Florence Recommendations
Everything is walkable. We enjoyed the food and ambiance on the other side of the river away from many of the tourists. Good article I wish I had read before our trip.
Restaurants
- Regina Bistecca – allegedly best Steak Florentine
- Trattoria Dall’Oste – chain known for steak. There are tons of locations but we ended up at the Trattoria Dall’Oste – Oricellari one because it had openings.
- Perché no!…
- Gelateria dei Neri – best gelato ever. Get the caramel dei neri
- All’Antico Vinaio – massive sandwiches, there are a few locations next to eachother so you wait in a long ass line and they funnel you into one
- La Giostra – recommendation of amazing place to eat in Florence
- Trattoria del Pennello
- Ristorante Sabatini
- Trattoria Sabatino – awesome spot, locals love, super simple but delicious
- Gustapizza – supposed to be good but was closed when we went by
- Antica Pizzeria Reginè Firenze – best pizza we had in Italy
- Osteria Santo Spirito – waited in line, sat outside in a park, very cool and good pasta
- Trattoria Dell’Orto – ate here the first night, so good and not touristy
- La Divina Pizza
- Semel Street Food – quick
- Il Palagio – fancy
- L’antica pizzeria da Michele Firenze – recommended by our guide near the Duomo. Pretty good pizza!
- Festival del Gelato
- I Fratellini
- Perseus
- Trattoria Baldini
- Base V Juicery – popped in for a quick green juice on the go. Very refreshing and I’m sure our cells needed it
Bars
- Mayday Club – unique cocktails and decor. Looks like someone who grew up in New Orleans washed up in Florence and opened a bar.
- Caffe Concerto Paszkowski – live music, expensive drinks. Open til 1am
Things to do/see
- Piazza della Repubblica – carousel, cool spot
- Duomo – long ass line to get in. not worth it. Our guide told us to get a ticket to Crypt of Santa Reparata as a way of getting inside.
- I wish we had bought the BRUNELLESCHI PASS €30 which lets you go into the Giotto’s Bell Tower, Baptistery and Brunelleschi’s Dome of the Duomo. Pick date and time to show up so apparently no waiting in lines.
- Brunelleschi’s Dome: Visitors are required to climb 463 steps
- Giotto’s Bell Tower: ascent consists on foot along a stairway of 414 steps
- The North Terrace: not usually open to the public unless you join a guided tour which must be pre-booked in advance, and offers panoramic views across Florence as well as unobstructed views of the Dome
- I wish we had bought the BRUNELLESCHI PASS €30 which lets you go into the Giotto’s Bell Tower, Baptistery and Brunelleschi’s Dome of the Duomo. Pick date and time to show up so apparently no waiting in lines.
- Piazza Santa Maria Novella
- Gucci Garden – Gucci museum/exhibit. Pretty cool actually.
- Pitti Palace – owned by the Medici family. The gardens extend far back and you can get some beautiful views of the countryside in some areas of the garden. It was closed the day we walked by it.
- Palazzo Vecchio – tons of cool statues and the belltower which you can buy tickets to go to the top of and see amazing views of Florence (we missed the time cutoff but would have been cool)
- Also the Museo di Palazzo Vecchio
- Piazza della Signoria – right by the Palazzo Vecchio
- Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore
- Piazzale Michelangelo – uphill/steps, another statue of David. Great views of the city. Walk through the Rose Garden to get up or down. There’s also a church nearby you can do first. I think it’s San Salvatore al Monte.
- Ponte Vecchio – oldest bridge in Florence because it wasn’t bombed during WWII. super crowded. Lots of gold/jewerly shops along it.
- Accademia Gallery Museum – statue of David. Go to the ticket kiosk in the city to buy tickets. If you buy online you’ll have to wait in a line to exchange your voucher for tickets, then wait in line to get in. so glad we had a tour guide with us for this.
- Apparently the kiosk is in Via dei Calzaiuoli. walk south from the Duomo down Via dei Calzaiuoli “about 3 blocks.” The ticket booth is on the right, kind of built into the back of the Orsanmichele church (you’ll see ornamental niches in the walls nearby). “I believe it was the only window at that side,” says Ray. “It was very non-descript and no signs, just a guy sitting at the window at a counter with a computer.”
- Uffizi Gallery – cool museum worth seeing. We went at 4pm and there was no line to buy tickets or get in. I had to put my backpack in a locker and take the key with me but that was also super easy. I could see it getting crowded midday tho. Tons of tourists milling about around it. A tourguide may have been nice for context but there are signs inside that provide some history in English.
- Strozzi Palace – walk through it to see a cool courtyard and modern art installation
- Basilica of Santa Croce
- Contempo Records – we stumbled in here and they had a huge selection of records, CDs and tapes.
Shopping
- BENHEART – leather goods
- Gucci
- Salvadore Ferragamo also has a museum
- Dimitri Villoresi bags – closed when we went by
- Yara Leather Fashions – bought a Leather jacket at a shop on dia dei Leoni behind the Palazza Vecchio, I think this was it
- Dolce Vita Vintage Lab
- Fix You Firenze
- Gucci outlet – 30 min drive outside of Florence but would be cool to check out. Also has Prada and other highend stores