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City guide · Italy
Florence has a compact, largely pedestrian historic centre on both sides of the Arno. The Duomo, Piazza della Signoria, Uffizi and Santa Croce form the main north-bank cluster; the Oltrarno begins across the river around Santo Spirito and Palazzo Pitti. Santa Maria Novella station lies northwest of the centre, while hilltop viewpoints and Fiesole require a separate climb or transport leg.
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The Uffizi Gallery is a world-renowned art museum in Florence, housed in a historic building originally constructed as offices for Florentine magistrates. The name derives from the Italian word for offices.
The Galleria dell'Accademia di Firenze is a state museum on Via Ricasoli, ten minutes' walk north of the Duomo, and it exists in its present form because of one statue.
The Boboli Gardens climb the hillside directly behind Pitti Palace and run south along the line of the old city walls as far as Porta Romana.
The Medici Chapels, known locally as Cappelle Medicee, constitute a significant mausoleum complex in Florence.
The Bargello National Museum occupies the Palazzo del Bargello, a medieval fortress palace in central Florence. Built from 1255, it served as the city podesta residence and later as a prison and police headquarters.
Museo Galileo occupies a historic position near the Arno River in Florence, housed in the Palazzo Castellani. The institution operates under its full designation Museo Galileo - Istituto e Museo di Storia della Scienza.
The Museum of San Marco occupies a former Dominican convent in central Florence, Italy. The complex holds significant importance for its architectural history and its association with prominent figures of the Italian Renaissance.
The Brancacci Chapel, known locally as Cappella Brancacci, is a chapel within the church of Santa Maria del Carmine in Florence.
Palazzo Strozzi is a Renaissance palace in central Florence, Italy. Built for the Strozzi family beginning in 1489, it represents one of the finest examples of secular Renaissance architecture in the city.
Museo Novecento is a museum in Florence dedicated to twentieth-century Italian art. It occupies a prominent position in the historic centre, near Piazza Santa Maria Novella.
Museo Bardini, locally known as Museo Stefano Bardini, is a museum in Florence housed in a historic building that once belonged to the antiquarian and collector Stefano Bardini.
Museo Horne is a museum in Florence, Italy, housed in a historic building. It is named after its founder, Herbert Percy Horne, an English art collector and historian who established the institution.
The Salvatore Ferragamo Museum, locally named Museo Salvatore Ferragamo, is a fashion museum in Florence dedicated to the life and work of the renowned Italian shoe designer Salvatore Ferragamo.
The Vasari Corridor is an elevated enclosed passageway in Florence, Italy. Giorgio Vasari designed it in 1565 for Cosimo I de' Medici.
The Hospital of Innocents, or Spedale degli Innocenti, stands as one of Florence's most significant Renaissance buildings. Designed by Filippo Brunelleschi, it opened in 1445 as Europe's first dedicated orphanage.
The House of Dante, or Casa di Dante, stands in Florence as a museum dedicated to the life and work of Dante Alighieri, the medieval poet whose Divine Comedy shaped Italian literature.
Villa Bardini is a historic villa and garden complex in Florence, situated on a hillside with elevated views across the city. The property encompasses a Baroque villa, extensive terraced gardens, and an orchard.
The Museo dell'Opera del Duomo is the storehouse and the explanation of the buildings standing outside its own door.
The Basilica di San Lorenzo stands on its own square a short walk north-west of the Duomo, and the Opera Medicea Laurenziana, the body that runs it, describes it as the oldest cathedral in Florence: the first building raised for…
The Annigoni Museum, known locally as Museo Annigoni, is a museum dedicated to the work of Pietro Annigoni, the renowned Italian portrait painter of the twentieth century.
The Archaeological Museum of Fiesole, locally Museo Civico Archeologico, stands in the hill town of Fiesole overlooking Florence. It occupies a purpose-built structure near the ancient Etruscan and Roman archaeological zone.
The Botanical Garden of Florence, locally named Giardino dei Semplici, is a historic botanical garden in Florence, Tuscany. Established in the sixteenth century, it was originally created for the cultivation of medicinal plants, known as semplici.
Casa museo Rodolfo Siviero is a house museum in Florence dedicated to Rodolfo Siviero, an art historian and secret agent who recovered Italian artworks looted during World War II.
The Garden of Archimedes, locally known as Giardino di Archimede - Un Museo per la Matematica, is a mathematics museum located in Florence, Tuscany.
The Jewish Museum of Florence, known locally as Museo Ebraico di Firenze, is a cultural institution located in the city of Florence, Tuscany.
The Marino Marini Museum occupies the deconsecrated Chiesa di San Pancrazio in central Florence. It is dedicated to the work of Marino Marini, the twentieth-century Italian sculptor and painter.
The Museo Bellini, locally known as Collezione Luigi Bellini, is a museum in Florence housing the private collection of the Bellini family. It displays artworks and antiquities accumulated over generations by this prominent dynasty of Florentine art dealers and collectors.
The Museo dell'Opera di Santa Croce is a museum complex integrated with the Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence. It occupies former monastic spaces including the refectory and other areas adjacent to the famous Franciscan church.
The Museo della Misericordia is a museum in Florence dedicated to the history of the Venerabile Arciconfraternita della Misericordia, one of the oldest charitable institutions in the city.
The Museo Fiorentino di Preistoria is a Florence museum dedicated to prehistoric studies. Named after Paolo Graziosi, a significant figure in Italian prehistoric archaeology, it preserves and presents materials related to early human history.
Museo Primo Conti is a museum in Florence dedicated to the work of Italian painter Primo Conti, a figure associated with the Futurist movement. Housed in a historic building, the institution preserves and displays the artist's personal collection.
Museo Bandini, known in English as Museum Bandini, is a museum located in Florence, Tuscany. The institution holds collections that contribute to the city's rich cultural landscape.
The Museum of Orsanmichele occupies a distinctive building in Florence's historic centre, originally constructed as a grain market in the late thirteenth century before conversion to a church.
The Museum of the Last Supper of Andrea del Sarto, locally known as Cenacolo Andrea del Sarto, is a museum in Florence dedicated to preserving and displaying Andrea del Sarto's renowned Last Supper fresco.
The National Archaeological Museum of Florence, locally known as Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Firenze, stands as one of Italy's principal archaeological institutions. Housed in the Palazzo della Crocetta, the museum preserves extensive collections spanning Etruscan, Roman, Greek, and Egyptian civilizations.
The Officina di Santa Maria Novella is a historic pharmacy and perfume workshop in Florence, operating since the 17th century. Founded by Dominican friars, it represents one of the oldest apothecary establishments in continuous operation.
The Pazzi Chapel, locally known as Cappella de' Pazzi, stands as a significant Renaissance religious structure in Florence. Commissioned by the Pazzi family, prominent Florentine bankers, this chapel represents a key architectural work of the early Renaissance period.
The Salvatore Romano Foundation is a museum institution in Florence, Italy, established to preserve and display the art collection assembled by Salvatore Romano.
San Sebastiano de' Bini, known locally as Oratorio di San Sebastiano de' Bini, is a religious oratory in Florence, Tuscany.
Sant'Alessandro, known locally as Basilica di Sant'Alessandro, is a religious building in Florence, Tuscany. It stands as part of the city's extensive ecclesiastical heritage, contributing to Florence's reputation as a center of Renaissance and historical architecture.
Santo Stefano al Ponte is a historic church in Florence, Italy, situated near the Ponte Vecchio. Its local name is Chiesa di Santo Stefano al Ponte.
La Specola is the zoological museum of the Università di Firenze, housed in a historic building in Florence. Its name derives from the astronomical observatory once located here.
Villa Carducci di Legnaia, locally known as Villa Pandolfini Carducci, is a historic villa in Florence's western periphery. The property belongs to the distinguished Pandolfini and Carducci family lineages, reflecting the layered aristocratic heritage typical of Florentine villa culture.
Villa Corsini in Castello is a historic villa located in the Castello area of Florence, Tuscany.
Villa Le Balze is a historic villa with gardens located in Fiesole, a hill town overlooking Florence in Tuscany, Italy. The property sits on steep terrain, with balze meaning cliffs or crags in Italian, referencing its dramatic hillside position.
The Galleria Rinaldo Carnielo is a museum in Florence dedicated to the works of Rinaldo Carnielo, an Italian sculptor active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Giardino delle Scuderie Reali e Edificio delle Pagliere is a historic garden complex with associated buildings in Florence, Tuscany. The site connects to the city's royal stables heritage, with scuderie meaning stables and pagliere referring to straw-storage structures.
The Gucci Museum is a fashion museum in Florence dedicated to the history of the Italian luxury house Gucci. Located in the historic centre, it occupies the medieval Palazzo della Mercanzia.
Museo de' Medici is a museum in Florence dedicated to the history and legacy of the Medici family, one of the most influential dynasties in Renaissance Italy.
Museo del Calcio is a museum in Florence dedicated to the history of Italian football. The institution preserves and displays artifacts, documents, and memorabilia chronicling the development of calcio in Italy.
Museo di Santa Maria Novella is a museum and former Dominican convent complex attached to the Basilica of Santa Maria Novella in central Florence.
Museo Stibbert is a museum in Florence, Italy. It was founded by Frederick Stibbert, a British-born collector who inherited substantial wealth and dedicated his life to amassing art, armour, and decorative objects from across the world.
Palazzo Davanzati is a historic palace in Florence, Italy, that now functions as a museum dedicated to medieval and Renaissance domestic life.
Palazzo dell'Arte della Lana is a historic palace in Florence, Italy, associated with the Wool Merchants' Guild, one of the city's most powerful medieval trade associations.
Villa Galileo is a historic residence in Florence associated with the renowned astronomer Galileo Galilei. The villa stands as a significant cultural landmark within the city's rich heritage landscape.
Source: OpenStreetMap contributors, Wikidata ·
The cathedral is the clearest central landmark. Piazza della Signoria and the Uffizi lie south toward the Arno, Santa Croce lies east, and Santa Maria Novella lies west near the main station. Cross Ponte Vecchio for the Oltrarno, Palazzo Pitti and the Boboli Gardens. Piazzale Michelangelo sits above the river and should be treated as a separate uphill destination rather than part of a flat centre walk.
Checked 2026-08-26
Walk for most journeys inside the historic centre. Visit Tuscany describes Florence as relatively small and largely pedestrianised, with buses and trams serving places beyond the walking core. The tram also connects selected outer districts and the airport corridor. Restricted traffic zones make driving impractical for many visitors, so use public transport for outlying stops and keep central days on foot.
Checked 2026-08-26
A fixed duration is not recorded. Plan by clusters: the cathedral and civic centre, Santa Croce, Santa Maria Novella, the Oltrarno and any hilltop or day-trip destination.
Yes. The historic centre is compact and largely pedestrianised. Most major central sights can be linked on foot, while outer districts and uphill destinations may need transport.
The Oltrarno contains Palazzo Pitti, the Boboli Gardens and Santo Spirito. Reach it across the central bridges and treat it as a separate neighbourhood cluster.
Yes. Florence uses buses and a tram network for journeys outside the pedestrian core, including selected outer districts and the airport corridor.
Public transport and walking are usually more practical. The historic centre has restricted traffic areas, narrow streets and a layout designed for short pedestrian journeys.
Set your days, your pace and the hours you actually want to be out. The planner works around closing days and travel time, and leaves room to eat.
