Day 1
Renaissance core
Start at the Duomo, climb the dome and look inside the Baptistery. In the afternoon do the Uffizi on a timed ticket, then wander across Ponte Vecchio for sunset.
Florence is a city built to a walker's scale: in a few minutes you go from Brunelleschi's dome to the Uffizi and across the Arno into the artisan quarter of the Oltrarno. Ochre palazzi, marble facades and half a millennium of art are packed into a surprisingly small historic core.
But Florence isn't only the Medici. In its markets, lampredotto cauldrons steam; in its trattorie the bistecca lands bloody on the plate; and come evening, Piazza Santo Spirito fills with locals. All around, the Tuscan hills wait for a day trip.
Itinerary
Day 2
David, markets and Santa Croce
Go early to the Accademia for Michelangelo's David, then browse the Mercato Centrale and San Lorenzo. Spend the afternoon at Santa Croce and take aperitivo at a wine bar.
Day 3
Oltrarno and the panorama
Cross the river to the Palazzo Pitti and Boboli Gardens, then thread through the Santo Spirito workshops. Finish by walking up to Piazzale Michelangelo for the sunset.
Highlights
🏛️Landmark
The Duomo and Brunelleschi's Dome
Santa Maria del Fiore is crowned by the largest masonry dome ever built, Brunelleschi's 15th-century feat of engineering. Climb the 463 steps and you pass right beneath Vasari's vast Last Judgement fresco before emerging above the rooftops.
🖼️Museum
Uffizi Gallery
The Uffizi holds the densest concentration of Renaissance art on earth, from Botticelli's Birth of Venus to Leonardo and Michelangelo. Book a timed ticket ahead and go at opening to have the first corridor's rooms almost to yourself.
🏛️Landmark
Ponte Vecchio
The city's oldest bridge has spanned the Arno since 1345 and still carries the tiny goldsmiths' shops that Cosimo I installed here. Above them runs the Vasari Corridor, the secret passage the Medici once used to reach the Palazzo Pitti.
🌄Viewpoint
Piazzale Michelangelo
From this terrace on the Arno's left bank the whole of Florence unfolds below, the dome and the Palazzo Vecchio's tower at its heart. Come for sunset and walk up through the San Niccolò district to beat the crush at the top.
🏘️Neighbourhood
Oltrarno and Santo Spirito
Across the river beats the artisan heart of Florence, its lanes lined with workshops for leather, gold leaf and bookbinding. Around Brunelleschi's plain-faced church of Santo Spirito, the square fills with locals at aperitivo hour.
🖼️Museum
Michelangelo's David at the Accademia
Standing over five metres tall, the David has closed a purpose-built tribune in the Galleria dell'Accademia since 1873. On the way in, linger over Michelangelo's unfinished Slaves, who seem to be literally twisting out of the raw marble.
Neighbourhoods
Centro Storico
The UNESCO-listed heart around the Duomo, the Signoria and the Uffizi: everything on foot, but busiest by day. Ideal for a first visit if you start early.
Oltrarno
The Arno's left bank, full of workshops, wine bars and Piazza Santo Spirito. Quieter, more real, and the liveliest place to be after dark.
Santa Croce
Around the Franciscan basilica that holds the tombs of Michelangelo and Galileo: leather shops, the Sant'Ambrogio market and student trattorie.
San Niccolò
A tiny district at the foot of Piazzale Michelangelo, with a medieval gate and narrow lanes. The prettiest way up to the sunset panorama.
Where to eat
Bistecca alla Fiorentina
A thick T-bone of Chianina beef grilled over wood embers and always served rare. It's ordered by weight (usually from about a kilo for two) and comes plain with salt, oil and white beans.
Lampredotto
The city's most famous street snack: cow's stomach braised in broth, tucked into a crusty roll with green salsa or spicy sauce. Have it classic at the Da Nerbone stand inside the Mercato Centrale.
Ribollita
A dense Tuscan soup of cavolo nero, cannellini beans and stale bread, slow-cooked and then reheated the next day. Peasant cooking at its best, found in any plain osteria.
Cantucci with Vin Santo
Hard almond biscuits you dunk into a glass of sweet Vin Santo to finish a meal. The quintessential Tuscan dessert, on almost every trattoria menu.
Good to know
Best time to visit
April to June and September to October are ideal: soft light, comfortable temperatures and thinner crowds at the Duomo and Ponte Vecchio. July and August turn hot and stifling in the narrow lanes. Winter is quiet and cheap, with short, clear days.
Getting around
You'll explore the old centre almost entirely on foot, since everything is walkable and much of it is pedestrian-only. From Santa Maria Novella station, Pisa, Siena or Lucca are barely an hour away by train. For Chianti or San Gimignano, a bus or rental-car day trip is worth it.
- Currency
- EUR €
- Languages
- Italian
How much does Florence cost?
A realistic daily budget per person, in three styles.
Backpacker€70per person / day
Mid-range€150per person / day
Comfort€250per person / day
Florence offers a range of options to suit different budgets.
Local tips
- ✓Book the Uffizi and Accademia online with a fixed time slot, or you'll queue for hours.
- ✓Cross to the Oltrarno to eat: more authentic and cheaper than around the Signoria.
- ✓Walk up to Piazzale Michelangelo via San Niccolò; it's loveliest at golden hour.
