Advice on climbing the Duomo in Florence

Clarify which that you want to go up to Brunelleschi's Dome or the Giotto's Bell Tower?

You can find all the information here:

https://www.museumflorence.com

You do not have to have a tour to climb the dome but you DO have to make a reservation, they ARE timed, and appear to sell out well in advance of high season so I'd book ASAP if slots are still available.

If reservations are sold out, consider doing the Bell Tower instead (reservations possible on the website).

Go at opening. Sorry to say but standing in along line in blazing heat is the alternative. i have done it as my travel friend was desperate at any time. Never again by e time we reached the entrance i was really not interested inthe climb. I did it anyway but felt totally worn out z, hot Nd not happy about the hrs it took I hope it works fo u.. we were there also in July.

As suggested go online and see if tickets available. I did the dome and tower last month but have also done the dome in July. It will be hot in July with minimal shade but our family (including teens) thoroughly enjoyed it hot or not! It's worth every step and minute it takes.

There are vendors walking the length of the line selling tours that allow you to skip the line. I chose to do that for about 20 dollars over the ticket price. It was hot and I was a long way from the entrance. I had no plans on going up the dome but my son wanted me to do it with him. It was a hike for sure!

Of course choosing the Belltower means less waiting (if at all) and an actual view across to the dome itself (rather than inside looking out).

Thank you so much for all of this feedback. We will be getting online this weekend to secure tickets to one or the other. As a follow-up question, can you tell me if tickets to the Belltower are timed or can you go any time of day? Had originally meant to climb Brunelleschi's dome but in seeing the post from David in Brisbane concerning looking out from the bell tower across the dome that sounds intriguing.

We did the bell tower and at the time, just got tickets without much wait that I recall (this was mid-Sept 2012..). The nice thing was, there were levels so you could go up to the first level, then catch your breath and admire the views at each level...and of course, lovely views of the Duomo, which you don't get if you are atop the Duomo! I recall the line for the dome climb was really long because I thought at first it was the line for the church itself and thought - wow, we have a loooong wait ahead of us, then realized we were in the wrong line. (I sell photos online and actually just sold one of my photos that I took of the Duomo from the bell tower!)

I believe they sell tickets all day. We went in October 2010, did not get advance tickets, but that was 7 years ago--tourism in Florence seems to have exploded since then with the Euro being pretty much on par with the dollar.

It's 414 stairs, there are areas where you have to stoop to get through, and it can be a tad claustrophobic. Not to say there was a cause and effect, but drinking copious amounts of red wine and then the climb itself led to me having a kidney stone the next day. Fun times--agony at SMN station and the Freccia train to Rome, started drinking Nastro Azzurro beer to flush it out, and passed it the next morning. Too much info? :)

We will be getting online this weekend to secure tickets to one or the
other.

Just to clarify: you don't really buy a ticket to "one or the other" online. Your ticket is cumulative for the entire complex: you then can make timed reservations online for the dome, bell tower and museum. As stated on the website, reservations for the dome are mandatory; they are optional but suggested for the bell tower and museum:

https://en.grandemuseodelduomo.waf.it/museo_dett.php?idtour=8484

So you can either take your chances with the length of the lines at the latter two or ensure quickest entry with timed reservations.