Florence is without a doubt Tuscany’s treasure, and no trip to Tuscany would be complete without paying the special place a visit. Thanks to the famous Medici family, Florence became the center of Tuscany in terms of art, architecture, and literature, and also was to become the one of the most famous cities in the world known for its enormous contribution to the Italian Renaissance.

This was my third time in Florence, Tuscany’s capital, and every time I come I fall a little bit more in love with the city. Although this time the visit was pretty short, only a day and a half, I had the chance of celebrating my birthday in it in the most magnificent way. I hope this guide will cause you to fall in love with this amazing city 🙂

I hope I can make you fall in love with this amazing city through my guide 🙂

Click here to download my map of Florence

{Click here to watch my IG stories highlight from Florence!}

STAY

If you read this blog regularly you probably already know that on these kinds of urban trips, during which we try to get it all in from morning to night, I usually prefer to pass up the hotel option and go for a an Airbnb apartment {or at least split it up between both options, if it’s a long stay in the city}. So, since our trip to Italy was quite long {almost three weeks}, most of the time, we rented Airbnb apartments while we were staying in major cities. Then, when we wanted a little boost, we indulged in special hotels, particularly at the end of our trip, to keep us wanting more.

We chose our beautiful Florentine Airbnb apartment after a meticulous search online. The apartment has a minimalist and clean style, and is everything you ever dreamed of, and more! The hosts were super nice and the apartment itself was very central, huge, clean, and even had a washing machine that served us exactly when we needed it. In short, serious win 🙂

First time booking an Airbnb apartment? You’re welcome to use my link and receive a $42 coupon code for your next trip.

GET AROUND

Florence is so much fun to explore by foot because all of its main attractions are concentrated in one, rather small, area. So you will not be needing a car/bus/taxi to tour the city.

With a car – If you are traveling with a car, as soon as you get to town you’ll want to find the parking lot nearest to your hotel or apartment {use Waze to locate the nearest parking lot}. Getting around the city by car is pretty challenging because of the narrow alleyways, and parking parking within the city limits is not allowed for people who are not residents. When planning your trip, keep in mind that parking is pretty expensive {about 30 Euros per day} so if you won’t be needing it for the rest of the trip, you are probably better off returning it as soon as you arrive in Florence.

Without a car – If you are visiting Florence without a car, and feel like hopping over to the great outlet mall called The Mall Luxury Outlet, you will be happy to hear that there is a very affordable shuttle service that operates throughout the day. Another service offered by the site is a day trip from Florence to Pisa, which includes shuttle services and a free entrance to the Pisa Tower, which you can order right here.

Since we were traveling in a rented car, we didn’t have to use any public transportation to get in or out of Florence, so I cannot write form personal experience, but this article describes the subject in detail.

EXPLORE

The fun began when we arrived at our gorgeous Airbnb apartment around noon. After a short rest in the apartment, we went out to the pasta-making class that we booked in advance via Airbnb. The class was so much fun, we learned hot to make 3 different kinds of pasta {which of course we got to eat at the end!} The only thing that bugged me about the class was the difference I found between the online description and the real thing. In the images and videos online, a nice looking Italian elderly woman is seen teaching the workshop in a restaurant setting, which makes the whole thing look super authentic, when in fact the workshop was held in the nearby hostel’s kitchen {though we ate in the restaurant} with a young woman {she was very nice, it was just that I expected otherwise}. Again, the workshop was a very positive and successful experience, but if you’re looking for something really authentic, this is not it. The truth is, I found many pasta-making workshops online with a more rustic vibe right outside of Florence, but they were closed on the same weekend we spent in the area.

Our second day began pretty early with a tour around Florence’s stunning Duomo, Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, which was not packed with tourists. Since our time in town was pretty short, and we had lots of plans, we decided to skip going inside the cathedral this time, and to simply take in the amazing beauty of the admirable architectural structure from the outside. Like all famous tourist attractions, the entrance to Florence's Duomo also involves waiting in long lines. So, if plan on going inside and also taking an indoor tour, you should definitely purchase a “Skip the LIne” ticket to the church, which includes an english guide of the amazing dome. Using “Skip the Line” tickets is really simple, as soon as you complete your order you receive an email with a PDF which you can show the staff members directly from your smartphone.

From the Duomo we went on to Piazza della Signoria, a big, L-shaped square, that really feels like an open-air museum because it is surrounded by sculptures from the renaissance, copies mostly, but very powerful anyway. The famous sculpture of them all is Michelangelo's David, where it was placed originally, until it was moved to Galleria dell'Accademia.

Then we went to the nearby Gucci Museum, the Gucci Garden, which is undoubtedly an experience that every fashion lover owes to herself when she visits the city.  The museum is located in the historic Palazzo della Mercanzia, an ancient building from the 14th century, where founder, Guccio Gucci, opened the brand’s first shop in 1921. In 2011, the building became host to the museum, which underwent a face lift and reopened at the beginning of this year, more glamorous than ever. The museum complex is relatively small and consists of two really well done floors that so perfectly combine Gucci’s past, present, and future, and also a changing, temporary exhibition {we saw one that presented the fashion house’s collaboration with Bjork in this music video}. Like in any museum, leaving the museum leads you the the museum shop – in this case the shop is that much better because its a Gucci store 🙂 Next to the store you will find Gucci Osteria, the museum restaurant for which reservations must be made. A ticket to the museum costs 8 Euros {which is the cheapest thing for sale at Gucci ?} and there is no need to book tickets in advance.

Our next stop in the city was the San Lorenzo Market. This market, in fact, consists of two separate markets – the central market {Mercato Centrale} is the indoor food market, and the open market is where you can find mostly leather goods and lots of tourist souvenirs. I personally didn’t really enjoy the two parts of the market, because in relation to other markets I visited in the world {and here in Israel!} They were not as impressive …

After lunch we decided to go back to the apartment and get some rest before going out again, and in the evening we went out to Piazzale Michelangelo one of the most famous squares in Florence that offers most beautiful panoramic view of the city. Climbing up to where the piazza is located was quite the climb, but the view that awaits at the top of the climb is totally worth it.

As we made our way back toward the Duomo, where we decided to enjoy a our last aperitivo in Florence in front of the beautiful cathedral, we walked through Ponte Vecchio, the city’s iconic bridge, built in the 14th century.

The only thing we thought of doing during the visit to the city, but unfortunately did not get to {still, we had only a day and a half in the city…} was to visit the two major museums in the city. “Galleria degli Uffizi” and “Galleria dell’Accademia di Firenze”. Uffizi is the most famous museum in Florence, known for its remarkable collection and display of Renaissance Art, including works by Botticelli, Michelangelo, Raphael, and Leonardo de Vinci. The academy museum is known mainly as being the home of the original David sculpture by Michelangelo.

Like in the Duomo, waiting in line at the entrance to these two museums is usually takes very long. So, if you’re planning on visiting one of the famous museums you should probably book museum tickets in advance and skip the long lines. Here you can order “Skip the Line” tickets for Galleria dell'Accademia, and you can do the same here for Galleria dei Uffizi. If you’d like to see both museums as well as visit the inside of the Duomo, you should purchase the combo ticket, which includes an entrance to the Duomo, 48 hours of public transportation in the city, and the CityPass app featuring audio guides on the city’s most famous attractions.

EAT

From a culinary point of view, Florence is best known for its “Bistecca Alla Fiorentina”, a T-bone steak a-la florence. The dish is easily found in every restaurant all around town. If you’re not into meat, you’ll be glad to know that Florence is also famous for its delicious gelato.

♦ Il Bottegone – In a perfect location right next to the Duomo is Il Bottegone, an old-time Florentine institution, established in the 1800s. It includes a wonderful bakery and cafe, an italian restaurant, and you can’t miss it if you’re taking a walk around the Duomo square. We ate their twice. Once for breakfast, we had a perfect panini sandwich with prosciutto and mozzarella to go, and again for an aperitivo on our last night in Florence. Seating prices are not cheap, but the atmosphere is great and the service is fast and professional.

♦ Don Nino – Just a few steps away from Il Bottegone is this little, sweet drop of heaven which offers a variety of pastries, cookies, cakes, and ice creams. Although I didn’t taste the ice cream, but the pastries are excellent.

♦ Il Procopio – A sweet little ice cream parlor, found on one of the side streets in the center of town. The ice cream is soft and creamy, with rich flavors and excellent service!

♦ Venchi – When Italy’s oldest chocolate makers decide to open their own shop which is a combination of a chocolatier and an ice-cream parlor, magic happens. Just a short walk form the Duomo is the Florence’s Venchi branch, where the gelato is totally worth waiting in line for. The gelato is so creamy and each flavor is amazing, and you can choose a cone that is covered in the brand’s chocolate on the spot. There is an enormous amount of flavors to choose from, but in my opinion the best flavors were the various chocolate ones. You will find more Venchi branches in Siena, Rome, Naples, and other places, in and outside of Italy.

♦ La Bussola – Following a recommendation we got from a couple we met in a pasta workshop, we decide to eat our first pizza at La Bussola, and we enjoyed every minute! The pizza crust was thick and tasty, the sauce was fresh, and the toppings were all delicious. Highly recommended.

♦ Osteria del Proconsolo – This is where we had our Florentine dinner. The restaurant is right around the corner from the Duomo in one of the alleys that lead up to it. The restaurant is warm, the service is excellent, and the food was finger-lickin’ good. We ordered a caprese salad and a perfect Ribollita soup to start, for the main course we shared a Bistecca Alla Fiorentina, and for dessert we ordered an italian treat called Budino, which is very similar to the French Creme Brulee.

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Know about more interesting things to do in Florence? Leave me a comment below! ♡