Ciao!
As luck would have it, my wife and and I arrived in Florence on 11/7/16, the very day that this new requirement went into place. We had to make a reservation for the following day. As it states on the website link below, having a ticket does not guarantee entry to the top of the Dome. You must reserve a day and a time that you wish to visit.
You made need Google translate for the link...if you don't read Italian! :-)
Elvn,
Thanks for posting this important information!
You can switch the website to English, by clicking on the the top right, where it reads,"Italian"
It looks like they are only allowing 125 persons, to go up the dome, every 30 minutes & the morning spots fill up rather quickly.
Please note:
The museum will be closed on the first Tuesday of each month.
Thanks, Priscilla!
We reserved a spot for 12:00 but they were kind enough to allow us to go up with the 11:30 group.
I'm guessing the reasoning behind this is due to sheer numbers during the more traveled months. We climbed both the Dome and Bell Tower when we were there spring of 2015. I don't think it's a terrible idea to have reservations. I played around with the times and it looks like they give you at least 1.5 hours in between reservations. I wonder if they are limiting the number of visitors each day? I'd be curious to know whether or not it's possible to sell out tickets!
Edited to note that Priscilla already answered my questions :)
Take your time going up the 463 steps!
My legs were sore for a couple of days afterwards, but the views are amazing!
It would be so disappointing to show up without a reservation...
I agree that your legs could be sore the next day after walking up and down the steps. I happen to exercise a lot and had no pain. I was shocked because I could hardly walk the next day 30 years ago! To prepare, try to go up and down several flights of stairs daily for a month or two before your visit. It will help a lot! Squats would work too!
Just to add, the same requirement applies if using the Firenze Card:
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/firenze-card-and-the-duomo-dome
I was looking over the website, how much time would you give between these sights/climbs? I can reserve times back to back to back, but is that recommended? Thanks
