Attraction
Uffizi Gallery
Florence's great picture gallery, built by Vasari for Cosimo I de' Medici, with Botticelli, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, Titian and Caravaggio.
Most of the things to do in Florence are packed into a compact historic centre that can be crossed on foot in half an hour. The cradle of the Renaissance, it holds Brunelleschi's dome, Michelangelo's David, the Uffizi's paintings and the Palazzo Vecchio within a few streets of each other, and the whole centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. North of the Arno lie the Duomo, San Lorenzo and Santa Croce; across the river, the Oltrarno has the Palazzo Pitti, the Boboli Gardens, artisan workshops and the neighbourhood squares of Santo Spirito and San Frediano.
Food is simple and seasonal: bistecca alla fiorentina, ribollita, pappa al pomodoro, lampredotto sandwiches from street stalls and Chianti from the surrounding hills, alongside a handful of acclaimed fine-dining rooms. Evenings centre on wine bars, aperitivo and the city's own Negroni. Three days covers the main museums and churches; four or five allows for the hills of Fiesole or San Miniato and a day trip to Siena, Pisa or the Chianti countryside.
Attraction
Florence's great picture gallery, built by Vasari for Cosimo I de' Medici, with Botticelli, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, Titian and Caravaggio.
Attraction
Santa Maria del Fiore, with Brunelleschi's 15th-century brick dome, Giotto's bell tower and the Baptistery, the religious heart of Florence.
Attraction
The museum built around Michelangelo's David, displayed here since 1873, with his unfinished Prisoners, Florentine paintings and a musical instrument collection.
Attraction
Florence's town hall since the Middle Ages, with Vasari's Hall of the Five Hundred, Medici apartments, a secret-room tour and a climbable 94-metre tower.
Attraction
Florence's medieval bridge over the Arno, rebuilt in 1345, lined with jewellers' shops and crossed above by the Medici's Vasari Corridor.
Attraction
The vast Oltrarno palace of the Medici grand dukes, housing the Palatine Gallery, Royal Apartments, Gallery of Modern Art, Treasury and Museum of Fashion.
Café
Florence's oldest café, founded in 1733 by the Swiss Gilli family and on Piazza della Repubblica since the early 20th century, with its original Belle Époque…
Café
A historic chocolate café on Piazza della Signoria, known for its thick hot chocolate and a terrace facing the Palazzo Vecchio.
Café
The Florence specialty coffee roaster founded in 2013, serving single-origin filter coffee, espresso and brunch on Via dei Neri near the Uffizi.
Café
A café, bistro, florist and design boutique near San Lorenzo, open daily from breakfast to late night in a series of airy, plant-filled rooms.
Café
A family gelateria near Santa Croce whose story goes back to a dairy opened in 1929, known for its coffee affogato and additive-free gelato.
Café
A small Via de' Tornabuoni bar founded in 1885, famous for truffle panini served with a glass of Tuscan wine in a historic interior.
Hotel
A five-star hotel in two Renaissance palaces set in one of Florence's largest private gardens, with a Michelin-starred restaurant, spa and outdoor pool.
Hotel
A five-star Ferragamo family hotel on the Arno beside the Ponte Vecchio, with river-view rooms, a 20th-century art collection and a Michelin-starred restaurant.
Hotel
A five-star hotel in a riverside palace on Piazza Ognissanti, traditionally attributed to Brunelleschi, with the Winter Garden restaurant and bar.
Hotel
A central hotel built around the Pagliazza, one of Florence's oldest standing towers, with an osteria, a bar in the tower and suites with rooftop views.
Hotel
A boutique hotel on Via de' Martelli, about 100 metres from the Duomo, with spacious rooms, a private spa for couples and a lounge bar.
Hotel
A family-run three-star hotel on Via Porta Rossa, beside the Palazzo Davanzati, a few minutes from the Uffizi, the Duomo and the Ponte Vecchio.
Bar
A cocktail bar and restaurant in a medieval building near Santa Croce, ranked among the world's 50 best bars, with inventive low-waste drinks.
Bar
The revived historic bar linked to the birth of the Negroni in 1919, reopened in 2023 on Via della Spada with a Belle Époque-style interior.
Bar
A seventh-floor rooftop bar at the Gallery Hotel Art beside the Ponte Vecchio, with two terraces looking across to the Duomo and Palazzo Vecchio.
Bar
The rooftop terrace of the four-star Hotel Cavour, set in a 13th-century palace, with close-up views of Brunelleschi's dome and the city centre.
Bar
An informal San Frediano cocktail bar run by bartenders Neri Fantechi and Julian Biondi, known for playful twists on classics and blackboard specials.
Bar
A small Oltrarno enoteca just over the Ponte Vecchio, pouring wines from small Italian producers with warm crostoni, cheeses and cured meats.
Restaurant
Florence's three-Michelin-star dining room, opened in 1972 by Giorgio Pinchiorri and Annie Féolde, famous for its formal service and extraordinary wine cellar.
Restaurant
Massimo Bottura's creative restaurant inside the Gucci Garden on Piazza della Signoria, open since 2018, with a Michelin star and playful seasonal menus.
Restaurant
Chef Marco Stabile's contemporary Tuscan restaurant on a lane behind the Uffizi, with an open kitchen, seasonal tasting menus and a strong wine list.
Restaurant
A relaxed Oltrarno restaurant serving generous, modern takes on Tuscan classics such as ribollita and roast pigeon, open for lunch and dinner every day.
Restaurant
A narrow Florentine trattoria open since 1869, known for chicken cooked in butter, bistecca and a meringue cake, best booked well ahead.
Restaurant
A family-run neighbourhood trattoria just outside Porta San Frediano since 1956, serving old Florentine home cooking from a daily menu at modest prices.
Thing to do
The 1869 hilltop terrace above San Niccolò with a bronze David and the classic panorama of the Duomo, the Arno bridges and the Palazzo Vecchio.
Thing to do
A Romanesque basilica begun in 1013 on one of the highest points of Florence, with a marble facade, mosaics and a quieter view than Piazzale Michelangelo.
Thing to do
Mengoni's 1874 iron and glass market in San Lorenzo, with traditional butchers and grocers downstairs and a food hall of artisan counters upstairs.
Thing to do
A neighbourhood market opened in 1873 east of Santa Croce, where Florentines buy fruit, vegetables, meat and cheese each morning.
Thing to do
The Dominican friars' pharmacy that opened to the public in 1612, now a perfumery with frescoed rooms, antique apothecary jars and its Acqua della Regina.
Tour operator
A Florence tour company founded in 1996, known for its Original Florence Walk, skip-the-line Uffizi and Accademia tours and after-hours museum visits.
Tour operator
A licensed Florence tour operator with a central office near Orsanmichele, running walking tours, cooking classes, bike and Vespa tours and Tuscany day trips.
Tour operator
A food and wine tour company founded by Coral Sisk, offering small-group Florence food tours, aperitivo tours, cooking classes and Tuscan wine trips.
Tour operator
A Florence-based cycling company running guided and self-guided bike and e-bike tours into the Florentine hills, Chianti and towards Siena.
Tour operator
An Oltrarno cooking school near the Palazzo Pitti offering hands-on classes in handmade pasta, pizza and gelato and Florentine dinners with professional chefs.
Three days covers the Duomo, the Uffizi, the Accademia, the Palazzo Vecchio and the Oltrarno; four or five days allows time for smaller museums and a day trip to Siena, Pisa or Chianti
The Duomo and Piazza della Signoria area is best for first-time visitors, Santa Maria Novella is handy for the station, Santa Croce has plenty of restaurants, and the Oltrarno is quieter and more local in feel
From Florence Airport the T2 tram runs to the Unità stop next to Santa Maria Novella station in about 20 minutes, and taxis are available; from Pisa Airport take the Pisa Mover to Pisa Centrale and a regional train to Florence
Florence is moderately expensive, especially for central hotels in spring and summer, but street food, trattoria lunches, free churches and walking around the centre keep daily costs down; a tourist tax is charged per night on top of hotel rates
Florence is generally safe, including at night in the centre; the main risk is pickpocketing in crowded places such as the Ponte Vecchio, the station and busy buses, so keep bags closed and valuables out of sight