We have booked a trip to Florence May 20 - May 27 this year. I am starting to read posts that it will be so packed then that we won’t be able to move bc of all the crowds! Now I am getting nervous! This is our first big trip ever and I don’t want it to be unpleasant! Did we make a mistake!
Posted by
Ontario, Canada
5887 posts
May is already high season, but won't be nearly as crowded as summer. As long as you have your accommodations booked, and have or will soon have your advance tickets for the places that require them, you will be fine. Have some kind of daily plan, with your highest priority sites set down, maybe 2 or 3 each day, but don't plan every second. Give yourself time to relax and allow for serendipity. Have a wonderful trip.
Posted by
OP
10 posts
Thank you so much!
Posted by
Western Canada
3670 posts
Your title says “2024”……just a typo…..
Posted by
OP
10 posts
Whoops thanks…I fixed it!
Posted by
nova scotia
104 posts
Hello - we will be in Florence for 10 days in May this year - our 6th trip to our favourite place - It will be busy so prebooking tickets to major sites will help with wait times but the Uffizi, Acadamia, Duomo - will have large crowds - so it depends on how comfortable you are with lots of people. The streets will also be busy but the joy of Florence is there are lots of little side streets to wander and eventually you can get to the main piazzas. A good map/gps can help - wandering the back streets is one of the joys of Florence.
Also look to less visited sites - the Bargello - for sculpture, San Marco - for Fra Angelico paintings, Galileo - science, Opificio delle Pietre Dure - mosaics, Museum of Santa Maria Novella - beautiful early art, Museo del Duomo - all the best original work from the Duomo
And sometimes just walk along the river and enjoy a gelato!
Needless to say every day we spend in Florence is filled - but with a week you should be able to relax a bit and enjoy
Posted by
Atlanta, GA area (USA)
237 posts
We were there in January and there was a Ferris wheel in the park along the river where Tram 1 crosses, north of the main center of town. It was too chilly and wet to enjoy then but it’d be great to ride on a nice May day! Good luck!
Posted by
Charleston & Birmingham
4740 posts
An enjoyable quiet uncrowded place is Museo San Marco. I also love the Science/Galileo museum. The great thing about Florence is that it's easily walkable so you won't be crowded onto public transportation with a lot of people.
Posted by
New England
739 posts
You’ve been given great advice here. I’ll just add that the early mornings and later evenings can be magical to walk through the city because the day trippers won’t be there.