Florence, in three days, recommendations, please

Protect your valuables, wear a money belt, there is a lot of aggressive grifting going on around tourist sites.

We just returned from Florence. Keep in mind, that it will be very busy, and some places advise advance tickets. Do some research, and choose what most interests you. First timers to Florence will likely want to visit: The Duomo and vicinity, Uffizzi, Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens, Santa Croce, the Bargello, Medici Chapels, Accademia, Palazzo Signoria, Santa Maria Novella, Piazzale Michelangelo. Other places of interest: Galileo Museum, Bardini Gardens and Villa, The Oltr'Arno, Ponte Vecchio and more, but with only 3 days you will have to be selective.

Florence is a small city, and easily walkable.

Leave valuables at home. Keep your wallet secure, don't stop if someone asks you to "sign a petition", or wants you to buy some trinket.

Do you plan on buying the Firenze Card for entry to all of the places?

Do you recommend purchasing the Firenze card? Is it worth staying in Pisa, are there any other side trips nearby? Florence, that we should be considering? Thank you!

Do you recommend purchasing the Firenze card?

Not if you don't have the FULL 72 hours to use it...which you won't if you use part of a day for Pisa. As well, you'll need to be aware that if one of your days is a Monday, a fair amount of the museums will be closed. IMHO, the Firenzecard can be a more economical buy if you have MORE than 72 hours to spend in the city and so can use the free 48-hour extension currently being offered.

It doesn't cover anything at the Duomo (dome, museum, baptistry, etc) and you still have to make advance timed-entry reservations for the Uffizi, Accademia and Brancacci Chapel if using the card.

https://www.firenzecard.it/en

Is it worth staying in Pisa, are there any other side trips nearby?

That's a subjective question but I wouldn't personally short time in Florence for Pisa. There is a lot to see IF what the city has to offer appeals to you. I'm an art/architecture geek so I pretty much lost my mind over the riches of both! "Three solid days" also means 4 nights; is that what you've booked? Other side trips? Yes, there are some very nice ones - Lucca and Siena being two favorites among forum posters - but again, you'd be shorting Florence. Siena also needs a FULL day.

fletcherfam21 hasn't been to Florence yet: their trip looks to be in June. :O)

Hello ggrant07,

There's too much to see in Florence in a week or more so you'll need to figure out what's most important and make a list of those places. The Accademia (David) and the Uffizi require timed tickets and in July I would definitely buy those in advance if they are on your list. The good news for scheduling that if you buy the one of the Duomo passes or the combo ticket for the Pitti Palace and the Bobili Gardens they are good for several days so you have some freedom about the day and time you visit.

Much is closed on Mondays so keep track which days of the week you are there.

Pisa is an easy visit but it is effectively an entire day from your schedule - an hour both ways and several hours there in the middle of the day will replace most or all of a day - and I wouldn't recommend that.

Florence is beautiful, have a great trip,
=Tod

We were in Florence about two weeks ago. This was the second time for us. The first time in 2018 we had 3 solid days, but two of those fell on Sunday and Monday, so our sightseeing time was limited. This time, we allotted to home base in Florence for 6 nights and day trip. There is so much to see in Florence that we actually adjusted our day trip plans, choosing to go only to the Val D’Orcia region for a day and cancelled our trip to Pisa and Lucca.

I share this as you can do Florence in a couple of days, but it will be a packed experience. If your travels find you on a Sunday and/or Monday, then you will have even less time due to closures. My advice is to choose what you want to see in Florence and then weigh that against the importance of seeing Pisa. Pisa will be at least a half day trip, so if there are things you would rather do in Florence, you might want to save Pisa for another time.

Love Florence!
There is a great tour company that offers an all-day tour visiting Siena, San Gimignano and Pisa plus lunch at an organic winery. The company is Walk About Florence and the tour is called The Best of Tuscany, we really enjoyed our day with them.

Do it.
We spent 4 nights in Florence at end of April with a day trip to Pisa.
Did the Duomo, Academia, Uffizi, Duomo/ Opera museum, baptistry, cooking class, moped tour, lots of walking, and had a fantastic time.
Ignore people who say it's not enough time, just make the moat of the time you have.

You have many great recommendations here - the only one I would add is the Sant'Ambrogio market. It is every morning (except maybe Sunday) and has the most gorgeous produce, fresh meat, seafood, cheese - and more! It is both inside and outside of a big warehouse just a block from Piazza Sant'Ambrosia (near Santa Croce). Have fun! Florence is wonderful:)

I was underwhelmed by Pisa, but some people really like it. I've spent over a week in Florence when it wasn't high tourist season and found plenty to keep me busy. If you're determined to make a day trip out of the city, I'd suggest Lucca or Siena. I only got a few hours in Siena when I was there on a tour, so I plan to go back again so I can explore further. It was pouring down rain when I was in Lucca, but still absolutely worth it. The town just has an inviting feel to it. Fiesole was an easy, quick bus ride up the mountain and I enjoyed wandering around that town very much. There are amazing views looking down into Florence in the distance. Whatever you decide to do, I hope you enjoy your trip!

I was underwhelmed by Pisa, but some people really like it.

Ditto. Since you only have three days, stay in Florence. It has way more than enough to fill all three.

We loved Florence. We got the Firenze Card and were glad we did. Favourite museum was the Duomo museum. Favourite underrated museum was the science museum - Galileo Museum. Best views are from Piazzale Michelangelo. We walked everywhere and loved it. Best evening was eating gelato on the bridge and listening to live music. We had three nights and it seemed like enough given we hit the ground running and go non-stop. Though we could have filled another day, we didn't feel like it was a must.

I was in Florence for a day last week and it was crazy busy. It was my 6th time there, and it's always busy (even in November, and my husband says, also in late December). It's just a super busy place. If this is an issue for you, plan some mini-trips to get away. If you're staying right in the city, your accommodation can be a lovely oasis to take an afternoon break.

Pisa is okay (many people diss it, but I think it's kinda interesting -- the city itself reminds me of a 1950s Italian movie). If you just want to see the tower and don't care if you go up it, go early or late in the day. The first time I saw the tower was at dawn on a June morning. It was magical. I imagine it would be great at dusk too.