A Renaissance weekend in Florence: What to see, where to eat, what to do in the Italian city

As tourism returns to pre-pandemic levels across Italy, travellers itching to visit Florence face a delicate decision: How to experience the Tuscan capital’s Renaissance grandeur while remaining sensitive to the damage mass tourism inflicts.

One solution is to travel outside of the high season. But in the fall, visitors still will face crowds at the Galleria dell’Accademia and at the Uffizi (especially if the latter reopens the long-shuttered Corridoio Vasariano to the public this year, as planned).

Even better is to approach Florence not as a historical theme park, but as a living city, by seeking out lesser-known pockets and new projects – from an ambitious cultural complex to a tiny trattoria run by passionate young Florentines – that will help sustain this city for years to come.

ITINERARY

Friday

3pm: Admire a masterpiece

In the shadow of Filippo Brunelleschi’s magnificent dome on the eastern edge of Piazza del Duomo, the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo is easy to overlook, but you shouldn’t. This unassuming museum that displays art created for the Santa Maria del Fiore cathedral underwent a complete renovation several years ago.

Today the gorgeous (and rarely crowded) galleries showcase a remarkable collection of mediaeval and Renaissance masterpieces (admission from 15 euros, or around S$21). Admire Lorenzo Ghiberti’s gilded Baptistery doors, Donatello’s haunting Penitent Magdalene carved in wood and a full-scale reproduction of the cathedral’s original, unfinished facade. Most compelling is the luminous Bandini Pieta, one of Michelangelo’s final sculptures, whose white marble gleams anew after a two-year restoration that was completed in 2021.

6pm: Imbibe Italian spirits

Wander down narrow back streets in the historic centreto Piazza di San Pancrazio, where aperitivo has just begun at Manifattura. At this classy cocktail bar, the shelves are stocked exclusively with Italian spirits, and jovial servers in crisp white jackets are quick to offer advice on the menu of inventive concoctions, all inspired by Italian luminaries.

An appropriate one to try is the Conte Camillo (12 euros), a riff on the classic Negroni named after the Florentine count who supposedly invented the drink, here swapping out Campari for lesser-known Italian bitters – Bitter Fusetti and Operarossa – and served with taralli crackers and olives.

8.30pm: Taste the future

Expect something far more interesting than the typical Tuscan standards at Dalla Lola, a tiny Oltrarno trattoria opened in 2021 by Matilde Pettini, a fourth-generation chef whose family runs the long-standing Trattoria Cammillo a few streets away.

Here the ever-changing, handwritten menu is inspired by, but not yoked to, tradition. The restaurant embraces foreign flavours – za’atar, curry, sriracha – and reimagines local ingredients, like using lampredotto (a Florentine specialty made from the fourth stomach of a cow) in a pasta instead of a panino. Highlights of a recent meal in the homey, cheerful space were tender beef-heart meatballs and buttery, umami-rich gnocchi with miso. Dessert is a must, and mine was a teacup of the most delicious housemade tiramisu, made with cardamom-spiced cream. Dinner for two, with wine, about 60 euros.

11pm: Follow the music

At Manifattura Tabacchi, an innovative cultural hub has blossomed in the shell of a former Rationalist-style tobacco factory built in the 1930s. After years of neglect, the sprawling industrial complex northwest of the city centre is now a prime destination for music festivals, art exhibitions, outdoor movies, late-night concerts and dance parties.

No events on the calendar that catch your fancy? Your backup is Vineria Sonora, a funky enoteca that opened a few years ago in Sant’Ambrogio, specialisingnot only in natural and biodynamic Italian wines – still a rarity in Florence – but also in vinyl, with DJs spinning eclectic sets on an old turntable.

Saturday

8.30am: See a different David

Michelangelo’s David gets all the attention (and the attendant crowds), but arrive early at the Museo Nazionale del Bargello in the historic centre and you’ll most likely have a private audience with another mesmerising David.

Donatello’s famous bronze statue of the biblical hero oversees a grand hall filled with Renaissance sculptures on the second floor of the museum, located in a monumental 13th-century fortress with a handsome stone courtyard and arched loggias adorned with artworks (admission, 14 euros with advance reservations).

Don’t miss the side-by-side bronze bas-relief panels by Brunelleschi and Ghiberti, created in competition to determine who would design a set of baptistery doors (Ghiberti won), as well as a second David – this one in marble – also by Donatello.

11am: Shop artisanal wares

Florence has long been known for its traditional crafts and fine luxury goods, from silks and silver to leather and perfume. But to see what the modern era’s guilds are producing, pop into Florence Factory, an inviting shop dedicated to contemporary Florentine artisans and designers.

Located on the eastern end of Via dei Neri, this is the place to find handcrafted jewelry, woven satchels and handmade leather sandals, one-of-a-kind clothing made in Tuscany from hand-dyed fabrics, and colourful graphic-design prints of your favourite local landmarks.

1pm: Pick a panino

Whatever the fillings – prosciutto, burrata, truffles, tripe, lardo or lampredotto – the panino is the preeminent Florentine pick for a quick lunch. (Just please don’t eat one on the streets, per city ordinance.)

Tucked away on a small piazza in the Oltrarno, Schiaccia Passera is a shop that opened last year with ample seating and made-to-order sandwiches on fresh, house-baked schiacciata, Tuscany’s thinner, chewier version of focaccia. Try La Passera, with Tuscan salame, pecorino and porcini cream (7 euros), or the vegetarian La Chiavi, with sun-dried tomatoes, baby artichokes, mushrooms and arugula (6 euros), paired with a citrusy house spritz (6 euros).

4pm: Reset with modern art

Sometimes you might need a break – like Stendhal famously did – from all the Renaissance-era splendor. That’s when it’s time for Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi in the historic centre. Yes, it’s a museum in yet another absurdly beautiful Renaissance palazzo, but the contemporary art inside will snap you back to modern times.

Past exhibitions have included major retrospectives from international art stars, such as Olafur Eliasson and Marina Abramovic. Now up: Anish Kapoor, a sculptor known for his large-scale abstract installations, which here will include a site-specific work in the palazzo’s central courtyard (through Feb 4; admission, 15 euros).

8pm: Pick a pie

Unlike Naples or Rome, Florence has never been known for its pizza. But don’t tell that to the local crowd packed into Pizzeria Giovanni Santarpia, a lively restaurant opened by the pizzaiolo of the same name in 2020. It’s a 10-minute bus ride south from the city centre to this lauded locale that serves wood-fired Neapolitan-style pizzas made with the highest-quality ingredients.

Start with the montanarine, soft pillows of fried dough topped with tomato sauce and ricotta salata (7 euros). Then pick a pizza, maybe the Margherita Gialla with yellow Piennolo tomatoes, smoked provola cheese, salted sheep’s milk ricotta and basil (11 euros) or the peppery carbonara with fior di latte, crispy guanciale, eggy cream and pecorino fonduta (14 euros).

10pm: Go for a night stroll

After dinner, return to the historic center, where the daytime crowds will have thinned, for a nighttime passeggiata. Start at La Gelatiera, an artisanal gelato shop that opened in 2020 serving flavours made by hand with all-natural ingredients: Almonds from Noto, lemons from Sorrento, hazelnuts from Piedmont, Candonga strawberries.

Order a small cup (2.80 euros) with two flavours – peach and fig were my late-summer favourites – to savour while walking a couple of blocks to the Duomo. Admire the neo-Gothic marble facade, now aglow in the night, then continue onward to Piazza della Signoria to stand in awe beneath the soaring tower of the spectacular, spot-lit Palazzo Vecchio.

Sunday

10am: Have something sweet

A typical Italian breakfast is quick – a coffee and a cornetto at the nearest bar – but Sundays call for something special. Stroll to Pasticceria Buonamici, a family-run artisanal pastry shop and cafe in the San Frediano neighborhood, to join locals lingering over a frothy cappuccino and a custard-stuffed sfoglia pastry, chocolate-filled brioche or traditional budino di riso (rice-pudding tart). Afterward, walk to the nearby market at Piazza Santo Spirito to browse stalls selling vintage Italian sunglasses, marbled Florentine-style stationery, farm-fresh produce, Tuscan pecorino and fresh taralli in a variety of savouryflavors.

Noon: Take a hike

Florence is surrounded by hills, so there’s no need to join the masses huffing up the steps to Piazzale Michelangelo to snap another photo of that particular panorama. For a different perspective, start at Piazza Torquato Tasso, just west of Piazza Santo Spirito. From there, it’s an easy 20-minute hike along Via Villani and Via di Bellosguardo to a lovely natural vantage point where lush foliage frames a view across the terra-cotta rooftops, bell towers and ornate cathedrals.

Those with energy to burn can continue along the narrow lanes winding through the serene hills to arrive an hour or so later at San Miniato al Monte, a striking Romanesque basilica with hilltop views of the Tuscan capital from yet another angle.

By Ingrid K Williams © The New York Times Company

The article originally appeared in The New York Times.