This tour is one the most requested in Florence and is a perfect occasion to learn about Italian art history in a quick and effective way. If you are looking for a customized experience, click here.

A good balance between museums and walks:

Take a walking tour through the medieval center of Florence at the very beginning of your stay, including a visit to the most famous statue of the world: the David by Michelangelo Buonarroti. This is a private tour and it is a compromise between indoor and outdoor sightseeing.

The Duomo complex:

Piazza del Duomo is an unmissable stop during a walking tour: it hosts Brunelleschi’s dome and the St. John Baptistery. Architect Filippo Brunelleschi constructed the dome in the early fifteenth century with more than 4 million bricks. We cannot leave before taking a picture in front of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore. We will also examin in detail the golden doors and retrace the Old testament’s representation on the Gate of Paradise. Want to know more? Click .

From Piazza della Repubblica to Ponte Vecchio:

We will then proceed to Piazza della Repubblica, renowned for its elegant cafès and for being the place where Florence as Roman colony was founded. On our way we will pass by the Porcellino, a bronze statue very popular as lucky charm for the locals. Florentia e procedendo verso ponte Vecchio incontreremo il porta fortuna di Firenze, il Porcellino.

Willing for good luck, we will queue with many other people in order to rub its nose, and then we will reach Ponte Vecchio for another memorable picture. Once there we will recall the second world war bombings, that here were so impacting. Ponte Vecchio was the only undamaged brigde. We will also recall the rise and fall of the Medici family, and how they established their power as Dukes during the 16th century. Once on the bridge we’ll notice the variety of jewelers shops, whose establishment was due to Duke Cosmo I de’ Medici on the year 1565 for propaganda reasons.

Towards Piazza della Signoria:

We will then walk along the Vasari Corridor to reach another open air museum consisting of the scenografic Uffizi Gallery colonnade. This colonnade is dotted with statues of the most famous artists, writers and architects active in Florence throughout history. The area is an open-air museum that leaves everyone breathless. The Uffizi building is striking for its rigor and it contrasts with the rough surface of the stone used for the Palazzo dei Priori, now commonly called Palazzo Vecchio. In case you want to know more, book a guided tour of the Uffizi Gallery

Comparing styles and functions between Palazzo Vecchio and the Uffizi Gallery

Differences between the two buildings are both stylistic and functional: the Palazzo dei Priori was designed at the end of the 13th century for a Guelph republican government, following the defeat of the Ghibelline enemies. By contrast, the Uffizi building was constructed in the mid-16th century during the Medici monarchy as an administrative site for the Duchy of Tuscany.

The Loggia next to the Palace was also created with an assembly function and became an exhibition space when the Medici family placed in it several sculptural masterpieces such as the “Rape of the Sabine Women” by Giambologna and the “Perseus” by Benvenuto Cellini. At this point of our walk we will head towards the Accademia Gallery.

Two museums in one ticket: The Accademia was established by the grand duke Peter Leopold Lorena in order to allow the artistic rebirth of Florence during the eighteenth century. The statue of David was placed here since the very beginning. Later on, the Music School, called Conservatorium, was also founded on the same spot. Both institutions are still operating on the same site and a Musical Instrument Museum was opened more recently inside the Accademia Gallery.

A small museum, but not an easy one!

A guide is highly recommended in order to visit the Accademia Gallery because paintings do not appear in each room in chronological order. For this reason, for example, it will be necessary to contextualize the “Rape of the Sabine women” by Giambologna in comparison with other earlier paintings exhibited in the same room.

The birth of an icon:

Seeing David with from real is an unforgettable experience and I have often noticed the surprise and thrill of my visitors. It is the masterpiece of a young and already famous artist who was deeply influenced by ancient classical art: Michelangelo was at the time just 26 years old.

The unfinished works:

We will see from very close Michelangelo’s funerary mask and look at the traces impressed by his own tools on the skin of the unpolished Carrara marble. After David, these works, knonwn as “Prisoners” were commissioned by Pope Julius II. The contrapposto of David, represented by Michelangelo before the fight with Goliath, vanishes in the contorted and weary poses of the “Prisoners”.

Florence in the history of music

The Musical collection boasts some of the most precious instruments in the world. We will not miss the Medici quintet of instruments, among which Antonio Stradivari’s tenor viola and other interesting examples that further document the importance of Florence in the history of music.

Want to keep on exploring Florence doing something different? Book my Traditional Art & crafts tour!!

 

• Duration: 3 hrs: the visit of the Accademia Gallery requires 1 hour
• Meeting point, starting time: to be arranged upon booking.
• Languages and accessibility: Available in Italian and English. This guided tour is fully accessible to people on a wheelchair.

PRICES

Prices change according to number of participants and include taxes due by Law.

From one to five people: € 250,00 (in total, not per person)

Between six and ten people: € 45,00 each

More than ten people: € 30 each

Children younger than 10 years old: free

 

• Included in the price:

Private Tour with a National Licensed Guide. If you want to know more about this tour please write me here.

 

• Not included in the price:

Accademia Gallery tickets and reservation fees are not included in the above indicated prices. You can buy tickets at the official website. The cost of Accademia Gallery tickets is:  Adults: Full Price Ticket with reservation € 16,00 + € 4,00; European citizen only, 18-25 years old: € 2,00 + € 4,00; Minors (under 18 years old): free, with reservation: € 4,00.