Hi All,
We are in the process of purchasing our tickets for the above attractions. I am sure you could literally stay all day at each of these locations. We will be in Florence after Christmas for a couple of days and are wondering if we could see all of these attractions (and climb the Duomo steps) in one day? If not, how should we split this up?
I would do the Uffizi and Santa Croce on one day and the Duomo and Accademia on another day.
Definitely split things up. At some point you could go into sensory overload because of all the wonders! And sore feet from all the standing, walking, climbing. The 'must do' every year on my list is the Opera Duomo (operaduomo.firenze.it). I'm not a museum person but this one gets my mind and my heart going! It'll be included in your Duomo ticket along with the Baptistry and the climb to the top. Check out the 2nd floor (as we would call it in the US) of the Mercato Centrale, by the San Lorenzo market) - great and various choices for lunch.
You could "do" all three in a long tiring day. The Uffizi could take all day if you want, the other two not so long. I'd suggest the Duomo, Baptistry, Duomo Museum, and Accademia in one day, since they're close together. That day could include some of the other sights in that part of the center, like the Mercato, Medici Tombs, and Bargello -- but not all of them unless you move very fast and never get tired. Another day could include the Uffizi and some other sights near it, like Santa Croce, Orsanmichele, Ponte Vecchio, and Science Museum. But you'll be ready for a rest if you try to "do it all."
You can, but I don't think you'd want to.......trying to squeeze in too many similar things can just get things muddled in your mind so that you don't remember one from the other. You could spend a couple of hours in each to squeeze them all in, but I think you'd end up being dissatisfied with them all, rather than really enjoying and appreciating each. When you're at the Duomo, be sure to allot an hour or two for the Museum (Opera Duomo, already mentioned) - it's low key and there are almost no crowds, but I think it was one of my favourites in Florence. The real Baptistery doors are there (the ones outside on the Baptistery are copies), as well as some fabulous sculptures including by Michelangelo and Donatello. And try to spend at least an hour in the Bargello, which has Donatello's David, and several Michelangelo's sculptures -- I know it's often overlooked, but it was also a favourite if you prefer your art in sculptural form (as opposed to paintings) as I do.
Oysterized, understand that to climb the dome at the duomo you need (a) a mandatory advance reservation, and (b) a cumulative ticket that also includes the duomo museum, baptistry, crypt and campanile. It is very attractively priced for all of the sites, and I highly advise seeing at LEAST the museum and baptistry of the group There is no individual ticket just for climbing the dome. My 2-cents? The inside of the cathedral is far less impressive than the outside so can be skipped if the queue is too long (no tickets for the church itself as, except for the dome stairs, it's free). Ticket info here:
https://www.museumflorence.com
The ticket is good for 72 hours AFTER you do the steps to the dome but it makes sense to try and do all the sites on the same day as they are clustered in the same area. That might leave you little time for additional attractions but you could probably slip in the Accademia as it's not very far from the church, and not as large as the Uffizi.
Also, there’s the possibility of Stendhal Syndrome if you try to do too much...
Thank you for confirming that! We don't want to overdo it, but weren't sure if this was something people did in a day. We heard it's a smaller city
We did the Uffizi starting at 9am and the Accademia at 3. That worked out well for us. The Accademia is not that big. You could probably do the Duomo in between but I think then you are looking at about 8 hours on your feet. Also, people have different interests. We spent about 5 hours at the Uffizi which is probably more than many people would. We liked the Accademia, but I don't think we were there more than 1 1/2 hours. Incidentally, the Rick Steves audio tours worked well for us in those places. We did supplement a bit from a couple other guidebook/art sources.
Other sites that we REALLY liked were Santa Croce, Medici Chapel and Santa Maria Novella. We also liked the Duomo museum though we found the layout confusing.
EDITED TO ADD: We were there a bit more than a month ago. Orsanmichelle was closed for repair. Do walk around it and look at the statues (there is some narration covering the church in the RS Florence Walking tour. There is what I think is a tourist office just inside the Orsanmichelle. You can go in that entrance and get a peak inside from the doorway.
We heard it's a smaller city
It is not that things are far apart; its more like having New york steak for breakfast, a porterhouse for lunch and prime rib for dinner. All good food, but all in one day may not be a way to appreciate it all
If you have the time break it up.
It is a smaller city. Its not that those places are far apart, off the top of my head, the Uffizi and Accademia are about .8 miles apart with the Duomo at roughly the midpoint, its that to really enjoy the sites, you need to be not worn out and have time to fully take in each site.
Can it be done? Sure. Is it recommended? Not by me. I think a good rule of thumb is to visit no more than 2 major places in a day. It also depends a lot on your museum-visiting style. Do you like to read the descriptions of the art and look at everything (like me!)? If so, just the Uffizi is enough for one day. You could visit David/Accademia and the Duomo Museum in the same day. The Accademia doesn't take too long, just get your timed ticket ahead of time. If you want to climb to the top of the Duomo, yes you need a timed ticket. Also make sure the sites you want to see are open. The Uffizi and Accademia are both closed on Mondays. The Duomo Museum is closed on the first Tuesday of each month.
I'm an art history person, but I never spend more than 2 hours in a museum at a time. I'd rather go back. On the other hand, I know what I want to see before I enter. I found the Accademia to be very quick as I wasn't interested in too much there for a first run. I haven't returned yet, with two visits. With the way I do museums, I prefer more than one museum rather only one all day. I believe all three are fine. I'd do Accademia in the morning, then hit the Duomo for the climb, then go to Uffizi at the end of the day. Fresh air does wonders in between museums. Florence is small and a great city to just walk around so hitting these three works well for that as well. If you have a second day, you will have an idea of what to do next or where to wander, etc. So spend an hour or two in each museum and enjoy the rest of Florence, as there is so much more. This wouldn't be possible in the summer, but in January it will be perfect! IMO Plus, these are all on the same side of the river; consequently, the next day you'll want to go over to the other side.
If I want to absorb everything in one museum, I make a special trip just for that; ie, 3 days in the Rijksmuseum. Otherwise, again, just graze.
Florence IS a smaller city but you can spend hours in a museum which catches your interest. We spent 5+ hours in the Uffizi, and we loved San Marco, the Bargello, etc. There were umpty places in Firenze we didn't want to hurry though so I'd never tell someone that they could do 1+2+3 in one day unless they were not particularly interested in what those attractions had to offer and/or didn't want to do them at a dead run.
We spent 2.5 hours in Accademia last time we visited. The Uffuzi takes longer. I would not try to do two museums in one day, you will be museumed out.
"A smaller city"? Well, compared to what? Florentines like to brag that 1/5th of the world's art treasures are found in Florence, so factor that in as well.
LOL, Michael, you do have a point there. The treasures are simply everywhere. Oysterized, read Robert Edsel's (he of the "Monument's Men") "Saving Italy" before you go.
The treasures are simply everywhere.
Kathy is absolutely correct about this. That's one of the reasons I find it a shame to spend 5 hours in one museum vs spending some time in more museums/climbing church towers, etc....and lots of time walking about the town...when you will only be in Florence for 2 days. Sample several parts of Florence so you will know enough as to whether you want to return. Florence is one of my favorite cities!
Yes, this if very doable.
Depending on how fast you go through museums, it's definitely doable in one day. However, as others have suggested I would split it into two days if possible. Perhaps combine the Duomo and Accademia for one day, and dedicate a full day to the Uffizi Gallery.
If you get some time over after the visit to Uffizi, you could, for example, go for a stroll along Ponte Vecchio.
Never heard of "Stendhal's Syndrome" - looked it up. It means "experiencing overwhelming physical sensations such as rapid heartbeat and swooning through ingesting too much beauty at one time." It's a high I really enjoy!
