Things to do in Florence, IT
The middle Valdarno, with the plain including Florence, Sesto Fiorentino, Prato, and Pistoia. The lower Valdarno, with the valley of important tributaries such as the Pesa, Elsa, and Era and in which, after Pontedera, the Arno flows into the Ligurian Sea.
The Bargello Museum is located in the impressive Palazzo del Bargello, a fortress with powerful embattlements which surround the austere facade. Begun in 1255, the building was the headquarters of the Capitano del Popolo and later of the Podestà and Council of Justice.
The Basilica di San Lorenzo (Basilica of St Lawrence) is one of the largest churches of Florence, Italy, situated at the centre of the city’s main market district, and the burial place of all the principal members of the Medici family from Cosimo il Vecchio to Cosimo III.
Forte Belvedere is the second and largest fortress to be built in Florence, Italy. It was designed and built by Bernardo Buontalenti over a five-year period, between 1590 and 1595, by order of Grand Duke Ferdinando I de' Medici.
The Beautiful Boboli Gardens More than just a garden, it is a place of historical importance for Florence More than a garden, more than just a “green lung” in Florence, the Boboli gardens are one of the greatest open-air museums in Florence that embraces another site of culture in Florence, the Pitti Palace.
Verrocchio David Michelangelo's David. Dated 1501-4, this masterpiece can be visited at the Accademia Gallery in Florence, where it is enshrined in its own "tribune". After seeing the precedents, I don't have to point out the fact that this is the first David to be nude; in fact it's the first monumental nude since antiquity.
Florence Baptistry (Battistero di San Giovanni). Mosaic-covered interior of the octagonal dome The Florence Baptistery (Italian: Battistero di San Giovanni), also known as the Baptistery of Saint John, is a religious building in Florence, Italy, and has the status of a minor basilica.
Florence Cathedral, formally the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore (Italian pronunciation: [katteˈdraːle di ˈsanta maˈriːa del ˈfjoːre]; in English "Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Flower") is the cathedral of Florence, Italy, or Il Duomo di Firenze, in Italian.
The Fountain of Neptune (Italian: Fontana del Nettuno) is a fountain in Florence, Italy, situated on the Piazza della Signoria (Signoria square), in front of the Palazzo Vecchio. Made of marble and bronze, the fountain was commissioned in 1565 and designed by Baccio Bandinelli.
The Accademia Gallery Museum in Florence An Unofficial Guide to the Galleria dell’Accademia museum. The Galleria dell’Accademia – or Accademia Gallery – in Florence, Italy, is without a doubt most famous for its sculptures by the great Renaissance artist, Michelangelo.
The Gates of Paradise is the main gate of the Baptistry of Florence (Battistero di San Giovanni), located in front of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore. The Porta del Paradiso, in Italian, was created by Florentine goldsmith and sculptor Lorenzo Ghiberti between 1425 and 1452 and installed in the eastern portal of the Baptistery.
The Giardino Bardini is an Italian Renaissance garden in Florence, Italy. Opened only recently to the public, it is relatively little-known.
Rose Garden, with view of the city The Rose Garden (Giardino delle rose) is a garden park in the Oltrarno district of Florence, in Tuscany, Italy. It is located between Viale Giuseppe Poggi, Via di San Salvatore al Monte and Via dei Bastioni and offers a commanding view of the city.
Giotto's Campanile is a free-standing campanile that is part of the complex of buildings that make up Florence Cathedral on the Piazza del Duomo in Florence, Italy. Standing adjacent to the Basilica of Santa Maria del Fiore and the Baptistry of St. John, the tower is one of the showpieces of Florentine Gothic architecture with its design by Giotto, its rich sculptural decorations and its polychrome marble encrustations.
The historic centre of Florence is part of quartiere 1 of the Italian city of Florence. This quarter was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1982. Built on the site of an Etruscan settlement, Florence, the symbol of the Renaissance, rose to economic and cultural pre-eminence under the Medici in the 15th and 16th centuries.
The Museum of Zoology and Natural History, best known as La Specola, is an eclectic natural history museum in Florence, central Italy, located next to the Pitti Palace. The name Specola means observatory, a reference to the astronomical observatory founded there in 1790.
The Loggia dei Lanzi, also called the Loggia della Signoria, is a building on a corner of the Piazza della Signoria in Florence, Italy, adjoining the Uffizi Gallery. It consists of wide arches open to the street. The arches rest on clustered pilasters with Corinthian capitals.
The Chapel of the Princes was built by the architect Matteo Nigetti (1560-1649) in 1604-1640 to the designs of Don Giovanni de' Medici, a member of the family who practiced architecture in a semi-professional way. The mausoleum is a rare example in Florence of the Baroque style, and its huge cupola and lavish interior were conceived as monuments to the greatness of the Medici.
Mercato Centrale Firenze was the brainchild of Umberto Montano, who with Claudio Cardini launched the project that would give Florence back one of its most important locations: the first floor of the covered market in the San Lorenzo neighbourhood.
The Central Market is a two-level food market, making up the second half of the San Lorenzo Market. The Mercato Centrale is in a beautiful building designed by Giuseppe Mengoni, the same architect who designed the Galleria Vittoria Emanuele II, and built from 1870-74 when Florence was still capital of Italy.
Piazza del Duomo 9, Florence, Italy The Museo dell'Opera del Duomo (Museum of the Works of the Cathedral) in Florence, Italy is a museum containing many of the original works of art created for the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore, the cathedral of Florence.
Museo Galileo, the former Istituto e Museo di Storia della Scienza (Institute and Museum of the History of Science) is located in Florence, Italy, in Piazza dei Giudici, along the River Arno and close to the Uffizi Gallery. It is housed in Palazzo Castellani, an 11th-century building which was then known as the Castello d’Altafronte.
Orsanmichele (Italian pronunciation: [orsamːiˈkɛːle]) (or "Kitchen Garden of St. Michael", from the contraction in Tuscan dialect of the Italian word orto) is a church in the Italian city of Florence.
The Ospedale degli Innocenti (Italian pronunciation: [ospeˈdaːle deʎʎ innoˈtʃɛnti]; 'Hospital of the Innocents', also known in old Tuscan dialect as the Spedale degli Innocenti) is a historic building in Florence, Italy. It was designed by Filippo Brunelleschi, who received the commission in 1419 from the Arte della Seta.
Palazzo Davanzati is a palace in Florence, Italy. It houses the Museum of the Old Florentine House.
The Palazzo Medici, also called the Palazzo Medici Riccardi after the later family that acquired and expanded it, is a Renaissance palace located in Florence, Italy. It is the seat of the Metropolitan City of Florence and a museum.
The Palazzo Pitti (Italian pronunciation: [paˈlattso ˈpitti]), in English sometimes called the Pitti Palace, is a vast, mainly Renaissance, palace in Florence, Italy. It is situated on the south side of the River Arno, a short distance from the Ponte Vecchio.
The palazzo, granted by the Istituto Nazionale delle Assicurazioni to the Italian State in 1999, is now home to the Institute of Humanist Studies and to the Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi. The Gabinetto G.P. Viesseux and the Renaissance Studies Institute have both also occupied the building since 1940.
The Palazzo Vecchio (Italian pronunciation: [paˈlattso ˈvɛkkjo] "Old Palace") is the town hall of Florence, Italy. It overlooks the Piazza della Signoria with its copy of Michelangelo's David statue as well as the gallery of statues in the adjacent Loggia dei Lanzi.
The Parco delle Cascine (Cascine Park) is a monumental and historical park in the city of Florence. The park covers an area of 160 hectares (395 acres). It has the shape of a long and narrow stripe, on the north bank of the Arno river. It extends from the centre of Florence until the point where the Mugnone flows into the Arno.
The Pazzi Chapel (Italian: Cappella dei Pazzi) is a chapel located in the "first cloister" on the southern flank of the Basilica di Santa Croce in Florence, Italy. Commonly credited to Filippo Brunelleschi, it is considered to be one of the masterpieces of Renaissance architecture.
Piazza del Duomo (English: "Cathedral Square") is located in the heart of the historic center of Florence, (Tuscany - Italy). It is one of the most visited places in Europe and the world and in Florence, the most visited area of the city.
Piazza del Duomo (English: "Cathedral Square") is located in the heart of the historic center of Florence, (Tuscany - Italy). It is one of the most visited places in Europe and the world and in Florence, the most visited area of the city.
Piazza della Repubblica is one of the main squares in Florence and marks the center of the city since Roman times. The Colonna della Dovizia or also known as the Column of Abundance marks the point where the cardus and decumanus maximi met and where the Roman forum stood.
Piazza della Signoria Symbol of the Florentine Republic The Piazza della Signoria has been the center of political life in Florence since the 14 th century with the prominent Palazzo Vecchio overlooking the square.
If you're in downtown Florence, you can walk up to the Piazzale Michelangelo. You can also take the bus or if you have a car, drive up there! It can be reached by taking either bus 12 or 13 from the center or the red two-level sightseeing tour bus. It can also be reached by foot, climbing up from Piazza Poggi found at the base of the hill upon which Piazzale Michelangelo sits.
Ponte Santa Trinita. The bridge was constructed by the Florentine architect Bartolomeo Ammannati from 1567 to 1569. Its site, downstream of the Ponte Vecchio, is a major link in the medieval street plan of Florence, which has been bridged at this site since the 13th century.
Ponte Vecchio is a very romantic spot in Florence, with its great views over the river and of the bridge itself. It is also possible to admire the bridge from underneath in theater presentations, the occasional concert and boat rides.
Il Porcellino (Italian "piglet") is the local Florentine nickname for the bronze fountain of a boar.
San Marco is the name of a religious complex in Florence, Italy. It comprises a church and a convent. The convent, which is now a museum, has three claims to fame. During the 15th century it was home to two famous Dominicans, the painter Fra Angelico and the preacher Girolamo Savonarola.
San Miniato al Monte (St. Minias on the Mountain) is a basilica in Florence, central Italy, standing atop one of the highest points in the city. It has been described as one of the finest Romanesque structures in Tuscany and one of the most scenic churches in Italy.
Archdiocese of Florence The Basilica di Santa Croce (Basilica of the Holy Cross) is the principal Franciscan church in Florence, Italy, and a minor basilica of the Roman Catholic Church. It is situated on the Piazza di Santa Croce, about 800 meters south-east of the Duomo.
The Basilica di Santa Croce (Basilica of the Holy Cross) is the principal Franciscan church in Florence, Italy, and a minor basilica of the Roman Catholic Church.It is situated on the Piazza di Santa Croce, about 800 meters south-east of the Duomo.
Santa Maria del Carmine is a church of the Carmelite Order, in the Oltrarno district of Florence, in Tuscany, Italy. It is famous as the location of the Brancacci ...
The Church of Santa Maria Novella might not be at the top of your list of places to visit in Florence but we highly recommend you place it on there. Architecturally, it is one of the most important Gothic churches in Tuscany.
The miraculous revival of the fallen boy occurs in Piazza Santa Trinita, and Sassetti's children fall to their knees (on the left); note the old Romanesque façade and Ponte Santa Trinita as it was before the great flood of 1557.
The church Santissima Annunziata is home to Pontormo, Andrea del Sarto, the Order of Servite and for the Giubilee year it has the Holy Door in Florence.
Discovering Piazza Santo Spirito in the Oltrarno For those who really want to know the true and picturesque Florence, then a trip to the area Oltrarno is a must moving away from the classic tours and itineraries which take you to Piazza del Duomo - Piazza della Signoria - Ponte Vecchio and Piazza della Repubblica.
The Uffizi Gallery is one of the world's top art museums - it houses some of the most important works of the Renaissance, including works by Leonardo da Vinci, Giotto, Botticelli and Michelangelo. Lots of sculptures too.
The Vasari Corridor (Italian: Corridoio Vasariano) is an elevated enclosed passageway in Florence, central Italy, which connects the Palazzo Vecchio with the Palazzo Pitti.