Florence

Our Florence series takes you to all the city’s highlights from the iconic domed cathedral (the ‘duomo’) to the world-famous art galleries and palazzos.  Travel through history and meet Dante, and Michelangelo, Machiavelli, Galileo and the Medici family. Learn about their connection to Florence and discover where you can ‘find’ them in the city today. 

Our 19 Florence episodes bring you the background information, history and culture you need to fully understand the city. In short, here is all the research you’d do yourself if only you had the time!

There’s a podcast for each episode and we are adding more written information to each post as fast as we can.  So, let’s go, or as the Italians say ‘Andiamo’!

FLORENCE : HISTORY & CULTURE

Florence - Photo by Nicola Pavan on Unsplash

Episode 1: Introduction to Florence

Last Updated on January 3, 2024 by Marian Jones Benvenuto a Firenze: welcome to Florence. This Tuscan gem is one of Europe’s most-visited cities and no wonder: world-famous art galleries and many splendid examples of … Read more
Florence Cathedral

Episode 2: Inside the Duomo, Florence

Last Updated on March 5, 2023 by Ctybr67k Florentines abroad who are missing their home city are not said to be ‘homesick’, but rather ‘sick for the dome’, so where else to begin our tour … Read more
Cathedral and Bell Tower in Florence

Episode 3: Exploring Around Florence Cathedral

Last Updated on May 24, 2023 by Ctybr67k You’ll probably head first to the cathedral itself (the ‘duomo’) but exploring the area around Florence cathedral will allow you to see the other three main attractions … Read more
Dante's Divine Comedy by Domenico Michelino

Episode 4: Dante’s Florence

Last Updated on January 3, 2024 by Marian Jones Dante’s Florence? It’s complicated! The poet Dante Alighieri, born in Florence in 1265, is to Italy what Shakespeare is to the UK: he wrote some of … Read more
Santa Croce 021200

Episode 5: Santa Croce in Florence

Last Updated on June 11, 2023 by Ctybr67k ‘In the dust scattered in Santa Croce is written the history of Italian civilisation’, explains the church’s guide book. So yes, Santa Croce, which means Holy Cross, … Read more
Florence Santa Maria Novella

Episode 6: Florence’s Santa Maria Novella

Last Updated on June 11, 2023 by Ctybr67k Santa Maria Novella, the church next door to the railway station which is named after it, has an exotic history and this post recounts one or two … Read more
Fresco at Palazzo Medici-Riccardi in Florence

Episode 7: Meet the Medici Family And Their Art

Last Updated on June 29, 2023 by Ctybr67k Everywhere in Florence you will hear about the Medici family, who played such an influential role in the city’s politics, art and culture from the 15th to … Read more
San Lorenzo Church in Florence

Episode 8: San Lorenzo Church, Cosimo di Medici and Donatello

Last Updated on October 27, 2023 by Ctybr67k Another Florentine church? Yes, because San Lorenzo was the Medici family church and is the burial place of many of them, including Cosimo, and also of Donatello, … Read more
San Lorenzo Library in Florence

Episode 9: Around San Lorenzo and Lorenzo il Magnifico

Last Updated on November 2, 2023 by Marian Jones There’s so much more to the San Lorenzo district than the church that this area needs a second episode. We visit two stunning buildings connected to … Read more
View from Pitti 031200

Episode 10: Piazza della Signoria – Bonfire of the Vanities

Last Updated on November 3, 2023 by Marian Jones We visit the Piazza della Signoria, the square from which Florence has been ruled from about 1300, which has been the site of major dramatic incidents … Read more
Signoria Palazzo Vecchio in Florence

Episode 11: Discovering The Palazzo Vecchio in Florence

Last Updated on February 26, 2024 by Marian Jones The Palazzo Vecchio – also known as the Signoria – dominates the Piazza della Signoria and is one of the most interesting buildings in Florence. It … Read more
Florence - Photo by Nicola Pavan on Unsplash

Episode 12: Advice From Machiavelli

Last Updated on January 4, 2024 by Marian Jones This episode takes time out from visiting the sights of Florence to focus on Nicolo Machiavelli whose name, 5 centuries after his death, is still a … Read more
Boboli Gardens Palazzo Pitti, Florence

Episode 13: The Palazzo Pitti in Florence

Last Updated on February 26, 2024 by Marian Jones This episode covers the Palazzo Pitti, the must-see palace on the ‘other’ side of the River Arno, just across the Ponte Vecchio. It’s a chance to … Read more
Galileo's Tomb at Santa Croce, Florence

Episode 14: Galileo, The Father of Modern Physics

Last Updated on February 26, 2024 by Marian Jones Amid all the art and culture in Florence, the story of Galileo is a reminder that the city also has a special place in the history … Read more
The Annunciation by Fra Angelico at San Marco in Florence

Episode 15: San Marco, Fra Angelico and Bartolomeo

Last Updated on February 27, 2024 by Marian Jones Perhaps one of Florence’s lesser-known pleasures, the San Marco monastery’s tranquil atmosphere and beautiful frescos are a delight. This post offers a brief history, including its … Read more
Michelangelo Pieta, Duomo Museum, Florence

Episode 16: Michelangelo’s Life and Work in Florence

Last Updated on February 29, 2024 by Marian Jones This episode is all about Florence’s most famous son, Michelangelo. It begins with a short biography, then explains where in Florence you can see his work … Read more
The Birth of Venus by Botticelli

Episode 17: The Famous Uffizi in Florence

Last Updated on May 21, 2023 by Ctybr67k This episode is devoted to the Uffizi, Florence’s world-famous art gallery, a must-see for 19th century visitors and equally unmissable today. First, there is a short history … Read more
Florence - Photo by Nicola Pavan on Unsplash

Episode 18: Florence History And Travel Writing

Last Updated on February 15, 2023 by Hannah Henderson First, a brief account of several history books which give a useful insight into Florence and then some glimpses into the many different writings of those … Read more
Florence - Photo by Nicola Pavan on Unsplash

Episode 19: Literary Florence

Last Updated on February 15, 2023 by Hannah Henderson The final episode on Florence focuses on a selection of the many literary writings connected to the city, beginning with the Tuscan writers Petrarch and Boccacio … Read more
Florence - Photo by Nicola Pavan on Unsplash

Florence Extra: Interview With Ciao Florence Tours

Last Updated on February 15, 2023 by Hannah Henderson Our very first Florence Extra episode with guest Danielle from the Florence-based tour company Ciao Florence who tells us all about the various tours and experiences … Read more
Florence - Photo by Nicola Pavan on Unsplash

Florence Extra: The Florentine

Last Updated on February 15, 2023 by Hannah Henderson We interview Helen Farrell, editor of The Florentine, to find out how this publication and website can enhance your knowledge of Florence. She explains their news … Read more
Florence - Photo by Nicola Pavan on Unsplash

Florence Extra: 700 Years of Dante

Last Updated on February 15, 2023 by Hannah Henderson Feel Florence – Interview Part 1 The first of a two-part interview with Andrea Giordani from Feel Florence, the city’s official tourism website. The 14th of … Read more
Florence - Photo by Nicola Pavan on Unsplash

Florence Extra: Dante and the Divine Comedy

Last Updated on February 15, 2023 by Hannah Henderson Feel Florence – Interview Part 2 Part 2 of our interview with Andrea Giordani from Feel Florence, the city’s official tourism website, in which he takes … Read more
Florence - Photo by Nicola Pavan on Unsplash

Florence Extra: A Virtual Tour of Florence

Last Updated on February 22, 2023 by Hannah Henderson A bonus episode to whet your appetite If you can’t get to Florence right now, there’s nothing to stop you going on a virtual visit and … Read more

Florence: links and reading

3 useful websites for tourists
Feel Florence
Visit Florence 
Destination Florence

4 guidebooks on Florence
Pocket Rough Guide to Florence 
Time Out Florence City Guide
Blue Guide Florence by Alta Macadam
Strolling through Florence by Mario Erasmo

2 more guidebooks on Florence and Tuscany
Lonely Planet Guide to Florence and Tuscany 
Eyewitness Travel Guide to Florence and Tuscany by Christopher Catling

3 history books and a guide to art and architecture
Florence, the Biography of a City by Christopher Hibbert
The Medici by Paul Strathern
The Medici by Mary Hollingsworth
Art and Architecture in Florence by Rolf C Wirtz

3 anthologies
Florence: A Traveller’s Reader by Edward Cheney
Florence Stories Everyman’s Library Pocket Classics
A Literary Companion to Florence by Frances King

2 memoirs of Florence
Florence: A Delicate Case by David Leavitt
A Florence Diary by Diana Athill

4 novels set in Florence
The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant
The Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone (Biographical novel about Michelangelo)
A Room with a View by E M Forster
Galileo’s Daughter by Dava Sobel

PODCASTS TO GET YOU STARTED