Top Florence Attractions

The beautiful Italian city of Florence is world-renowned as the top venue for renaissance art lovers and is an archetypal Tuscan delight. Although commercial sightseeing tours abound, they can be quite rigid in their approach and make you feel part of a herd. However, Florence easily permits the wandering traveler to independently discover its wonderful attractions.

The place to start for a tour of Florence is the historic centre or centro storico, a vast area crammed with beautiful buildings, statues, landscaped gardens and art just waiting to be discovered. You’ll get more out of sightseeing tours if you actually stay there and do short walks to specific venues. Alternatively if your visit to Florence is short, there’s plenty to see in the centro storico.

A top attraction in Florence renaissance art is the the impressive medieval fortress Palazzo Vecchio, which serves as town hall. From there you’ll get wonderful panoramic views of the whole Florence, in addition to the amazing Florence renaissance art housed within its exquisite chambers. Right in front of Palazzo Vecchio is the Piazza della Signoria, an al fresco museum containing the Fountain of Neptune overlooked by the statues of Cosimo and David.

Piazza del Duomo is one of the most popular portions of Florence renaissance art sightseeing tours with excellent reasons. St. John’s baptistry, the Opera del Duomo Museum, Loggia del Bigallo and Giotto’s Campanile are all unmissable examples of Florence renaissance art.

In Florence the Ponte Vecchio, an amazing historic bridge over the river Arno, is only a short walk away. This most unusual structure carries tiny but most impressive shops in Florence, most selling gold jewelery in amazing styles. Crossing the Arno takes you to the edge of the centro storico and to the slightly less-well frequented part of Florence known as Oltrarno.

For more Florence renaissance art look out for the Palazzo Pitti and the Boboli Gardens. Piazzale Michelangelo, the highest point in Florence, offers for some great views. For the more adventurous, through the gate known as Porta Romana, try finding Poggio Reale, Arcetri, which is Galileo’s area of residence, and Bellosguardo.

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