonderful Things To Do in Siena). It’s not possible to purchase as a standalone activity though, and it has to be bolted on to the OPA Si Pass on the official website.
The Pass only includes 'fast-track' entrance for the Cathedral, where the normal queue can be very long. However, it doesn't include 'fast-track' entrance for any of the other sites. This isn't usually an issue except the Facciatone viewpoint, where the limited capacity at the top does mean queues are common (we got around this by visiting it first thing in the morning before most of the day trip crowds arrive in Siena).
Lastly, the OPA Si Pass also does not include entry or tickets to several popular things to do in Siena, including climbing Torre del Mangia, the Pinacoteca Nazionale di Siena, and the Museo Civico. Entries for these are available on a standalone basis or as part of the Municipal Museums / Civitas Senensium ticket, which we explain in 7 Things To Know Before You Visit Siena (published soon).
How & Where To Buy The OPA Si Pass
It's best to buy your pass in advance online, and you have two options, each with pros and cons.
The first is via the official website here. However, it doesn't actually sell the tickets directly, and instead takes you to a third-party Italian website called Vivatickets.
It defaults to Italian, so you need to change it to English, then select the Complesso Monumentale del Duomo di Siena / Siena Cathedral Monumental Complex ticket option. To purchase, you then have to set up a profile on the website and select a specific time slot for your entry to the Cathedral, and confirmation + tickets will be e-mailed. It's not possible to process refunds or amendments.
The second option is to buy your OPA Si Pass here on GetYourGuide
On this website, you have more flexibility as you can 'reserve and pay later', and it also offers free cancellation up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund.
The date you choose when buying the pass is the specific date for your visit to the Cathedral. You then simply have to collect your OPA Si Pass at the ticket office located Cripta del Duomo di Siena (here on Google Maps, right by the Cathedral and separate to the queues to enter the Duomo itself).
With the official website, you must be at the Cathedral for your specified time slot. If buying the Pass on GetYourGuide, you will be able to access it via the express / skip-the-line queue at the earliest available time on the day you selected after you collect the ticket.
Wherever you purchase the pass, it's valid to enter all the other sites for three consecutive days from the day you enter the Cathedral or your first activation. For tickets purchased via the official website, it has to done be within 72 hours 'from the time booked for the Duomo'.
Both Vivatickets and GetYouGuide charge a small booking fee in addition to the official price.
The third option is to arrive in Siena and buy your OPA Si Pass in person at the ticket office.
It would be possible to visit all the sites covered by the OPA Si Pass in a few hours, if queues for the Facciatone viewpoint are reasonable, but we think it's best to spread them across your days if staying in Siena for a few nights.
Note that all the included sites have distinct opening + closing hours, and last entrance is usually 30 minutes before close. We've shared more info on specific opening times and each of the attractions in our main guide: 13 Wonderful Things To Do In Siena (published soon).
Buy your OPA Si Pass here on GetYourGuide or here on the Opera Duomo site.
DO You REALLY NEED IT?
It is absolutely possible to simply buy standalone tickets to visit the Siena Cathedral. These cost €7 for adults and also include the Piccolomini Library as standard.
You can buy it here on VivaTickets or here with skip-the-line access and free cancellation.
It's also possible to arrive on the day and join the normal queue to buy a standalone entry to the Catheral and Piccolomini Library for €6; depending on when you arrive and the month you're travelling, this could involve less than 10-minutes waiting or more than an hour.
Whatever you do, standalone or with the OPA Si Pass, we recommend buying your ticket in advance online to avoid the queues and save you quite a bit of time on the day; this is particularly relevant for day trips to Siena from Florence, as you'll not be able to arrive early enough to beat all the crowds and lines.
Note that the standalone + combination ticket entry prices alway increase by a few euro when the Duomo floor is uncovered from mid-August to mid-September.
So, is the OPA Si Pass worth it? Based on our own experience in Siena, we think the it’s a sensible purchase for the majority of travellers. Anybody visiting the city will go into the Cathedral, whilst Facciatone viewpoint and Museo della'Opera should most definitely be in your plans, and the only way to access them at time of writing is with the Pass. The ability to have a timed or 'fast-track' entrance will also offer more flexibility and time to explore the rest of Siena and, if you’re in summer, this could save you anything up to an hour in the normal Duomo queue.
Unusually for this type of official 'combination' visitor ticket, it's difficult to put a money-saving figure on it, given that you can only access several of the sites as a holder of the OPA Si Pass. If you wish to visit all six of the included ecclesiastical buildings, the museum, viewpoint - and save time on lines - then it does provide good value for money overall and allows you to really get to know Siena.
If your mind’s made up, you can buy your OPA Si Pass here on GetYourGuide or here on the Opera Duomo website. Or, if you're still in full planning mode or want more information + inspiration, read 13 Wonderful Things To Do in Siena.
