Discovering Florence.

Florence on this side of the Arno and Florence on the Arno.

📌Florence on this side of the Arno

Don't be "hurry"...there's a lot to see...trust me!

Ready to walk?

If you want to get an idea of how beautiful the historic center, the city and the hills surrounding Florence are, our advice is to start from a panoramic point. You are lucky because you are staying here and can start from the campsite. The first move? Go and discover our terrace! Start from the Reception, quickly walk down the road between the ancient walls of Fiesole and arrive in Piazza Mino from Fiesole. Buy the ticket, stamp it on bus 7.

Path to follow step by step.

At the end of our private road, go right onto Via Corsica and follow it all the way to the fork and go left, via Poeti, via Mari, via di Monte Ceceri, via Verdi and it is right here that a fabulous view of Florence opens up from above: a marvel!! You can see the entire center and the Arno river that divides the city and enters the hills. At the end you arrive in Piazza Mino from Fiesole.

In Fiesole take bus 7 to Florence, grab a seat on the left side to get unique views of the hill and the city. Get off at Piazza della Libertà and take tram T2 and the stop will be in Piazza San Marco, which houses the church, the convent and the museum of San Marco which houses the largest collection in the world of Renaissance works by Beato Angelico, in Via Ricasoli a few steps away is the Galleria Dell'Accademia with Michelangelo's David, to be booked well in advance. I recommend reaching Piazza Duomo from Piazza SS Annunziata. In this square, put your back to the church, on the left is the Palazzo degli Innocenti, up above after the loggia there is "the window always open" no one can close it. Try to count the bees on the statue of Ferdinando I de Medici, it's impossible. Take Via dei Servi where you will begin to "understand" the city. You will arrive at the Duomo and you will not be able to take your eyes off this exceptional monument.

Take a tour around the cathedral, it will be intoxicating, stop and you will discover many things, put your nose up and discover the dome. The wonderful innovation brought by Brunelleschi was to vault it without the use of supporting frameworks, no wooden structure could have supported that weight. We Florentines always say "even today we don't know how he was able to do it." (we don't know how he was able to do it).

Look carefully… on the facade there is a bull’s head. Do you want to know more? The head is a tribute to the animals that helped transport the materials for the construction, but legend has it: it speaks of a betrayal. In via Ricasoli there lived a tailor who was very jealous of his wife who instead was happy with a master builder, the tailor discovered the affair and reported them both. The master builder quick quick (fast quick) placed the head of the bovine facing the tailor’s windows to remind him that he was a betrayed husband.

From here you go directly to Piazza della Signoria (the hub of Florentine political life), a beautiful open-air museum, the Loggia dei Lanzi, the Palazzo Vecchio and the statue of the fountain of Neptune by Ammannati, known by the Florentines as the “Biancone”, built with the precious Carrara marble, it is the whitest statue of all.

Continue towards the Ponte Vecchio passing by the Uffizi... needless to say what a museum it is!!! News, after years of closure the Vasari Corridor reopens, it will take you to walk over the Ponte Vecchio so as to reach the other side of the Arno, the Boboli Gardens and Palazzo Pitti.

Look at Florence from the Ponte Vecchio, the golden bridge that connects this side of the Arno to the Diladdarno. You will see Piazzale Michelangelo, the church of San Miniato, the other bridges and much more and know that the lungarni are full of fascinating buildings with many stories and characteristics: I am talking about the church of S. Iacopo Sopr'Arno for the irreverent Florentines it is called the church with the bottom in the Arno or the church that has the apse that rests on the architectural protuberances that support it and make it protrude over the river.

If you are still in the center eat a homemade ice cream, have an aperitif and wait for the sunset because in the dark the city is different and very beautiful! On Lungarno Acciaioli you can take fantastic photos with really particular lights and shadows.

Wait…….we still have some tips for you….work in progress

PITTI SQUARE

• It is dominated by the facade of the majestic Pitti Palace of fifteenth-century origin, which bears the name of its first owner, Luca Pitti, a Florentine banker. Later purchased by Cosimo I de' Medici, it was also the residence of the Habsburg-Lorraine and Savoy dynasties. Home to numerous museums (including: the Treasury of the Grand Dukes, the Palatine Gallery, the Royal Apartments, the Gallery of Modern Art and the Museum of Fashion and Costume) and enriched by a wonderful park, the Boboli Gardens, one of the greatest examples of an Italian garden. Inside, among the various works, you can admire the Roman amphitheater with the Egyptian obelisk in the center, the Buontalenti Grotto, large fountains, such as that of Neptune and the Ocean and the lemon house.

SANTA MARIA NOVELLA SQUARE

• The large square houses the Basilica of Santa Maria Novella. The elegant facade in white and green marble is in typical Renaissance style. Inside are extraordinary masterpieces, including the Trinity by Masaccio, the frescoes by Ghirlandaio in the Tornabuoni Chapel, the Crucifix by Giotto and the Crucifix by Brunelleschi.

SAN LORENZO SQUARE

• The Basilica of San Lorenzo is the first Florentine cathedral, consecrated by Saint Ambrose in 393 AD and rebuilt by Filippo Brunelleschi in the 15th century. Michelangelo's project for the façade was never realized and is still unfinished today. Inside: the Cloisters, the Treasure of San Lorenzo, the underground, the chapter archive and the Old Sacristy.

• The Medici Chapels, the burial place of many members of the Medici family, include Michelangelo's New Sacristy and the Chapel of the Princes. In the New Sacristy, note the tomb of Giuliano which rests under the sculptures of Day and Night and the tomb of Lorenzo which rests under the sculptures of Dawn and Dusk both made by Michelangelo.

• The Laurentian Library, designed by Michelangelo and completed by Vasari and Ammannati, was commissioned by the Medici family to house their treasure of papyrus, manuscripts and volumes.

SANTA CROCE SQUARE

• The Basilica of Santa Croce, in Gothic style, is one of the largest Franciscan churches. It houses an immense artistic heritage: frescoes by Gaddi and Giotto, the burial place of great and powerful people of Florence including: Michelangelo Buonarroti, Galileo Galilei, Niccolò Machiavelli, Vittorio Alfieri, Ugo Foscolo, Gioacchino Rossini and it also houses the memorial to Dante (buried in Ravenna, after his exile from Florence).
  The Museo dell'Opera di Santa Croce is located inside the old refectory and the wing of the convent that divides the two cloisters. It houses numerous works including the crucifix by Cimabue, symbol of the 1966 flood in Florence. CHURCH OF ORSANMICHELE
  In 1290 Arnolfo di Cambio, on the site of the church, erected a loggia for grain trading on commission from the municipality. After the fire of 1304 it was rebuilt even larger and the old building was raised by 2 floors. In 1380 the loggia was closed and transformed back into a church, maintaining its original form, unusual for a religious building.

PIGLET FOUNTAIN

• The Porcellino Fountain (even though it is actually a wild boar), created by Pietro Tacca in 1633, is located to the side of the loggia of the Mercato Nuovo. Popular tradition has it that touching the Porcellino's nose brings good luck, and if you put a coin in the animal's mouth and it slips and falls into the grate, your wish will come true.

CASCINE PARK

• Parco delle Cascine is the largest public park in the city. It is characterized by rich vegetation, large lawns, avenues and is the ideal place to spend free time. “Le Cascine” is also a market place (every Tuesday morning) and a venue for musical (Arena del Visarno), cultural and trade fair events. At the edge of the park is the new municipal theater “Opera di Firenze”.

FORTRESS FROM BASSO

• Renaissance fortification built between 1534 and 1537, designed by Antonio da Sangallo the Younger and commissioned by Alessandro de' Medici. Since 1967 it has been the exhibition and conference center of Florence.

ST. MARK'S SQUARE

• The Church of San Marco was part of the Convent of the same name, the intellectual center of the city. In fact, some of the most important representatives of the spirituality and culture of the fifteenth century worked and lived in this Church, such as Beato Angelico, a Dominican friar and artist of the early Renaissance, Fra Bartolomeo and Girolamo Savonarola.
  The Museum of San Marco includes the architectural spaces of the convent, the cloister of Sant'Antonio, the Cenacolo by Ghirlandaio, the Refectory and Chapter rooms. It is rich in Renaissance frescoes by Beato Angelico including the Annunciation from 1440.

ACADEMY GALLERY

• Since 1873, the Accademia Gallery has housed the famous David by Michelangelo and other famous sculptors such as the Prisoners and the Saint Matthew. The museum also houses The Rape of the Sabine Women by Giambologna, the Madonna and Child and the Madonna of the Sea by Botticelli and some works by Perugino, Filippino Lippi, Pontormo and Bronzino. The Gallery houses the museum of musical instruments where you can see a violin that belonged to Stradivari and the oldest upright piano.

SANTISSIMA ANNUNZIATA SQUARE

• The Spedale degli Innocenti, an architectural work by Brunelleschi, was built to welcome abandoned children as early as 1440. Inside it houses a museum that develops the theme of hospitality and tells visitors the essence of the Institute in its six centuries of activity.
  The Church of the Santissima Annunziata dates back to the mid-13th century. Characterized by the Baroque style, it has splendid organs inside, frescoes by Andrea del Sarto, Pontormo and Rosso Fiorentino.
  The Archaeological Museum contains one of the most complete collections of Italian archaeology. There is a Greek section, where you can admire the François Vase, an Etruscan section, where you can see the Chimera of Arezzo, and a Roman section. Inside, the Egyptian section, the second largest collection in Italy after the one in Turin, gathers works from private collections and from excavations of the 1930s.
  In the square there are the two fountains of the sea monsters by Pietro Tacca, masterpieces in late Mannerist style. In the center there is a bronze monument commissioned by Ferdinando I de' Medici to Giambologna, then finished by Pietro Tacca. A curiosity of this monument are the bees that are on one side of the pedestal: counting them is truly a feat!

MICHELANGELO SQUARE

• Piazzale Michelangelo is the panoramic terrace par excellence. A view of Florence that is absolutely not to be missed! From here you can clearly see all the monuments and the Arno River that crosses the city.
  It was built in 1869 by the architect Giuseppe Poggi, the year in which Florence was still the capital of Italy and the entire city was engaged in urban renewal.
  In the center of the Piazzale are the bronze copies of two works by Michelangelo: the four allegories of the Medici Chapels of San Lorenzo and the David. Curiosity: the monument was carried up by nine pairs of oxen on June 25, 1873.

CHURCH OF SAN MINIATO AL MONTE

• Located in one of the highest places in Florence, behind Piazzale Michelangelo, it enjoys a wonderful view of the historic center of Florence.
  Built between the 11th and 13th centuries, the exterior of the church is decorated with green and white marble. The interior is in Romanesque style with three naves. The monumental cemetery houses the tomb of Carlo Lorenzini (Collodi), the author of Pinocchio.

BELVEDERE FORTRESS

• Fortified villa, located at the highest point of the Boboli hill, can be reached from Costa San Giorgio, via Belvedere, via San Leonardo and the Boboli Gardens. From here you can also have an excellent view of the city. Built between 1590 and 1595 by order of the Grand Duke Ferdinando I de' Medici who entrusted the project and construction to Bernardo Buontalenti. Venue for temporary exhibitions and cultural events.

TORNABUONI STREET

• The Roman walls passed through this street and, during the period in which Countess Matilde di Canossa reigned, the Mugnone River flowed through it. Today it is the most elegant street in the city, full of many high fashion shops.
  Overlooking this street is the “cube” of the great Palazzo Strozzi, one of the most significant Renaissance buildings in Florence. The Palace has a large and majestic courtyard accessed by three large arches. Today it hosts important art exhibitions.

REPUBLIC SQUARE

• It was once in Roman style, while the current appearance with nineteenth-century buildings and a triumphal arch is the result of the urban redevelopment of Florence, the capital of Italy. Historic cafes overlook the square: Caffè Gilli, Caffè Paskowski and the Caffè delle Giubbe Rosse, meeting points for many artists and writers of the past. Under the loggia, instead, is the Hard Rock Cafe Florence.

MEDICI RICCARDI PALACE

• The Renaissance palace was commissioned by Cosimo Il Vecchio de' Medici to Michelozzo in the mid-1400s. Inside is the Chapel of the Magi frescoed by Benozzo Gozzoli: a religious subject (the Cavalcade of the Magi) where, however, members of the Medici family and political figures of the time are portrayed.

SANTO SPIRITO SQUARE

• It is located in the Oltrarno district, it is a place of markets and fairs and full of restaurants, night clubs, artisan workshops and artists' studios. Surrounded by beautiful fifteenth-century buildings and the Basilica of the same name.
  The Basilica of Santo Spirito was designed by Filippo Brunelleschi in 1444. The interior contains notable works of art including a wooden crucifix attributed to a young Michelangelo.

CARMINE SQUARE

• The square, dominated by the unfinished facade of the basilica, is one of the main squares in the Oltrarno district.
  The Basilica of Santa Maria del Carmine, founded in 1268 as part of a Carmelite convent, was largely destroyed by the fire of 1771. Famous for hosting the Brancacci Chapel, founded by the Brancacci family in the late fourteenth century. It houses the famous cycle of frescoes depicting stories from the life of St. Peter and the Original Sin, begun by Masolino and Masaccio in 1424 and completed by Filippino Lippi.

PASSERA SQUARE

• It is a small and characteristic square in the Oltrarno district. A meeting place for Florentines and foreigners.