Guides for Florence Museums

Rick Steves has done free, downloadable audio tours for both those museums, which anyone can download and listen to on their tablet, smart phone or MP3/iPod payer. They're very good, I found. Go to ricksteves.com, then on "watch, read, listen". I actually see that section listed on the left hand side of this very page. However, last fall I found that a considerable number of the rooms in the Uffizi were closed for renovation, with some of the works being re-located to other rooms and others simply not being on display. That made following parts of Rick's tour, or any audio tour I expect, quite difficult.

I just visited the Uffizi in late March of this year.

The Uffizi is quite different now than just a year or even a few months ago. They have opened up new areas on another floor and totally changed the location of paintings once you are past the rooms with the Botticelli and Leonardo da Vinci works. I believe several rooms just opened in December of last year. Even the Michelangelo tondo piece has been moved, as have the works by Raphael and Titian.

I find guides/tours very useful for the Uffizi but they are relatively expensive. However they are all licensed and have to pass pretty extensive exams and are qualified in Florence.

There are audio guides available but I don't know how good they are. I"ve had good success with the pocketbook containing pictures and information published by Giunti in English which are available all over Florence. It costs about 11 euro and makes a nice souvenir.

In any event, given these recent changes to the museum and the change in location of many of the works, I recommend that you check the dates of publication for any information you get from internet or other sources.