Florence: 3-Hour Walking Tour & Duomo with Licensed Guide

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1/16

Duration3h

GroupPrivate

LanguagesEN

Mobile ticketAccepted

Walking Florence's Medieval Streets: From Dante's Tower to Brunelleschi's Dome

You walk through Florence's historic center with a licensed guide for three hours, moving from Santa Maria Novella through the Medici quarter to the Duomo, Piazza della Signoria, and Ponte Vecchio. Entry to the Santa Maria Novella Pharmacy is included. The route is wheelchair accessible and suitable for all fitness levels, so you don't need to arrange your own transport or figure out which monuments matter most.

Step-by-step itinerary

Florence walking tour highlights

Start at Santa Maria Novella church
Visit Santa Maria Novella Pharmacy
See Palazzo Antinori exterior
Pass by Medici Chapels
Admire San Lorenzo church
View Medici Palace exterior and courtyard
Learn about Baptistery of San Giovanni
Admire Florence Duomo and dome
Walk Dante's district and see his tower-house
View Palazzo Vecchio exterior
Visit Piazza della Signoria open-air museum
Finish at Ponte Vecchio bridge

The Experience

You step out of Santa Maria Novella station and your guide is already pointing across the piazza toward the church of the same name — the first stop, and the one that's greeted every traveler arriving by train for centuries. From there, the walk unfolds through narrow streets that Dante himself walked, past the tower-house where he lived, into the 1000-year-old church where he first saw Beatrice. Your guide explains the connection without making it feel like a lecture; it's the kind of detail that makes you understand why this city mattered so much to him, and why it still does.

The route takes you through the Medici quarter — past the Palazzo Medici Riccardi, where Michelangelo lived under Lorenzo the Magnificent's roof, and San Lorenzo, the first cathedral of Florence and the church the Medici family sponsored entirely. You'll see the exterior of the Medici Chapels, their final resting place, and if the gates are open, step into the courtyard and garden. Then comes the Santa Maria Novella Pharmacy, one of the oldest in the world, created by monks from the nearby church. Your guide walks you through the wooden cabinets and glass bottles, explaining how perfume was born here, and you get entry included — no separate ticket line. The fragrances are still made by hand using the original recipes.

After that, the walk moves toward the heart of Florence. You pass Palazzo Antinori — the historical residence of the Tuscan wine makers — and hear stories about the region's wine history. Then you arrive at the Baptistery of San Giovanni, standing in one of the most beautiful squares in the city, where your guide tells you about the Gates of Paradise and why this is the oldest building in Florence. Right next to it rises the Duomo, the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, with its massive flower-shaped plan and the dome that Filippo Brunelleschi built — the biggest masonry dome in the world. Even Michelangelo said it would be difficult to equal and impossible to surpass. You stand there looking up at it, and your guide explains how he actually built it, which is the part most people don't know.

The final stretch takes you through Piazza della Signoria, the political center of Florence, where Palazzo Vecchio rises like a medieval fortress — it used to hold the prison for the most dangerous criminals and later became the Medici residence. The square itself is a museum under the open sky, filled with Renaissance sculptures. From there, you walk to Ponte Vecchio, the oldest bridge in town, lined with jewelers' shops hanging over the Arno river. That's where the tour ends, three hours after it started, and you're standing on the symbol of the city with your guide pointing out the details most visitors miss.

What’s included

Your three-hour walk includes a licensed guide who leads you through the historic center of Florence, entry to the Santa Maria Novella Pharmacy, and stops at the Duomo, Ponte Vecchio, Piazza della Signoria, Palazzo Vecchio, the Baptistery, San Lorenzo, the Medici Chapels (exterior), Dante's district, and the Medici Palace (exterior and courtyard if gates are open). The route is wheelchair accessible throughout.

Good to know

Easy physical levelWheelchair accessibleAccessible transportStroller friendlyPets welcomePublic transport nearby

Operated by Irina in Florence

Is this one for you?Choose this tour if you want to understand Florence's layout and history without arranging your own transport or deciding which monuments matter most — the licensed guide and fixed three-hour structure handle both, leaving you free to absorb the stories as you walk.