Thanks for asking this question. Florence is, of course, an amazing city and there is just a lifetime of wonderful things to visit there.

If I had to boil it down to a few things, I would say these are the few things you might not have done in the touristy visit that you should DEFINITELY do on your next trip.

1) Just south from Santa Croce church on via Giuseppe verdi, there is an internet cafe on the west side of the street, and a taco place on the easy side of the street. This is quite possibly the best burrito house outside of mexico… in the world. Get the picadillo meat in a burrito. Absolutely fantastic. Don’t miss it.

2) while you’re there, ask the dude behind the counter for exact walking directions to the pastry shop that opens at 2am… its right behind that block in a mess of tiny streets. It opens at 2 or 3 am and serves HOT fresh pastries for about 50 cents. Its because they’re making the pastries for all the coffee shops in the city for the next morning and there is a crowd of drunken revelers there when the doors open to receive pastry goodness. Absolutely hilarious and a great time… Remember its only open from like 2-6am… read #3…

3) In order to get partied up enough to necessitate a pastry at 3am, you need to go to several of the bars in our wonderful city. I highly reccomend “the blob” if it’s still open. It’s right behind the Palazzo vecchio, about 100 feet west of the corner of via vinegia and the main drag, via del proconsolo. its open late, and you might have to pay a cover charge or membership charge, but it’s worth it. it’s a smaller dive bar with GREAT live music and a fun atmosphere. The proprietor and I made a great friendship when I lived nearby.

4) the good restaurants in florence are too many to mention. However there are a few that are, even when held in international regard, amazingly notable, and I wouldnt miss… The first and foremost is Acqua al Due. It’s on Via Dela Vigna Vecchia, 40 R. It’s closed monday. Get the Bisteca Balsamico. (Balsamic Steak) and a good $10 bottle of wine. You won’t regret it and you’ll never forget it.

5) piazza michelangelo is across the river on a hillside overlooking the city. A great walk for someone with a mild amount of athleticism or a cab ride, and you’ll be stunned at the view.

6) another option is Fiesole, which is a bus ride up the hill behind the city. catch a bus from the train station and plan to arrive at sunset to see a great view.

please please please let me know how it goes and if you did see these places. There are more where.

Thanks,
-Daniel

In the following flickr photo set, I’ve documented all of the places I’ve visited in Florence:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pjebsen/sets/1631079

If there is any particular place you’d like to know more about, I’d be happy to answer your questions.

Have you been to the Pitti palace? If you cross the river, there is a Medici palace a short walk from the Ponte Vecchio. It IS touristy, but if you walk all the way to the top of garden, you get a stunning view of the skyline, incluing the Duomo, and those foothills dotting the Tuscan countryside. Also, it’s worth paying the Euro to see all of the different places in the palace.

I had two favorite restaurants: the Ristorante de Medici across from the Medici Chapel, which is a lovely little bistro type place. If you like lamb, get the roast lamb and the tagliatelle, which is a freshly rolled pasta (as opposed to rolled and then preserved). You can’t get tagliatelle anywhere else that I’ve been to, and it’s extremely good.

The other one I can’t remember the exact name but I think it’s like Mama Rosa or something beginning with Mama. It’s on the same side of the river as the Pitti Palace. Excellent food, excellent service.

Have you been to the market by Porcino, the pig? First, you should toss a coin in and rub his nose, since you obviously like going back. But this market has everything, and you can haggle. I bought some very high quality pashmina there for very cheap.

Have you been inside the Santa Croce church? It’s fascinating because it is the burial place of Michelangelo, Galileo, and other Italians of note. Also, the best gelato that I had is from a sweet shop right of the plaza with the church.

Those are the places I enjoyed the most in Florence (even if the museums were included).

Hello jooliafs !

I was born in Argentina :) actually I’m living in Brazil.

Well Fiesole near of Firenze if the most romantic place I’ve been see. You have a lot of history and a wonderful view of Firenze.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/medievalkarl/69062208/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pamwatt/148579999/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brpinc/107714189/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jennaz/130796675/

Good anniversary

Regards,
Pablo

Hi. Here are a few:

1. Go back to the David, but try it around 4:30 in the afternoon—there’s almost no one there.

2. Eat a meal at Osteria Santo Spirito, on the piazza of the Church of thd Santo Spirito. Someone should order the mixed grill, the best meal I’ve ever had in Italy. A small, very Italian restaurant with incredibly authentic food.

3. Brunelleschi’s Laurentian Library.

4. I’m told that the patio restaurant at the Villa San Michele in Fiesole, overlooking Florence, is spectacular. It was closed when we were there last. Contact info: Vittorio Dall’O’, Food & Beverage Manager, Hotel Villa San Michele, Tel: +39 055 5678263; Fax: +39 055 5678250; E-mail: reservations@villasanmichele.net. Jackets required for men in the evenings.

5. The Bargello. It’s the only one I always go back to.

Jim

If you and hubby are in decent shape, you could get a few bikes and ride down into the Chianti region.

One of the nicest times that I had on my six month Europe trip was simply to rent a bike one day ride south. The fellow at the bike shop (there are multiple and it wasn’t expensive) gave me a little map and traced out a route after we discussed where to go. Once out of the F(irenze|lorence) area it was amazing. Country roads and quiet, beautiful scenery. I rode down to a town (perhaps 15 miles south) and had lunch in the town square.

In general, the best experiences seem to come from stepping outside of the tourist itinerary.

i was born in florence and maybe i never see everything in town

except museum and famous building that you can choose on a tourist guide, the best thing you can do in florence in to walk in the hillside around florence.
really the best is via di San Leonardo, there is something magic there.
via di San Leonardo leads to Forte di Belvedere that is a wonderful place to go (much better then piazzale Michelangelo, belive me) if you are lucky it will be an moder art exposition outside the Forte di Belvedere and this is a very good looking ;-)
another wonderful place is Certosa (you can look at majestic Pontormo’s fresco) but you need a car because is 5-10 km away fron the city center (if you rent a car you should drive to Badia di Passignano on the same direction of Certosa going to Siena no more than 25km away)

i’m crazy for ice cream and i really think that the best in italy is in florence (try at Vivoli-piazza san Simone and Vestri piazza Salvemini, there are others but is too difficult to explain here)

for food i need another post!

i lived abroad in paris for a year and the best thing i can say about taking in a city is to do nothing. sit in a cafe and take in your surroundings. also, the square by santo spirito is fantastic. there are a couple great places to eat that aren’t as touristy. i met a local there who gave my friends and me great directions to a fabulous gelato place by the uffizi (sorry i can’t remember the name). hope this helps!

Hike up to the Piazza Michealangelo at sunset… You’ll see all the beautiful colours that the painters saw centuries ago… it is enough to take your breath away. Few things made me as happy and feel as alive as that view.

For a nice (moderate) dinner, visit the Golden O right off the Ponte Vecchio. It’s on other side from the city center, but offers unbeatable views of the Arno and bridge. The food is excellent too. My friends and I celebrated birthdays there, and whenever I had friends visiting from the US, I loved to take them there. The wait staff was very friendly too.

I enjoyed spending the evenings in the Piazza Signoria and the Piazza Repubblica and listening to the music played by locals. It’s even better with gelato. ;-)

Have a wonderful time. I miss Florence immensely. Florence = love. :)