BEST TOURS FOR FLORENCE: What tours do you wish you had a tour guide for in Florence?

I used a free RS download audio guide for Uffizi. This was a great help in pacing out my visit and minimizing art brain overload. I would use it again!
I would consider a guide for Pitti Palace. This place is HUGE! It can be overwhelming without a guide.
SMN complex can be done with or without a guide. A guide would have been nice.
San Lorenzo Complex has "guides" inside. For example: the lady in the library section speaks English and is happy to explain the place to you. Then, there is an English speaking historian in the main church to answer your questions who is glad to talk to you and point out a few things. So, no hired guide is needed. (Example - ask about Cosimo de Medici.)

I've been looking at guided tours in Florence as well. I posted on the forum but have not had a response. I then found in RS travel guide that he recommends Artviva and his readers get 10% off. They have several options if you check out their website.

I would get a guide for the Uffizi. I have been to Florence several times. Initially, I toured the museum without a guide and the next time purchased a 4-hour skip-the-line tour (included Uffizi and Vasari Corridor). To this day, my daughter who lives in Milan and has lived in Florence, says it was the best thing we did. Having a guide made a huge difference. Ours actually had a master's degree in Art History. I believe my daughter found that particular tour on Viator (TripAdvisor).

I am heading to Florence again this summer with a friend who has never been and am definitely getting a guided tour of the Uffizi.

Other tour companies I have come across in my search (besides Artviva and Viator): (1) Ciao Florence, (2) Walk About Florence (where you can rent a tablet for the day for about 20 euros and do your own tours), (3) CAF tours, (4) VisitEuropaToday. Rick has a Renaissance Walk app tour you can download and do by yourself.

I hope this helps!

Check out Context Travel. Small group tours with a plethora of tour options. Consider also Curious Appetite Travel for fun food tours. I recently did the Medieval and Renaissance Food & Aperitivo tour. A unique experience!

Uffizi you can manage on your own. Same with the Duomo complex. Focus your tours on digging deeper into Florence. If you’re looking for private guide recommendations, let me know and I can offer more info.