Celebrated as the birthplace of the Renaissance, Florence is the capital of Tuscany and the region’s artistic treasure trove. A maze of cobblestone streets and former palaces, the city’s historic center showcases a time capsule of medieval Italy and is ideal for exploring by foot on a walking tour. Skip-the-line tickets help visitors save time when flocking to world-class museums like the Uffizi Gallery and Accademia Gallery to admire originals by Italian luminaries including Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and Raphael. A stroll across the Ponte Vecchio provides views of the Arno River and centuries-old jewelry shops, while the Boboli Gardens and the Palazzo Pitti provide a peek into the former home of the powerful Medici family. Food and wine enthusiasts can easily escape to nearby Chianti, San Gimignano, and other countryside hill towns for a day tour filled with bold Italian reds and gourmet Tuscan cuisine. You’ll find all this and more in our Florence travel guide.
Uffizi Gallery
Italy’s most-visited museum is an essential stop on any Florence itinerary. Housed in a former Medici palace that’s a work of art in itself, the immense collection features high Renaissance gems like Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus, da Vinci’s The Annunciation, and Michelangelo’s Doni Tondo. Skip-the line tours help visitors avoid long waits that often stretch for hours, while small-group tours led by an art historian help enrich the viewing experience and provide visitors with a focused route through the endless galleries.
Skip the Line: Florence Uffizi Gallery Tickets
Visitors who prefer exploring independently can take advantage of priority access with skip-the-line entrance tickets that can save hours of time during peak tourist season.
Uffizi Gallery Tour with Guide
This popular tour lets visitors bypass the Uffizi’s long entrance lines and make the most of a visit with a guide who provides art-history commentary on collection highlights.
Early Access: Guided Uffizi Gallery Tour with Skip-the-Line Ticket
Early birds get to skip the entrance lines and enjoy less-crowded galleries with this guided tour that gets them in before the museum opens to the general public.
Breakfast at the Uffizi: Small-Group, Early-Entrance Tour
This early-entrance tour combines skip-the-line privileges and emptier galleries with the intimacy of a small group. It also includes breakfast at the museum cafe after a morning of guided art appreciation.Accademia Gallery
Florence’s second-most-popular museum draws major crowds to see one of Europe’s most compelling statues–Michelangelo’s original David. Other highlights include Michelangelo’s unfinished Prisoners series, Renaissance paintings by Botticelli and Ghirlandaio, and rare musical instruments like a Stradivari viola. Like the Uffizi, entrance lines here can be extreme, so skip-the-line tours and tickets offer a great value. Combo tours pair the two museums for a double dose of world-famous art, all in one day.
Skip the Line: Florence Accademia Gallery Tickets
This basic, best-selling tour lets visitors skip the long entrance lines and browse the Accademia’s treasures at their own pace.
Skip the Line: Florence Accademia and Uffizi Gallery Tour
For art lovers with limited time, this combo offers skip-the-line access and a guided express tour at both the Accademia and Uffizi Galleries, with a break for lunch or independent time in between.
Florence Super Saver: Best of Florence Walking Tour, Accademia Gallery, and Uffizi Gallery
For a full great-value day of sightseeing, this Super Saver combines guided skip-the-line tours of the Uffizi and Accademia and includes walking tour of the city center’s most important palaces and churches.
Florence Duomo
No Florence travel guide would be complete without this must-do attraction. The red-roofed Duomo (Dome) that caps the Cathedral of Santa Maria dei Fiori is the architectural jewel of Florence. Designed by Filippo Brunelleschi, the Duomo was a marvel of engineering in its day and remains a must-visit attraction for modern visitors. Tickets are required to enter the cathedral and lines are often long, so skip-the-line tours save time. Adventurous travelers can climb the steps to the top for the best views in Florence, while many guided tours include a look at the neighboring bell tower, the Baptistery, and museum.
Duomo Skip-the-Line Tour
A good option for first-time visitors, this tour offers priority access to the cathedral and a guided climb to the top of the Duomo, all in under two hours.
The Duomo Complex and It’s Hidden Terraces
Visitors go behind the scenes on this tour including skip-the-line cathedral entry, a small-group climb to a lookout terrace and the top of the dome, and access to secret passages not open to the general public.
Small-Group Florence Duomo Baptistery and Grande Museo del Duomo Tour
This tour wraps up all elements of the grand Duomo Complex, with a guided visit to the cathedral and Duomo plus the Baptistery, bell tower, and Opera del Duomo museum, home to devotional works by Michelangelo and Ghiberti.
David and Duomo Tour: Early Accademia and Skip-the-Line Dome Climb
Pair art and architecture with a guided early-access visit to the Accademia Gallery to see Michelangelo’s David without the crowds, followed by a small-group tour of the entire Duomo Complex and a dome climb.Chianti and the Tuscan Countryside
When putting together our Florence travel guide for travel agents, we knew we had to include tours throughout the Tuscan countryside, specifically tours where clients can experience the feeling of sipping Chianti under the Tuscan sun. With a lot of variety of half-day and full-day tours leaving from Florence, clients can pick the right tour that will check off a lot of their bucket list.
Taste of Chianti: Tuscan Cheese, Wine and Lunch from Florence
This food and wine tour serves up the best of Chianti’s famous flavors with winery visits and tastings of Chianti Classico, olive oil, and artisan cheeses, rounded out with a gourmet restaurant lunch.
Tuscany in One Day Sightseeing Tour
For a taste of Tuscany beyond just wine, this tour includes a Tuscan wine tasting and lunch, plus stops in Siena, San Gimignano, and even Pisa, with time to check out the famous Leaning Tower.
Chianti Semi-Private Cooking Class at a Tuscan Villa with Market Visit
For a hands-on culinary experience, this cooking tour starts with a shopping trip at a Florentine market, followed by a chef-led cooking class and homemade meal at a historic villa in the Tuscan countryside.
Most Popular Things to Do in Florence
Day Trips & Excursions
Tours & Sightseeing
Food, Wine & Nightlife
Sightseeing Tickets & Passes
Walking & Biking Tours
Most Popular Things to Do in Florence
Day Trips & Excursions
Tours & Sightseeing
Food, Wine & Nightlife
Walking & Biking Tours
Sightseeing Tickets & Passes
Florence Travel Guide: Things to Know
When to Visit
Late spring and early fall offer cooler temps and thinner crowds, but visitors during the more popular summer months can take advantage of a wide range of cultural events and festivals. Keep in mind, many businesses shut down for August vacations.
Things to Bring
Sketchbooks come in handy if visitors feel inspired to join legions of art students in capturing Renaissance sculptures in a low-tech way.
Getting Around
While a public bus system can help visitors reach out-of-the-way locations, Florence’s historic city center is primarily made for walking. Bicycle rental and tours offer a convenient way to wind through narrow streets and medieval piazzas in less time.
Local Customs
Churches and other sacred sites may refuse entry to visitors with exposed shoulders, arms, or knees. Travelers should be mindful of photography rules inside museums and palaces.
What the Locals Know
Enjoying an after-dinner gelato in one of the city’s public piazzas is a cherished summer tradition. Legendary ice cream shop Vivoli draws big crowds for a reason, and is walking distance to nearby Piazza Santa Croce.
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