Welcome to Florence!
Florence is one of the most beautiful and visited cities in the world and joining our tours will give you the
chance to enjoy more the beauty of its monuments and of its treasures, through the knowledge of the
families who made it great during the Renaissance, such as the Medici.
Our guides will show you the hidden gems of the city and they will tell you about the anecdotes that only
those who live here know. If you join our tours, our guides will also give you pieces of advice about
authentic restaurants and shops and of course about how to avoid tourist traps! Along the way we will also
stop at some authentic local shops that will offer you small bites of typical Florentine food.
Don't miss the chance to visit Florence with the eyes of a local!
We have decided to realize two different tours: one in the morning and the other in the afternoon, only to
give you the chance to enjoy Florence in all its beauty. We are sure that if you do both, you won't see the
time to come back to Florence again just to join our third tour (starting in March 2020), which visits the Oltrarno, one of the most popular and fascinating areas of Florence, where there are monuments,
gardens, museums and monumental buildings unique in the world and the workshops of artisans, goldsmiths and restaurateurs that the they become the most authentic area of Florence.
SIGNORIA AND SANTA CROCE
The morning Walking Tour "SIGNORIA AND SANTA CROCE" starts at Piazza Santa Maria Novella; the tour will be in English.
After a short introduction we will talk about the history of Florence in front of the Church of Santa Maria
Novella and then we will reach Piazza Antinori.
We will walk through via Tornabuoni, where among the luxurious shops you can admire some 19th-
century buildings, that date back to when Florence was the capital of Italy.
We will see then Palazzo Strozzi, one of the finest Renaissance buildings, built upon the commission of
Filippo Strozzi, who belonged to one of the richest Florentine merchant families - the Strozzi - enemies of
the Medici.
We will reach piazza della Repubblica, that was the site of the local market during the Roman Empire, but
it was entirely renovated in the 19th-century.
Walking through via Calzaiuoli we will reach the Church of Orsanmichele, built in 1337 as wheat market
and then converted into a church and used as a chapel of the main Florentine guilds.
In piazza del Mercato Nuovo, a cover market, we will see the famous Fontana del Porcellino, (if you rub its
nose, you will come back to Florence!).
Therefore, we will reach Piazza della Signoria, the best place to show you the power of the Florentine
Republic. Here we will talk about the Palazzo Vecchio, the site of the local government, and the famous
open-air gallery of sculptures: the Loggia dei Lanzi.
After this, we will move to Piazza S. Firenze and we will walk through via dei Neri where we will stop in
two little local shops for small bites of typical Florentine food.
At the end we will reach Piazza Santa Croce where we will talk about the Basilica di Santa Croce and the
marble statue of Dante, the father of Italian language. The tour ends here.
S. Maria Novella - Piazza Antinori - via Tornabuoni -Palazzo Strozzi - Piazza della Repubblica - Orsanmichele - Piazza del Mercato Nuovo - Piazza della Signoria (Palazzo Vecchio, Loggia dei Lanzi, Museo degli Uffizi) - via dei Neri (Free tasting of typical dishes) - Piazza Santa Croce.
Length: 2,5 hours.
10:30 AM Piazza Santa Maria Novella - SIGNORIA AND SANTA CROCE
Avalaible every day of the year!
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DUOMO AND PONTE VECCHIO
Our walking tour "DUOMO AND PONTE VECCHIO" starts at piazza S. Maria Novella; the tour will be in English.
After a short introduction we will talk about the history of Florence in front of the Church of Santa Maria Novella, and then we will reach the Basilica di San Lorenzo, one of the oldest and most important churches of the city where also Brunelleschi and Michelangelo had worked. In the background of the Basilica you can admire the dome of the Cappella dei Principi, erected at the end of the 16th-century to host the Medici’s crypt.
Then we will reach Palazzo Medici Riccardi that is considered the place where Renaissance took place. This building has been the first place where the Medici family lived (Cosimo il Vecchio, Lorenzo il Magnifico…)
and where artists such as Donatello, Michelangelo, Paolo Uccello, Benozzo Gozzoli and Botticelli have worked.
After this we will go to Piazza del Duomo, the heart of Florence, dominated by the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore, Giotto’s Campanile and the Battistero of San Giovanni.
Through Via del Proconsolo, we will reach Piazza San Firenze and we will stop in front of the Museo del Bargello, one of the main museums of the city (and of the world!) where you will find pieces of art made
by artists such as Donatello, Ghiberti, Cellini, Giambologna and many other important sculptors.
We will walk through via dei Leoni and via de’ Neri, where we will stop in two little local shops for small bites of typical florentine food.
The tour will move toward the Arno river where our guides will tell you something about the Ponte Vecchio, the Corridoio Vasariano and the Uffizi museum, that are, together with the beautiful Piazza della
Signoria, at 5 minutes walking from the end of the tour.
The tour will finish in front of the Museo Galileo in a place from where you will be able to admire the amazing Basilica di S. Miniato.
S.Maria Novella - Cappelle Medicee - Basilica di San Lorenzo - Palazzo Medici Riccardi - Duomo - Cathedral - Battistero - Campanile di Giotto - via del Proconsolo - Piazza S. Firenze - via dei Leoni - via dei Neri (taste of typical food) - Museo Galileo (Uffizi, Ponte Vecchio, Basilica di S. Miniato).
Lenght: 2,5 hours.
Afternoon Piazza Santa Maria Novella - DUOMO AND PONTE VECCHIO
Avalaible from 1st of October to 31st of March
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OLTRARNO and PITTI
Our walking tour OLTRARNO and PITTI begins in the middle of Piazza Santa Maria Novella; The tour will be guided in English.
We will talk about the history of Florence, right in front of the Church of Santa Maria Novella and then through Via del Moro, we will arrive at Piazza Goldoni, in front of the Arno river.
Then we will return to the elegant via Tornabuoni, through Via della Vigna nuova and we’ll stop in front of the Palazzo Strozzi, one of the most beautiful Italian Renaissance buildings, built by Filippo Strozzi; a rich merchant belonging to one of the richest families in Florence, by tradition hostile to the Medici faction.
In Via Tornabuoni, among the luxurious shops you can admire some examples of buildings from the 19th century, when Florence was the capital of Italy.
Then we will find the Piazza Santa Trinita and we’ll cross the Ponte Santa Trinita, a Renaissance bridge with a beautiful view of the Ponte Vecchio.
We will reach the other side of Florence, called Oltrarno, one of the most fascinating areas of Florence, where there are monuments, gardens, museums and monumental buildings unique in the world and shops of artisans, goldsmiths, restaurateurs who turn the Oltrarno in the area of Florence where the most authentic people of Florence still live.
Then we will arrive at Piazza della Passera, a hidden jewel, full of craft shops, gastronomic delights and a rich history.
Through via Toscanella, a narrow and hidden street with beautiful murals, we will arrive at Piazza Pitti, where it will be possible to observe the monumental Pitti Palace, a fortified building on a small hill.
Last part of the tour: through via Guicciardini, we will arrive at Ponte Vecchio, where the tour will end.
Then you can decide whether to cross the bridge and walk towards Piazza della Signoria or return to the lively nightlife in Oltrarno.
Piazza Santa Maria Novella - via del Moro -Piazza Goldoni - via della Vigna nuova - Palazzo Strozzi - via Tornabuoni - Piazza
Santa Trinita - Ponte Santa Trinita - Oltrarno -Piazza della Passera - via Toscanella -Piazza Pitti - Palazzo Pitti - Ponte Vecchio.
Duration of the tour: around 2 hours
Evening Piazza Santa Maria Novella - OLTRARNO AND PITTI
Avalaible from 1st of April to 31st of October
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