Florence Off the Beaten Path: 5 Days
Five days builds on the 4 day plan with a full fifth day: the San Lorenzo market and Mercato Centrale’s 1872 lampredotto counter, the world’s oldest pharmacy still open to the public, and Fra Angelico’s frescoes at San Marco if the pace allows. Still entirely inside the city; the 6 day plan adds the Medici’s private corridor next.
| Day | Focus |
|---|---|
| 1 | The Duomo complex and a lampredotto cart dinner |
| 2 | Accademia, Uffizi, and Ponte Vecchio’s real history |
| 3 | Piazza della Signoria and the Oltrarno’s workshops |
| 4 | Santa Croce, wax anatomy, and a hilltop sunset |
| 5 | The markets and the world’s oldest pharmacy |
Book these before you go
- Reserve Accademia Gallery tickets , the smaller gallery, its capacity sells out first
- Reserve Uffizi Gallery tickets for the same day’s afternoon slot
- Book the Duomo dome climb , one fixed timed slot that cannot be rebooked
- Reserve La Specola’s guided wax-anatomy tour a day or two ahead
- Compare Florence hotel rates before choosing the historic center or the Oltrarno
Day 1: The Duomo complex and a cart for dinner
Head to the Duomo complex first: Brunelleschi’s dome climb needs a fixed timed slot via tickets.duomo.firenze.it , 463 steps, no rebooking once confirmed. The EUR30 Brunelleschi Pass also covers Giotto’s Campanile, the Baptistery, the crypt, and the Opera museum across 3 days. For dinner, trade the trattoria for a lampredotto panino from L’Antico Trippaio’s cart in Piazza dei Cimatori, EUR3.50-4.
Day 2: Accademia, Uffizi, and Ponte Vecchio after dark
Book the Accademia first, its capacity sells out before the Uffizi’s does, then move to the Uffizi once the morning rush thins; both add a EUR4 per person booking fee on top of EUR16-20 and EUR25 tickets. In the evening, walk Ponte Vecchio for its real history: goldsmiths only since 1593, when Grand Duke Ferdinando I evicted the butchers previously there, with the Vasari Corridor still running unseen directly overhead.
Day 3: Piazza della Signoria and the Oltrarno’s workshops
Piazza della Signoria’s open-air sculpture gallery costs nothing to walk through, and the David posing there is a 1910 replica, not the original that stood on the same spot for 369 years before its move indoors. Cross into the Oltrarno after lunch for Piazza Santo Spirito’s actual local scene and the working leatherworkers, goldsmiths, and bookbinders along Via Santo Spirito, with a detour to Zecchi’s hand-ground pigments on Via dello Studio if time allows.
Day 4: Santa Croce, wax anatomy, and a hilltop sunset
Santa Croce, EUR9.50-10, holds the tombs of Michelangelo, Galileo, and Machiavelli, and the Scuola del Cuoio leather school behind it still trains apprentices in view of visitors. Add La Specola’s 18th century wax anatomy collection nearby, roughly EUR10, then enter the Boboli and Bardini gardens , about EUR22 combined, through the quieter Costa San Giorgio gate and close at Piazzale Michelangelo, free, arriving 45 minutes before sunset.
Day 5: The markets and the world’s oldest pharmacy
Spend the morning at San Lorenzo market and Mercato Centrale, whose ground floor runs mornings only and closes Sundays while the upstairs food hall stays open until midnight; Nerbone’s counter inside has served lampredotto since 1872. Walk to the Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella afterward, open to the public since 1612 and free to wander, then San Marco’s convent museum for Fra Angelico’s frescoes if the pace allows.
Skip Sunday for the San Lorenzo market’s ground floor, produce stalls close and only the upstairs food hall runs; the leather-goods stands outside stay open every day regardless.