Continued!!
Florence Duomo: VIP After-Hours Dome Tour with Terrace Access
This was a tour from Walks - Italy & Spain. What made it amazing? A few things. First, we were the only people out on the Terraces so it was quiet and uncrowded. You walk the Terraces till you are a stone’s throw from the Bell Tower. It was very neat. Also, when you walk down into the Cathedral, it is already closed and empty. You get to be there as they turn out the lights. You walk through the church in semi-darkness inside and they lock the door behind you. This is an expensive tour but was well worth it. The guide was knowledgeable and it felt special. Be advised though, there are a lot of stairs. We had no problems with it but a couple of older couples turned back.
Museo Dell'opera Del Duomo
I am not a museum person, but I really enjoyed this. This is the museum associated with the Duomo. It was not crowded and had a lot of interesting sculptures and models of the Cathedral. If you tend to like sculptures over paintings, visit!
DAVID and Accademia Gallery Private Tour in Florence
What made this tour amazing, in addition to the statue of David, was the tour Guide. Irina of Florence. She was excellent. We booked the first slot of the day and she kindly offered to come even earlier so we could be amongst the first to enter. And we were! We got a picture with David by ourselves. The best part was the stories she told of the block of marble and the statue through the years (the block was rejected by a couple of artists before Michelangelo made his masterpiece). Also, the unfinished statues were interesting. It may not have been as special without all of the background information, but would still be worthwhile to visit.
Il Gusto Pizza in the Oltrarno District
Delicious Pizza! Show up early as it gets very busy.
Honorable Mention : Secret Passages Tour - Palazzo Vecchio
I didn’t actually get to do this tour because tickets were sold out. You need to order quite a bit in advance. Order directly from Palazzo Vecchio and skip the third party tours which inflate the price and just hand you the tickets (only the official tour through the Palazzo Vecchio exists). I loved the statues in the Square just adjacent to the Palazzo Vecchio, but was disappointed I couldn’t see the hidden parts of the Palazzo.