I'm going on the VFR 10 day tour shortly and I have an itinerary question. When the itinerary says afternoon is free, does that mean we will be free at noon? Otherwise, what time can we plan on freeing up?
I ask this because I am trying to reserve tickets for the Brunelleschi's Dome in Florence on the day we have the afternoon free and I want to be sure I have enough time to get there in the time reserved.
Call the Rick Steves office in Washington for the most reliable answer.
Since you are having a cooking class and lunch together with the tour group on the day where the afternoon is free, no it will not be free at exactly noon unless you skip lunch.
As mentioned, the RS Office will be the best answer as to exactly when.
Also ask how long it will take you to walk from cooking class/lunch venue to the Duomo. The itinerary ways the class is across the river, so it's liable to be at least a 10-15 minute walk.
I believe the cooking class is near Piazza della Passara in the Oltrarno (verify with RS Tour Dept). The walk to the duomo would be about 15 minutes if you were familiar with the route, so maybe allow a minimum of a half hour in case you make a wrong turn or have trouble finding the entrance line for the dome.
