I just visited Florence, a city I really like, for a third time. Here are some recommendations for my friends in Zurich, should they plan a similar trip:
- Buy your train tickets from SBB. I had to pay 278 CHF for a round-trip ticket going through Milan, which takes short of 6 hours. I left early on Friday to arrive in time for lunch and came back on Sunday's late afternoon, to arrive late in the evening.
- For landmarks, I'd recommend not missing the following, in order of importance:
- Duomo and it's Battistero. I've heard that the climb to the tower is well worth it, but I haven't done it myself. I don't find the church that impressive on the inside, but I find it extremely beautiful on the outside.
- Ponte Vecchio. I took a photo of it.
- Basilica di Santa Croce.
- Piazza della Signoria.
- Piazza della Repubblica, on which, by the way, the Edison bookstore —that, with a relatively good offer of books in English in the top-most floor, I find rather charming— is located.
- Supposedly, the Piazzale Michelangelo, has a very nice view of the city. I haven't been there.
- Giardino di Boboli, a large park relatively close to the city center, with nice views of the city.
- I don't have much recommendations in the way of restaurants. We had very good pizzas in Yellow and an OK meal (good albeit pricey) in Paszkowski. The Ora D'Aria restaurant seems potentially good, but you'll probably need a reservation (which we didn't have). Don't forget to have a good ice cream.
- For a hotel, I recommend the Gran Duomo, which I think is well worth its price. The service is excellent, the rooms spacious and the building in perfect shape. If you're considering a room with a view over the Duomo, it won't disappoint you: it looks exactly as in the photos on their website. You can have breakfast in your room right across the street from the Duomo or, as we did, buy a bottle of wine, some hams, cheeses, bread and olives and enjoy a nice dinner.
- In addition to the many gelaterias, Florence seems to have a lot of leather and relatively good stationery shops. You may want to buy stationery or bags here, if you're into that.
- Make reservations for the Galleria degli Uffizi and the Galleria dell'Accademia in their official site. There seem to be many other websites that seem to sell the reservations for a slightly higher price. In summer, having a reservation may save you from having to make long queues (this wasn't an issue when I visited in February, but it certainly was when I visited in both August and October).
- In the Galleria degli Uffizi you'll see very beautiful Renaissance works by painters such as Botticelli, Raffaello and Lippi, for which I'd encourage you to reserve at least 2 hours, possibly 3. You may have a light lunch at the museum's café, overlooking the rooftops.
- In the Galleria dell'Accademia you'll watch mainly Michelangelo's David and his unfinished sculptures. There are also a lot of religious paintings (and a collection of religious art from Russia) and a small yet interesting museum of musical instruments. I find the Uffizi museum a lot more significant than this one, but the David is impressive.
- There's also the potentially interesting Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, telling the history of the construction of the Duomo. You can just buy the tickets for that one on site.
- If your time allows, you'll probably want to visit one of the nearby cities in the Tuscany. I've been to San Gimignano for a day and to Siena for three. I found Siena significantly more charming, so I'd generally recommend that one. Whichever you pick, you'll probably need at least one full day. Another option, which I haven't taken, would be Pisa.
Discussion (2)Last update: 2010-02-22 (Rev 16704)