Destination guides > Europe > Italy > Tuscany (Toscana) > Florence (Firenze) > Sights, museums & tourist attractions
Florence (Firenze)
Sightseeing, museums & tourist attractions
Accademia di Belle Arti Firenze
The Accademia di Belle Arti Firenze, also known as the Galleria dell'Accademia, was founded in 1563 and is best known as the home of Michelangelo's David.
Via Ricasoli 58-60, Firenze
Bus 1, 6, 7, 10, 11, 17, 25, 31, 32, 33, 67, 68, 70
Tel (055) 238 8609
Website www.accademia.firenze.it
Admission €6.50
Open Tue-Sun 8.15am-6.50pm (last entry 6.20pm)
Bargello
The Bargello palace is the oldest public building in Florence. It was built in 1261, in the 16th century housed the bargello (the police chief) hence its name and it has been a museum since 1865. The museum's collection includes works by Donatello, Giambologna and Michelangelo.
Via del Proconsolo 4, Firenze
Bus A, 14, 23
Tel (055) 238 8606
Admission €4
Open 8.30am-6pm daily
Basilica di Santa Croce
Although a relatively minor basilica, it the the world's largest Franciscan church, featuring chapels decorated with frescoes by Giotto; however the basilica, 800m south east of the Duomo, is mostly known as the burial site of many famous Italians including Galileo, Marconi and Michelangelo.
Piazza Santa Croce, Firenze
Bus B, 13, 23, 71
Tel (055) 244 619
Admission €4
Open Mon-Sat 9.30am-5.30pm, Sun 1pm-5.30pm
Battistero di San Giovanni
This octagonal building was built between 1059 and 1128 making it one of the city’s oldest buildings and until the end of the 19th century all Catholic Florentines were baptised here.
The baptistery is noted for its ornate bronze doors created by Andrea Pisano (south doors) and Lorenzo Ghiberti (north doors); Michelangelo was so impressed with Ghiberti’s doors that he referred to them as the “Gates of Paradise”. The doors that visitors to the baptistery see are in fact copies, as the originals are kept in a dry environment at the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo where they can be better preserved. The interior is equally impressive and it noted for its intricate mosaic ceiling.
Piazza San Giovanni, Firenze
Bus 1, 6, 17, 14, 22, 23, 36, 37, 71
Tel (055) 230 2885
Admission €4
Open Mon–Sat noon–6.30pm, Sun 8.30am–1.30pm
Cappelle Medicee (Medici Chapels)
Like much of Renaissance Florence, the Medici Chapels were built for the powerful Medici family. The complex includes the Sagrestia Nuova, intended as a mausoleum for members of the Medici family and the opulent Cappella dei Principi, which features a 59m (193½ft) tall dome and a lavish – some would say grotesque – marble interior.
Piazza Madonna degli Aldobrandini, Firenze
Bus 1, 6, 7, 11, 14, 17, 23, 67, 68, 70, 71
Tel (055) 238 8602
Admission €6
Open 8.15am–5pm daily
Duomo (Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore)
Florence's iconic cathedral was built between 1296 and 1436. It's highlight is the massive dome engineered by Filippo Bruneslleschi.
Piazza del Duomo, Firenze
Bus 1, 6, 17, 14, 22, 23, 36, 37, 71
Tel (055) 230 2885
Admission church free; excavations €3; cupola €8
Open church Mon-Wed 10am-5pm, Thu 10am-3.30pm, Fri 10am-5pm, 1st Sat of month 10am-3.30pm, other Sat 10am-4.45pm, Sun 1.30pm-4.30pm; cupola Mon-Fri 8.30am-6.20pm, 1st Sat of month 8.30am-3.20pm, other Sat 8.30am-5pm
Giotto’s Campanile (Campanile di Giotto)
This 84.7m (278ft) high bell tower on the Piazza del Duomo is one of Florence’s landmark examples of Gothic architecture. It is worth climbing the tower’s 414 steps for spectacular views of the city including Florence’s best view of Brunelleschi’s dome.
Piazza del Duomo, Firenze
Bus 1, 6, 17, 14, 22, 23, 36, 37, 71
Tel (055) 230 2885
Admission €6
Open 8.30am–6.50pm daily
Museo dell'Opera del Duomo
The Museo dell'Opera del Duomo (Museum of the Works of the Cathedral) contains many of the original works from the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore and other historic Florentine buildings. Exhibits include the "Gates of Paradise", Lorenzo Ghiberti's original north doors from the Battistero di San Giovanni as well as many important sculptures that have been deemed too important to keep outside.
Piazza del Duomo 9, Firenze
Bus 6, 11, 14, 17, 23
Tel (055) 230 2885
Website www.operaduomo.firenze.it
Admission €6
Open Mon-Sat 9am-7.30pm, Sun 9am-1.45pm
National Archaeological Museum (Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Firenze)
Florence's archaeological museum boasts a rich collection of artefacts . The museum's highlights include a rare Hittite chariot from the 14th century BC.
Via della Colonna 38, Firenze
Bus 6, 31, 32
Tel (055) 23 575
Admission €4
Open Mon 2pm-7pm, Tue 8.30am-7pm, Wed 8.30am-2pm, Thu 8.30am-7pm, Fri-Sun 8.30am-2pm
Palazzo Pitti & Boboli Gardens
The Palazzo Pitti is a large Renaissance palace south of the River Arno that dates from 1458. It was originally built for banker Luca Pitti, was the home of the Medici family from 1549 and was used by Napoleon in the late 18th century. Over the centuries it amassed a large art collection and it was opened to the public as an art museum in 1919. It is now the largest museum complex in Florence with over 32,000 square metres of exhibits including the Galleria Palatina with over 500 Renaissance paintings (including works by Correggio, Raphael, Rubens and Titian); plus the Galleria d'Arte Moderna with its collection of modern art and the Museo degli Argenti with an extensive silver collection plus the royal apartments (a suite of 14 rooms that were formerly used by the Medici family).
Behind the Palazzo are the Boboli Gardens (Giardino di Boboli), an elegant park that is home to a collection of sculpture dating from the 16th to 18th centuries.
Piazza Pitti, Firenze
Bus D, 11, 36, 37, 68
Tel (055) 238 8614
Admission combined €12; Galleria Palatina €8.50; Galleria d'Arte Moderna €8.50; Museo degli Argenti €6; Boboli Gardens €2
Open Galleria Palatina Tue-Sun 8.15am-5.50pm (last entry 5.05pm); Galleria d'Arte Moderna 8.15am-6.50pm daily; Museo degli Argenti Jan-Feb 8.15am-4.30pm daily; Mar 8.15am-6.50pm daily; Apr-May 8.15pm-6.30pm daily; Jun-Sep 8.15am-7.30pm daily; Oct 8.15pm-6.30pm daily; Nov-Dec 8.15am-4.30pm daily; Boboli Gardens Jan-Feb 8.15am-4.30pm daily; Mar 8.15am-5.30pm daily; Apr-May 8.15am-6.30pm daily; Jun-Sep 8.15am-7.30pm daily; Oct 8.15am-6.30pm daily; Nov-Dec 8.15am-4.30pm daily
Ponte Vecchio
The Ponte Vecchio (old bridge) spans the River Arno and it noted for having shops built alongside the roadway, once a common feature of urban bridges. Although the bridge was originally occupied by butchers, it now houses mostly touristy shops like art dealers, jewellers and souvenir shops. Although a bridge has existed on this site since 996, the current bridge dates only from 1345 after earlier bridges were destroyed by floods in 1117 and 1333.
Via Por Santa Maria & Via Guicciardini, Firenze
Bus B, D
San Marco
This religious complex comprises a church and convent (now a museum) and it is claimed to be the site of Europe's first public library. During the 15th century the complex was the home of painter Fra Angelico and many of his works are on display in the Museo Nazionale di San Marco, which occupies the former convent.
Piazza San Marco 3, Firenze
Bus 1, 6, 7, 10, 11, 17, 20, 25, 31, 32, 33, 67, 68, or 70
Tel (055) 238 8608
Admission €4
Open Mon-Fri 8.30am-1.50pm, Sat-Sun 8.15am-7pm
San Miniato al Monte
This basilica takes prime position on one of Florence's highest points and many people have called it one of Italy's most beautiful churches.
Via del Monte alle Croci, Firenze
Bus 12, 13
Tel (055) 234 2731
Admission free
Open Jan-Easter Mon-Sat 8am-1pm & 2.30pm-6pm, Sun 8am-6pm; Easter-early Oct 8am-7.30pm daily; Oct-Dec Mon-Sat 8am-1pm & 2.30pm-6pm, Sun 8am-6pm
Santa Maria del Carmine
This church in the Oltrarno district is best known for the Renaissance frescoes by Masaccio and Masolino da Panicale in its Brancacci Chapel (Capella dei Brancacci).
Piazza della Carmine, Firenze
Bus D, 6, 11, 36, 37, 68
Tel (055) 238 2195
Admission church free; Brancacci Chapel €4
Open Mon-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 1pm-5pm
Santa Maria Novella
The Basilica of Santa Maria Novella sits across the road from the train station that bears its name. Completed in 1470, it is the city's first major basilica and contains frescoes by Gothic and early Renaissance masters including Sandro Botticelli, Domenico Ghirlandario and Filippino Lippi as well as a crucifix by Filippo Bruneslleschi.
Piazza Santa Maria Novella, Firenze
Bus A, 6, 11, 12, 36, 37, 68
Tel (055) 215 918
Admission €2.50
Open Mon-Thu 9am-5pm, Fri 1pm-5pm, Sat 9am-5pm, Sun 1pm-5pm
Uffizi Gallery (Galleria degli Uffizi)
The Uffizi is one of the world's leading art museums. Its collection encompasses some of the world's leading Renaissance masterpieces. The Uffizi's most well-known work is Sandro Botticelli's Primavera, the Birth of Venus, but there are also many other outstanding paintings including works by Caravaggio, Albrecht Dürer, Giotto, Michelangelo, Raphael, Titian and Leonardo da Vinci.
Piazzale degli Uffizi 6, Firenze
Bus A, B, 23, 71
Tel (055) 238 8651
Website www.uffizi.firenze.it
Admission €6.50
Open Tue-Sun 8.15am-7pm (last entry 6.15pm)
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