Excursion to Florence

This day trip is for you to enjoy one of the most important art cities in world, Florence. Your English speaking driver will meet you at your hotel for a lovely drive through the region of Lazio into Tuscany passing some of the the beautiful countryside of Italy. Tuscany has some of the most stunning countryside with medieval towns popped in the middle.

Florence is one of the most exciting cities being the birth place of the Italian Renaissance. Most of the great artist were born, lived and worked in this city. This city has a great number of churches as well as museums and squares. Some recommended places to visit while here are the cathedral, better known as The Duomo. This has quite a typical Tuscan façade with its order of pink, white and green marble bands of color. Make sure to have a close look at the dome executed by Brunelleschi, the first of its kind since antiquities. From the outside, it dominates Florence’s landscape, but you can also have a closer look by climbing it and to have a view that is unparalleled.

Next to the Duomo is the unique but very graceful Campanile or bell tower, designed by Giotto. The decorations around the outside were all carved again by more of the greats, like Pisano and Donatello. In the same area is the Baptistry which is one of Florence’s oldest buildings, it was made famous when Ghiberti won a competition in 1401 to design the north door in bronze, done in bas-relief depicting The Gates of Paradise.

Also worth visiting are Florence’s two best and most famous museums, The Accadmeia and the Uffici gallery. If you would like to follow in the footsteps of Michelangelo, than places to see are Casa Buonarroti, which was owned by Michelangelo and holds portraits and his earliest known work. Last, the church of Santa Croce where not just Michelangelo but many other illustrious Italians are buried.

Don’t forget to walk across Ponte Vecchio, which is the most ancient bridge in Florence, the only one saved during the Second World War. The current construction belongs to the XIV century, but the first bridge was built by the Romans, it has some spectacular panoramic views of the Arno River. Florence is an unforgettable city that will give you the sense of its great Renaissance past and all of the master artists that is gave birth to and nurtured. In the late afternoon your driver will take back to Rome again.