Basilica di Santa Croce

Santa Croce is the principal Franciscan church of Florence and one of the most rewarding places to visit in the city. Building began in 1294, probably to a design by Arnolfo di Cambio, and the vast Gothic interior was consecrated in the 15th century. The marble facade on the piazza is much later, built between 1857 and 1863 by Niccolò Matas. Because so many prominent Florentines are buried or commemorated here, it is often called the Temple of the Italian Glories.

Inside, the walls are lined with tombs and monuments. Michelangelo's tomb was designed by Vasari, Galileo lies opposite, Machiavelli has an 18th-century monument by Innocenzo Spinazzi, and there are memorials to Rossini and a cenotaph to Dante, who is actually buried in Ravenna. The chapels to the right of the altar hold some of the finest painting in Florence: Giotto's scenes from the life of St Francis in the Bardi Chapel and his frescoes in the Peruzzi Chapel, both from the early 14th century. Look too for Donatello's Annunciation and his wooden crucifix.

The ticket also covers the cloisters and museum. Brunelleschi's Pazzi Chapel, built as the chapter house and completed in the 1470s with glazed terracotta roundels by Luca della Robbia, is a model of calm Renaissance proportion. In the former refectory is Cimabue's Crucifix, badly damaged by the 1966 flood and now a symbol of the city's recovery, with a mark on the wall showing how high the water rose. The leather school behind the church, set up after the war, can be visited too.

Allow around ninety minutes. The basilica is a working church, so cover shoulders and knees, and note that Sunday morning hours are shorter because of services. Tickets can be bought on the official site, and queues are usually shorter in the late afternoon. The church is largely step-free.

The church faces Piazza di Santa Croce, about ten minutes' walk east of Piazza della Signoria. The square is surrounded by cafés and leather shops, and the Sant'Ambrogio market and the Casa Buonarroti are a few minutes further north-east. In the evening the square is a pleasant place to sit after the crowds have gone.