TBD Travel with April

When I was researching Florence I read over and over that you need at least 3 days to really explore Florence. There are so many things to do and see in Florence that I totally agree with the 3 days assessment! We stayed in Florence for two nights but only had 1 day to explore. We saw so much in our one day there but will definitely be back as Florence was one of our favorite places!

One of our most favorite things about Florence is that it was so walkable. We never took a taxi or public transportation and we did walk a lot (like 15 miles in one day!) but there was so much to see on our walks!

Before I get into what we did on our 1 day there, I want to talk about hotel we stayed in. I found this hotel on Expedia and I wasn’t sure what it was going to be like since it seemed like a smaller hotel but it was PERFECT. It was more like a bed and breakfast as it only had about 8 hotel rooms. We came in pretty late at night so they left instructions for how we get into the hotel, which was a series of codes to get into a few different doors. It was on the third level of a building very close to the train station (so very convenient) and they had a small elevator to go up with your luggage. The first night we got there, we had a paper in our room for breakfast the next day. We were able to check the items we wanted for breakfast and let them know what time we wanted to eat. We left that on the desk and the next morning when we went out for breakfast, they had our food ready! Here is a breakfast picture from the outdoor balcony at the hotel:

They were so incredibly accommodating and kind. Felt like a small intimate place but the rooms were big, sound proof, and clean.

Here is what our day looked like:

-We started our day with a tour at the Dumno. I had read that it’s important to get the earliest time slot for the Dumno climb so I got the first time slot of the day. I’m so glad we did because we only had to wait in a short line to get in but when we walked by later in the morning/early afternoon the line was wrapped around the building to get in! This is the one of the most popular attractions in Florence for sure. The steps were very narrow and quite intense. Every time we thought we were done, there were more stairs. It was such a cool experience though with the reward of a beautiful view at the top! It was definitely the highlight of Florence for me. This is a MUST do if you aren’t claustrophobic and can handle walking up a lot of stairs.

-After going up the Dumno, we walked over to Palazzo Vecchio & Piazza della Signoria, which only took a few minutes to get to. This was a nice square that had some shops, beautiful buildings and statues. We didn’t do much here but walk around but it was fun to see. We had a little extra time before our lunch reservation so we also walked through some of the side streets, which are filled with shops and restaurants.

-I had made a reservation about a month earlier for a restaurant called Tosca and Nina: Tosca & Nino at La Rinascente – Rooftop bar in Florence | The Rooftop Guide. I had read a few blogs that recommended it so I figured we should try it! It was a little confusing to find until I actually read the email confirmation and it said it was at the top of shopping center. The GPS will take you to a large department store and you just need to take the elevator to the top floor. Once you get to the top floor, you will take stairs up another floor to the hostess stand. Then you’ll take more stairs to the roof! I was glad I had made reservations because there was a pretty long line down the stairs and we were able to skip the line and sit right down! The food was amazing (my husband said he ate the best lasagna he’s ever had) and the view was even better! Here is a picture of that amazing view:

-Next we went to Ufizi Gallery: Uffizi Gallery Tickets | Skip-the-Line Entry, Guided Tours and Accademia Gallery: Visit – Accademia Gallery in Florence. We had skip the line tickets for both of these galleries and that saved us a lot of time too! We met our “guide” just outside of the galleries and she led us past the big line into a smaller line to get into the building. My husband and I aren’t big museum or art people but it was fun to walk through each of the galleries!

-After the galleries we walked over to the famous shopping bridge in Florence called Ponte Vecchio Ponte Vecchio (Everything To Know Before A Visit) – The Tourist Checklist. It was VERY busy but such a beautiful area with so much going on! Here is a fun picture of us on the bridge. The windows/bridge behind us are the jewelry stores on the bridge!

-Our second to last stop for the night was Piazzale Michelangelo. We walked from Ponte Vecchio to Piazzale Michelangelo and while it was doable, it was a bit of a walk, especially because the last part to the top was quite steep. On our way to Piazzale Michelangelo, we found a wine window, which I had been looking for all day! I had read about these wine windows and was determined to find one. It was this tiny little window and had a bell next to it that you had to ring for assistance. Once I rang it, a lady opened the window and asked what type of wine I wanted. I paid, she handed me the wine, and we continued on our way!

When we were walking to Piazzale Michelangelo, we had no idea what we were really walking to but knew it was a beautiful place to watch the sunset. Apparently everyone else in the city knew that as well but it was packed with people an hour before the sunset. There were stairs where everyone was sitting (already packed an hour before), listening to the band play. We even saw two brides/grooms who danced with the band. We learned later that this is very common. We found a nice spot on a little wall to watch the beautiful sunset. Even though it was packed and a steep walk to the top, it was well worth it!

-Our last stop of the night was dinner at Ciro and Sons Restaurant for Dinner-This was recommended to us by someone we know from church and it was a wonderful restaurant, very close to our hotel. I had a reservation, which was good because it was busy! We sat outside because the weather was perfect but the inside was really nice and quite big. The service was great and the food was amazing! I would highly recommend. We spoke with the owner when he came to check on us at our table and he told us his wife is from Iowa, so we chatted about the Midwest for a bit. He has an Instagram page that is fun to watch too now that we’ve gone!

Overall, Florence was one of our favorite places. We would highly recommend spending at least 2 days there, 3-4 if you have time!