Florence itinerary: 1, 2 and 3 days

Florence rewards slow walking more than list-ticking. The centre is compact, so the question is not how much you can see but how many timed entries you can hold in one day without rushing the art.

One day works only if you pre-book the two big museums and accept that the Duomo interior, the dome climb and Santa Croce will not all fit. Two days is the comfortable minimum for a first visit. Three days lets you add the Oltrarno, a hill view and one half-day outside the city.

Start at the Duomo before 9am, when the square is still walkable. The cathedral interior is free but the queue moves slowly; the dome climb and the baptistery need separate timed tickets. If you want one climb, the dome gives the best view of the city and the frescoes inside it.

Walk five minutes to the Accademia for Michelangelo's David on a booked slot, then cross to San Lorenzo and the Medici chapels. Lunch near the Mercato di San Lorenzo or a quick panino, then the Uffizi in the afternoon — book the first slot after lunch and give it two to three hours, not five.

Finish with Ponte Vecchio at sunset and dinner in the Oltrarno. If you have energy left, Piazzale Michelangelo is a 25-minute uphill walk or a short taxi ride for the classic skyline.

Day one runs as the one-day plan, but you can slow the Uffizi and leave the Accademia for the morning of day two, when the David room is quieter.

Day two: Santa Croce in the morning for Giotto and the Medici tombs, then the Bargello or the Medici Riccardi palace if you want sculpture and frescoes rather than paintings. After lunch, cross the river to Santo Spirito and the Brancacci Chapel, then walk up to the Boboli Gardens or the Bardini Garden for the afternoon.

Two days is where most travellers stop feeling rushed. It also leaves room for one long lunch, which in Florence is not a wasted afternoon.

Three days lets you keep the two-day core and add a half-day outside the centre. The easiest options by train or bus are Fiesole for a hill town and Roman ruins, or a Chianti village if you have a car or join a tour.

If you would rather stay in the city, use the third day for the things the first two push out: the San Marco museum and Fra Angelico's cells, the Galileo museum, the Palazzo Pitti interiors, or a slow morning in the Sant'Ambrogio market.

A full Tuscany day — Siena, San Gimignano or the Chianti road — needs its own day and usually a car or an organised tour. Do not try to fold it into a three-day city stay.

Florence is not a cheap city, but the fixed costs are predictable. Museum tickets are the main variable: state museums sit in a band of roughly €15–25 each in 2026 estimate, with booking fees on top, and the Duomo complex sells combined passes rather than single dome tickets.

Food splits sharply. A standing coffee and pastry is a few euros; a sit-down lunch in the centre runs €20–35 per person with wine. Dinner in the Oltrarno is usually better value than a table facing the Duomo.

Accommodation is the biggest swing. A hostel bed, a modest hotel and a boutique room in the centre can differ by a factor of four in the same week.

Book the Uffizi and Accademia first, then build the days around those slots. Everything else in Florence can be rearranged; those two cannot be walked into on a busy morning.

Stay within the old centre or just across the river. The walkable core is small, and a hotel 20 minutes out costs you two crossings a day. See where to stay in Florence for area-by-area trade-offs.

Trains from Santa Maria Novella cover Pisa, Lucca, Siena and Bologna without a car. For the airport, the tram and bus links are quick; check the airport transfer page before you book a taxi.

Check museum closing days before you fix the order. Several state museums close one weekday, often Monday, and the Uffizi and Accademia run separate ticket systems.