Help help on planning.

Hi Paul & Pam,

Some of your places listed are open on Mondays. By chance are you retired? The list is very long for just four days, especially if it includes relaxing and enjoying the sites. If you are retired, I would add a couple more days to Florence and/or drop some of the choices. If you’re flying from Tucson to Florence, the arrival day and next day will be hard to do more than one event. I recommend not going into a museum during your arrival day to allow the sunlight to help you acclimate. Hopefully one of your gardens would work for the arrival day.

I purchased my Uffizi tickets on-line with an included reservation time. It was easy and straightforward to do. It also includes instructions for which door to enter.

I hope you’re able to do some other activities besides museums & gardens to have a wonderful well-rounded variety of experiences! Any interest in cooking classes, food tours or a wine tour? (It sure would be nice to add a wine tour.). I am taking a city bike tour this time when I’m back in Florence in September. Those are fun to learn history in a different manner.

Hi Paul and Pam, and welcome to the forums -
Florence is a fascinating city, and I'm so happy to see that you've made such a nice list of attractions to see! Before launching into suggestions/resources, I will caution you that anything could change before next spring so keep an eye on the sites I'll link you to for any possible updates. It's also much, much too early to order tickets/make reservations yet.

Oh, and not everything is closed on Mondays. Italian State museums throughout the country usually are but not necessarily religious, private or civic attractions. So here's a start:

For the Uffizi, Pitti Palace; The Boboli Gardens, Bardini Gardens and the National Archeological Museum, I'd go with the Passepartout 5-Day pass. It covers entry to all of them although you do have to choose an advance, timed-entry day/hour for the Uffizi when you purchase it, and the Uffizi must be the first of the attractions it covers that you visit.

https://www.uffizi.it/en/pages/combined-ticket

The Uffizi and Pitti are closed on Mondays,; the Archeological Museum is closed on the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th Sunday of the month; the Boboli Gardens are closed first and last Monday of each month.

For Duomo complex and dome climb, you want the 3-day Brunelleschi Pass pass; the only one of the 3 passes available that includes the dome. You will be required to choose a day/time for the climb when purchasing the pass, and that day/time starts clock on the 3-day validity period. The pass does not allow line skipping of the main body of the cathedral itself: you'll enter the stairs to the dome from the exterior.

https://duomo.firenze.it/en/home
https://operaduomofirenze.skiperformance.com/en/store#/en/buy

For the Bargello, you can buy tickets at the museum or you can buy in advance; click on "MUSEO DEL BARGELLO" on its official ticketing site for info. It is closed the 2nd and 4th Mondays of a month, and May 1.

https://www.b-ticket.com/b-ticket/uffizi/default_eng.aspx.html

Per that same link, you can access ticketing and info for many others of Florence's museums as well, including the Accademia (closed on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday), and you'll be using it for that Passepartout combo pass for the Uffizi+ Pitti Palace+ Boboli Gardens + Bardini Gardens + National Archeological Museum as well. It will be a choice under "UFFIZI 5-DAY PASS". Click on the name of any of those museums to see hours closure days, prices etc.

Clear as mud? LOL, I expect questions but really, that b-ticket site makes it convenient for ordering a fair amount of tickets from a single source. In fact, other than the duomo complex (the baptistry and museum are WELL worth seeing, BTW) you can order all your other tickets through that site, although I'd buy for the Bargello at the museum entrance to avoid having to choose a day/entry time in advance.

A personal favorite you don't have on the list? San Marco. If you have time....

To add, to do ALL of your choices will indeed make for a very busy itinerary! I've a feeling that you don't really have 4 FULL days? That you are including your partial arrival day in that count? If so, no, you definitely don't want to do any of the indoor museums on that potentially jet-lagged day.

While everything you've listed is WELL worth doing, I'll caution that the Pitti is a real time eater; its Palatine Gallery has 28 rooms of art that even this devoted art lover had issues getting through. and that didn't include the other galleries: Costume, Treasury, Modern Art, and Royal Apartments. I think you might want to concentrate just on the Palatine Gallery and then see how much time/energy you have left over? The Boboli Gardens were just OK; best more for the view from the top of hill behind the palazzo than anything, IMHO, but you may feel differently. That's OK. Food tours, wine tours and cooking classes are not our things either and that's OK too, although some other posters have certanly enjoyed them. In the end? There are no wrong choices unless they're wrong for YOU. :O)

I love and know how to use spreadsheets and Google maps, but for this kind of trip planning I prefer to use paper and a pen --- somehow I can't get a grip on the reality of the days and times and each site and what reservations each needs and all the map locations. I make a large calendar of just the days I'll be traveling, and put what is open on each day, I make a copy of a good map and mark each place I'd like to see and then group the sites. I guess I like to be able to scribble things out and make arrows and circles and whatever. Only later, once I've figured it all out, do I put this information into a Google spreadsheet and Google Maps. Anyway, if you think this old school approach will help you juggle the complexities, give it a try.

You've chosen great places --- the only two you might re-think are the Pitti Palace and the Boboli Gardens. Just reading those two names makes me feel very very exhausted. They are huge and time-consuming. (You know that these gardens are not about flowers, right?) Maybe put these on your list for next time? The Bardini Garden is much more manageable and has better views of Florence. However, the view of views is from the steps of San Miniato al Monte --- you can take a bus most of the way there. It's a bit farther up the same hill as Piazzale Michelangelo, and the church is a treasure, too.

Let's hope that by next spring, fewer places will require reservations --- maybe put that task aside for now.

Where in Umbria are you going?

Kathy types faster than I do!

"However, the view of views is from the steps of San Miniato al Monte --- you can take a bus most of the way there. It's a bit farther up the same hill as Piazzale Michelangelo, and the church is a treasure, too."

Yes, yes, yes!! Can't believe I left that one out, Nancy! That one is a MUST, and no tickets needed.
LOL, I'm a hunt-and-peck typist. Takes me all day.

Thanks to you all Jean, Nancy, and Kathy. To help clarify, yes I'm retired, my wife isn't. If we were both retired we would be looking at renting a place for extended stay 30 days so so. We have laid out a lot I know. Our time in Florence is 4 full days no travel days included. Looking at Ricks book the Best of Italy he has seeing "Florence in 2 days". Really?? Like I said we are seasoned travelers and know that ain't happening. We have been on too many "organized tours with groups" . Hurry hurry , there it is take your pictures lets move. Our last one was a Eastern Europe/ Germany . We only spent one day in Vienna in and out on a bus. How can you experience a magical and romantic place as Viennia in one day??? Basically the same happen to us In Peru. we did get to Machu Picchu but everything else was a blur. They cram 11 to 12 days in a 7 day box. I'm back to DIY. Yes it takes more leg work, and you have some hiccups along the way, but hell thats part of the journey.
We might have to scale back a little as you have mention.I understand that the "Firenze Card" is no longer used. Is that right?
I thought we could get by with one card or one reservation packet , but it looks like that can't happen. Right? This is why I'm reaching out, Rick's book get a little over whelming and confusing. I am a paper guy too, maps and written itineraries go further than relying a cell phone mis guided info. We won't be able to take it all in this trip, cooking class is out, although we both enjoy them and have done them several times. So we want to do the best of the best top sites in 4 days, leaving time to walk at leisure and eat drink and mingle. We will be staying 10 mins out of town on a beautiful hill top estate overlooking town . Bike or cab it in . No plans made at this time . Got to get our ducks (info) in order first. Start about 4 months out. We will be flying in and out of Florence so we can be a little flexible. Using train to go South to Umbria visiting friend, a 3 full day quick in and out of Rome. Back to Florence over night and home. About 17 + - days in all.
Thanks again everyone. Anymore feed back is Most Welcome Grazie

I have an art degree, but that doesn’t mean I want to spend hours in the Uffizi and The Accademia trying to see all they have to offer. I’m also a bit sketchy on doing tours. However, this time for Florence I signed up for a Uffizi, Accademia and walking tour that is a 5 hr. tour. There are shorter ones for just The Uffizi and Accademia. We are taking it 2 days after our arrival in Florence. I wanted to be sure to see Michaelangelos’ David, Pieta and The Prisoners, plus the highlights of the Uffizi, knowing that I could miss both if we went on our own-too many people, too difficult to maneuver, etc. Not saying the tour is going to be without crowds, but it will help getting from one “must see” to the next. Yes, a bit of checking it off the list.
So this is just an idea for those two only. No, I’ve never been before so don’t truly know what the experience will be. I’m hopeful for satisfactory at least.
Definitely check the websites that Kathy listed. So many choices, but ought to help get you to parts of the Duomo you really want to see.
Isn’t planning fun?

I understand that the "Firenze Card" is no longer used. Is that right?

Yep, unfortunately you have that right. Currently, anyway, What the situation with it will be next spring remains to be seen but even so, it didn't include the duomo complex so you would have needed separate tickets/dome reservation for that one. The local transport piece was also an addition to the base ticket, albeit an inexpensive one. Florence is a great walking city though so we didn't use any public transport during our 4.5 day stay,

Folks often overlook visiting the Baptistery of San Giovanni, directly across from the Duomo.

"...signed up for a Uffizi, Accademia and walking tour that is a 5 hr. tour."
That's interesting. Where did you find that one and would you recommend it?