1 day In Florence
(Please excuse my limited and lower quality photos from 2015/2016 - I will be refreshing them December 2024!)
The Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore (aka The Duomo) - church, baptistry, bell tower, and museum
The iconic duomo in Florence is well worth a visit. Climbing to the top of the dome is a ton of fun and offers great views of the city. The church itself is surprisingly empty inside, but the nearby museum (next on this list of things to do) houses many of the original items that were once in the church. If you enjoy earning your views, I recommend climbing to both the top of the dome, AND the adjacent bell tower. The bell tower offers great views of the church, so it's nice to climb both structures and get two different vantage points.
Museo dell'Opera del Duomo
This museum is often less visited than some of the other more well-known museums in Florence, but it is a wonderful museum that is worth your time (even during a quick day trip!). Admission is included to the museum in the previous sites listed above. One of the highlights of this museum is the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore original baptistry doors. The doors you see at the baptistry are replicas of the original ones housed in this museum.
Galleria d'ell Accademia
Regardless of whether you typically spend your time visiting art museums or not, you should most definitely visit the Galleria d’ell Accademia to see Michelangelo’s David. You can choose how much time you would like to spend exploring the other exhibits in the museum (there are numerous wonderful exhibits to see), but at the very least you should witness the magnitude and ingenuity of Michelangelo’s famous sculpture.
Piazzale Michelangelo
As long as the weather is fair, Piazzale Michelangelo is a wonderful place to end your day and watch the sunset! If you must depart Florence before sunset, it’s still worth the trek to see if you have the time. There are several different routes to the top. If you don’t want to walk, you can take the 12 or 13 bus from city center or take a taxi. If you are open to walking, I recommend taking the backroads and walking up Via Dei Bastioni and Viale Giuseppe Poggi because it’s a less crowded walk with hills instead of climbing up many stairs. It gets quite crowded at Piazzale Michelangelo, but for a good reason. In the summer the sun sets directly over the Arno River, so there is no better view of the city. It’s an absolute must see while in Florence!
SAMPLE ITINERARY:
Spend the morning exploring the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore and then visit the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo afterwards.