Is Florence Worth Visiting?

What you get and what it takes

The city's history goes back to its days as a Roman city in 59 BC. One visitor scored history and architecture 10 out of 10, things to do 9 out of 10 and the food and cafe scene 8 out of 10. Value for money and transport each got 7 out of 10. The overall score was 86 percent.

The cost is effort. A writer who spent a month living in Florence says you cannot see everything, and that trying to is where people go wrong.

The honest downside

Crowds are the real cost. Repeat visitors on a travel forum report streets so packed that walking on a sidewalk is impossible without being bumped, even in fall. One traveller found Florence in May more crowded than Cinque Terre, Venice or Lake Como.

Match your type to the tour that fixes the problem

Art lovers get the Uffizi and the Accademia within a short walk. History lovers get a city that runs from Roman times to the Renaissance. Food and wine travellers get truffles, bistecca alla Fiorentina and Tuscan reds, plus lampredotto, which you will either love or leave.

When Florence is the wrong fit

If crowds ruin a day for you, the headline sights will test you. The Accademia is tiny and crowded, and at the Uffizi you accept the crowd as part of the exhibit. Dome tickets have sold out for a traveller who tried to book a month in advance.

What to do instead

Sleep outside the city. One forum contributor has stayed outside Florence since 1989 and comes in for occasional day trips, which keeps the busiest hours short. Or trade the museums for the countryside on the Private Chianti Safari: Off Road Tuscany Wine Tour with Lunch from Florence, which spends 8 hours in the Tuscan hills with lunch.

A Florence without galleries

Eat your way through the centre. Truffles, bistecca alla Fiorentina and Tuscan reds headline the table, and one visitor rated the food and cafe scene 8 out of 10. Take the views from Piazzale Michelangelo. The Private Vespa Sidecar Tour of Florence with Panoramic Views covers the panoramic spots in 1.5 hours.

The streets cost nothing. The Duomo is prettier outside than inside, so the facade alone is worth the walk. In the evening, Santo Spirito, jazz clubs and the Teatro della Pergola fill the hours.

What guided time costs

The prices below come from the tour listings. Most are per person, and the Vespa sidecar tour is priced per group. Every one offers free cancellation up to 24h before the start.

Where the time goes

Queues and sold-out slots eat whole mornings without bookings. The fix is to spend on fewer, deeper experiences. The writer who lived in Florence for a month was very satisfied on a first trip with the Uffizi and David alone.

Plan from the shortlist

The writer who lived in Florence for a month says you cannot see everything, and that trying to is where people go wrong. On a first trip the same writer saw only the Uffizi and Michelangelo's David and was very satisfied with those two alone.

Count the hours. A guided Uffizi visit takes 3 hours and the Accademia takes 1 hour, so both fit in one day. The Duomo complex adds 2 hours. A Chianti day takes 8 hours on its own, so add a separate day if wine country is on the list.

Making one day count

Book the Uffizi for the morning on the Uffizi Gallery Private Tour, a 3-hour visit. The Uffizi opens Tuesday to Sunday from 8.15 am to 6.30 pm and is closed on Mondays, so a Monday day trip needs a different plan. See David in the afternoon on the 1-hour DAVID and Accademia Gallery Private Tour. Walk between them, because the centre is best explored on foot.

If you climb once, pick Giotto's bell tower over the dome, because the dome is then in your view. What one day cannot absorb is spontaneity. Without reservations you lose hours in queues or miss the big sights.

What the visitors say

Forum regulars describe the number of visitors as absolutely overwhelming and say the genuine Italian experience has been lost.

A plan for the crowds

Pick the season. A forum regular found October tolerable but would never visit in high season, and another recalls March and April as sane. Pick the hour.

Book the first slots of the day, when the Uffizi opens at 8.15 am, and spend the busiest midday hours away from the big sights. Pick the route. Admire Ponte Vecchio from Ponte Santa Trinita, climb Giotto's bell tower and walk the Santo Spirito side of the river.

Book before you travel

Dome tickets have sold out before a traveller could book, and slots booked a month ahead were still hard to get. The Uffizi is closed on Mondays, 1 January and 25 December, and its ticket office closes at 5.30 pm. Build the plan around those days.

Driving, kids and the quieter months

Leave the car outside the city. Parking is a major con for road trippers, and the centre is best explored on foot. Bring the kids.

Florence's museums are well kept, well facilitated and kid friendly, and the 1-hour DAVID and Accademia Gallery Private Tour suits short attention spans. Come outside high season. October was tolerable for a forum regular.

Scale against focus

Rome is about scale and layers of history. Venice is about atmosphere. Florence is focused on the Renaissance and its legacy, in a compact centre with picturesque streets you can cross on foot.

Start with private tours in florence italy to see the centre with a licenced guide.