Hello everyone! I've been spending a lot of time reading on these forums for our upcoming trip to Italy, and have been so grateful for the wealth of information. I'm now starting to fine-tune the Florence and Tuscany part of our trip. I've had more time to research and take into consideration the time we have (3.5 days- 4 nights) and the kind of people that we are (we appreciate art, but definitely don't want to spend all day in museums; we also like history; we like going on self-guided tours at our own pace; we like to mix in some of the "must-dos" with enough time to wander and enjoy all the adventures that come from spontaneity, etc.). We know we won't see it all and that's okay, but considering it might be a while before we come back, we want to get some of the "biggies" that we're interested in.
With that in mind, this is my tentative (more detailed) itinerary:
Day 1:
-Arrive in Florence around 2:00/3:00 from Lerici (possibly stopping at Pisa on the way to Florence); Check into Hotel Duomo; nap/freshen up
-Walk around Piazza della Signoria and Palazzo Vecchio area (maybe even take a late evening tour at Palazzo Vecchio b/c it's open so late), shop, eat, explore at night, etc. :)
Day 2:
-Morning: Il Duomo (figured it would be best to hit this first thing in AM because we’re so close to it): Cathedral, Dome (we will make reservations for first thing in AM), Bapistry, Museum, Bell Tower and Crypt (maybe if there's time; not sure if we really need to do both the Bell Tower and the Dome)
-Lunch around noon
- Early Afternoon: Uffizi Gallery (reservations around 1:30; will plan what we want to see ahead of time;spend about 2/2.5 hours there)
-Relax/Freshen up at hotel
-5:30 pm Gregorian Chant at San Miniato al Monte and Sunset at Piazzale Michelangelo. Any suggestions for a good restaurant around the area after sunset? (Another option is to move the Gregorian Chant to the 1st evening if getting up here by 5:30 would be too much of a squeeze)
Day 3:
- L’Accademia (first thing in AM)
-Basilica di Santa Maria Novella and the apothecary/pharmacy (morning)
-Maybe Medici chapels (*not a “must-do”; it will depend on what time we finish L’Accademia and Maria Novella)
-Lunch/Wandering in Mercato Centrale/ San Lorenzo Area
- Basilica di Santa Croce
-Back to hotel to freshen up/ nap/relax
- walk over Ponte Vecchio; Oltrarno Walk (have to find the Rick Steves route), dinner in Oltrarno neighborhood- any places with live music (preferably jazz)?
Day 4:
-Any of the following: Bargello Museum, Galileo Museum, Pitti Palace; or use this day to take some of the activities from other days and spend more time on them.
OR
-alternate idea: day trip to Bologna, Lucca, or Siena because we might not make it to either of those while in Tuscany (one day is driving through chianti to our agriturismo in montichiello, another day is montepulciano and montalcino, another day is assisi b/c we're huge animal lovers, another day is pienza and a farm/tour and cooking class, another day is just a day to do whatever we want- maybe go to Orvieto or just wander the grounds of our agriturismo and soakup the sun by the pool).
So if our two days seem to be a reasonable pace, maybe the best would be a day trip to one of those places?
Thanks as always for input- 6 weeks and counting! :)