CargandoCargandoFlorence is one of those cities where most of the queuing comes from not having booked: the Uffizi and the Accademia sell out, and without a timed ticket you lose entire mornings standing in the street. You can cross the whole place in twenty minutes on foot, so the plan here isn't about getting around, it's about what time you go in.
Florence in one dayA day out on the street: the Duomo's façade, the jewellers' bridge, the square where the geniuses are buried, the market for lunch and the climb to the viewpoint at the end.1 day· 5 stops
Florence in two daysDay one for the things you have to book: the two museums and the Duomo. Day two, cross the river and climb to the viewpoint at sunset, which is when the city makes sense.2 days· 8 stops
NeighbourhoodOltrarno and Piazza Santo Spirito
ViewpointPiazzale Michelangelo
MonumentSanta Croce
MarketsMercato Centrale di San Lorenzo
MuseumThe Uffizi
MonumentThe Duomo and Brunelleschi's dome
MuseumGalleria dell'Accademia
GardensBoboli Gardens
MonumentPonte Vecchio
💡The coperto isn't a tip, and it won't be taken off
Nearly every restaurant charges two or three euros per person just for sitting down. It's on the menu in small print, and it's legal. A tip on top of that is not expected.
💡You can cross Florence on foot in twenty minutes
The centre is tiny and nearly all pedestrian: no metro, no bus, no taxi needed. What you do need is decent shoes, because the paving is uneven stone and it punishes.
💡In July and August the city is an oven with no shade
It sits in a valley with no breeze; at three in the afternoon nobody can be out on the street. Start early, get inside a museum at midday and leave the walking for seven.
💡Book the two big museums before you book the flight
The Uffizi and the Accademia sell timed slots online and they run out weeks ahead. You can still get in without one, but the queue is two hours standing in the sun, and there goes a day.
💡Siena, Pisa and Lucca are an hour away by train
You need no car and no organised tour: regional trains run constantly and the ticket costs what a set lunch does. Buy at the machine in the station and stamp the ticket before you board.
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