If you’re wondering what things to see in Florence in two days because you’ve decided to spend a weekend here, I tell you right away that you won’t find time to get bored.
In fact, in the Tuscan capital, you will not only admire artistic masterpieces such as the Birth of Venus by Botticelli, the dome of Brunelleschi’s Cathedral, Michelangelo’s David and Leonardo da Vinci’s Annunciation.
The first 10 minutes will literally be enough for you to understand how Florence is a very elegant open-air museum, in which you can admire the domes, towers and bell towers that define the unique and incomparable profile of the city.
Find out what to see in Florence in two days with this itinerary.
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Day 1: What to Do in Florence in First Day
The best way to approach Florence is to take part in a free tour of the city.
This will occupy you for just over a couple of hours, but it will be enough to start getting your bearings and discover anecdotes from a local guide.
Visit the official website to check availability for your dates.
If there is no availability, consider booking a guided tour (really cheap).
1: Uffizi Gallery: one thing not to be missed in Florence in 2 days
The Uffizi Gallery has the distinction of being the first museum in Europe, whose opening to the public dates back to 1591, so it can only be the first stop on this itinerary (also a good idea to avoid queues!).
Inside it houses masterpieces signed by Michelangelo, Raphael, Giotto, Cimabue, Botticelli and Leonardo da Vinci, collected by the Medici family and enriched over the centuries.
The Uffizi Gallery is made up of more than 45 rooms, so the best advice I can give you is to optimize your time by doing a preventive research of which works you want to admire; alternatively consider taking part in a guided tour of about an hour and a half.
Allow 2 to 3 hours for the self-guided visit.
Tickets for the Uffizi Gallery:
- Priority ticket to the Uffizi Gallery (from €20 – reduced to €12.50 for EU citizens aged between 18 and 25).At the time of purchase you will have to choose the entrance time and select the audio guide if you wish. Furthermore, cancellation is free up to 24 hours before the indicated time.
- Guided tour of the Uffizi Gallery (from €44) perfect for optimizing time and discovering more thanks to the experience of the guide
PS: for the visit of the monuments of the Duomo complex in Florence, 3 passes have been (finally) established, valid for 3 days in which more attractions are included at an advantageous price.
Read on to find out which one suits you best!
2: Piazza di San Giovanni and the Baptistery
Then head to the oldest building in the Santa Maria del Fiore complex : the Baptistery of San Giovanni (where Dante was also baptized).
The octagonal shape of the structure and the white and green marble cladding will certainly not let it go unnoticed.
But once you have completed the tour of the structure, what will surely have attracted your attention will be the Porta del Paradiso (so renamed because “so beautiful that it should be in heaven”), located in front of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore and completely gold – although unfortunately the one currently on display is only a copy.
The original is in the museum.
Even the interior of the Baptistery deserves some of your time, especially to admire the golden mosaics placed on the dome.
Entrance tickets are included in both the Brunelleschi, Giotto and Ghiberti passes on the official website (from €20).
3: Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore (the Duomo of Florence)
Even if you have already managed to take a peek at the incredible monuments that are located in the adjacent Piazza del Duomo, now the time has come to discover them in detail.
The Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, located right in front of the Baptistery, will enchant you with the pink, white and green marbles respectively from Siena, Carrara and Prato that make it up and the incredible decorations that adorn every inch of it.
While the interior might be quite disappointing compared to the magnificent exterior, admission to the Cathedral is free, so you might consider going in if the queue isn’t too long (closed on Sundays and public holidays).
From inside you can admire Brunelleschi’s dome, although to see it up close you will have to reach the dome by climbing over 400 steps, the place of his burial and the portrait of Dante Alighieri along the north wall.
4: Giotto’s Bell Tower
Next to the Basilica is the marvelous Giotto’s bell tower: also made with colored marbles from Tuscany, it is 85 meters high.
To reach the top you will have to climb 414 steps.
From its terraces you will be able to enjoy incredible views of the Florence Cathedral and Brunelleschi’s great dome, but I suggest you save your energy and prefer the climb to Brunelleschi’s Dome, having only two days to spend in Florence.
Tickets for the bell tower are included in both the Brunelleschi and Giotto Pass on the official website (from €20).
5: Brunelleschi’s dome: one thing to see in Florence in two days
On the opposite side of the Cathedral with respect to the bell tower, is the entrance to Brunelleschi’s Dome: once you have crossed the entrance and passed the controls, the 463 steep and irregular steps that will take you to the highest dome in the city immediately begin .
The intermediate stage, however, will be the decorations of the dome that you will be able to see up close.
Maybe going up here you will be able to realize how many things Florence still has to offer, but don’t worry: enjoy the view with the effort you put in to get here!
Tickets for Brunelleschi’s Dome:
- Entrance tickets to the Dome of the Cathedral (from €30) : included in the Brunelleschi Pass;
- Brunelleschi’s dome tour (from €53) : perfect for those who want to learn more about the construction of the Florence Cathedral and climb the dome accompanied by a local guide.
Find out everything you need to know to visit the Duomo of Florence and choose which attractions to include in this itinerary based on your preferences.
6: Via dei Calzaiuoli and the Porcellino Fountain
Once the endless descent from the Dome is over (it was worth it though, right?) take via dei Calzaiuoli and make a short stop under the arcades of Piazza della Repubblica.
Then reach the Porcellino market and the fountain of the same name, source of inspiration for Andersen (Danish writer) for the fairy tale Il Porcellino.
Don’t leave before touching the pig’s nose and inserting a coin into its mouth: if it falls into the grate under where the water falls, it will bring good luck, otherwise not (the trick? Choose a heavy enough coin to have more chances. . even if I’m not really convinced that this is really luck!).
7: Ponte Vecchio at sunset
Before sunset, reach the Ponte Vecchio.
Although the buildings visited to date may have filled your eyes with wonder, remember that the Ponte Vecchio is one of the city’s symbolic monuments, so you cannot fail to consider including it on your list of things to see in Florence in two days.
Goldsmiths and their glittering shop windows adorn the sides of the pedestrian bridge, but bear in mind that in the center of the structure you will find a window overlooking the Arno River in which to take the usual photo.
PS: the choice of accommodation area is of fundamental importance.
I suggest you check availability at the B&B La Terrazza Sul Duomo, right in the center of Florence with views of the Duomo and just a 10-minute walk from the Santa Maria Novella train station.
If you have time, read more in the article dedicated to where to stay in Florence to receive specific advice.
Day 2: Florence Itinerary
1: Academy Gallery
To admire the original Michelangelo’s David there is only one place you have to go: the Accademia Gallery and it is from here that I suggest you start this second day of your 2 days itinerary in Florence.
Inside you will find 6 other works by Michelangelo, as well as the largest collection in the world of pictorial works with a gold background, the museum of musical instruments and other important masterpieces such as the Madonna and Child, two angels and John the Baptist by Sandro Botticelli.
Allow a couple of hours for the visit.
Tickets for the Accademia Gallery
- Priority entrance to the Accademia Gallery (from €19.50 – reduced to €7 for EU citizens aged between 18 and 25).Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
- Guided tour of the Accademia Gallery (from €35) lasting about an hour, with a guide specialized in art history.
2: Central market: one thing to see in Florence in 2 days
After the visit, head to Via dell’Ariento, where the city market is held every day (Sunday included).
Here you will find leather goods, clothing and accessories ; while walking through the doors of the central market you can buy fresh and local products, while upstairs you can eat food at the moment.
The indoor area is also open on Sundays from 10am to midnight.
3: Medici Chapels
Burial place of the Medici family obtained from the basilica of San Lorenzo, you should visit the Medici Chapels to see where the men who literally shaped the history of Florence are buried.
Visit the crypt, the Chapel of the Princes and the New Sacristy, where the remains of dukes and grand dukes such as Lorenzo the Magnificent rest.
Tickets for the Medici Chapels can be found here (from €14).
4: Square and Basilica of Santa Maria Novella
Start this second day of the 2-day itinerary in Florence from Piazza di Santa Maria Novella with the annexed basilica of the same name.
It is one of the most important churches in Florence, dating back to 1279. Also covered in two-tone marble, among the most important pieces inside there is the Crucifix by Giotto dating back to 1290, as well as numerous frescoes.
Find tickets for Santa Maria Novella on the official website (from €7.50).
5: Piazza della Signoria, Palazzo Vecchio and Loggia dei Lanzi
Then reach the Piazza della Signoria, a suggestive place rich in history.
It is surrounded by important monuments such as the Palazzo Vecchio, the Loggia dei Lanzi, where you can admire large statues from different historical periods and the Fountain of Neptune.
Thanks to its central location and proximity to the Piazza del Duomo, this place was the center of political life in Florence.
In front of the entrance to the Palazzo Vecchio you will also be able to see a copy of Michelangelo’s David (as you well know, the original is kept in the Galleria dell’Accademia).
Today the building is the seat of the municipality, but it is possible to visit it to admire the fourteenth-century architecture.
Tickets for the Palazzo Vecchio:
- Ticket for Palazzo Vecchio with video guide (from €22)
- Guided tour of Palazzo Vecchio (from €45).
6: Basilica of Santa Croce
The Basilica of Santa Croce is a Gothic-Renaissance style church , famous not only for the immense artistic wealth it houses, but also for being the burial place of illustrious personalities such as Galileo Galilei, Machiavelli, Michelangelo and Rossini.
Inside are the crucifixes by Cimabue and Donatello.
In the Cenacolo area you can also see the flood levels of the Arno River over time.
- Tickets Basilica of Santa Croce (from €9)
- Guided tour of the Basilica (from €45).
Before sunset during the summer, you can enrich your itinerary in Florence with a boat ride on the Arno River.
7: Piazzale di Michelangelo
The last (unmissable) stop of the things to see in Florence in 2 days is Piazzale Michelangelo at sunset.
Reachable by crossing the walls that enclose the historic center of Florence and after a steep staircase.
From here you will be able to enjoy a wonderful view of the profile of Florence, the domes, towers and bell towers that stand out from the roofs of the houses, while the sun irradiates the city with its last rays.
Tips for visiting Florence in 2 days
- This guide is designed for first: time visitors to the city. As you may well have imagined, there aren’t many things you can visit in a city like Florence in two days, but the itinerary you’ve just discovered will help you optimize and concentrate on the main ones.Also consider that the attractions included are quite small, so you won’t have the slightest problem getting around on foot;
- Choosing the accommodation in the best area to stay in Florence will make the difference on the success of this weekend in the city;
- Keep in mind that you will have to book tickets for the various attractions in advance if you don’t want to risk not actually accessing the places you had set for yourself.
With this article I hope I have been able to give you all the useful information to visit Florence in two days.
If you still have any doubts or questions, all you have to do is leave your comment at the end of the article and I will reply as soon as possible.
Are you going to Florence? Read also
- 3 Days in Florence: Ultimate 3-Day Itinerary!
- Accommodation in Florence: Advice on the Best Area
- Visit Florence: Top 27 Things To Do
