Things to do in Florence

As many of you know, my husband and I traveled to Florence a few weeks ago. It was my first time to Italy, but Austin studied there during a semester in college. We were so excited to get to see Italy and experience this city together!

As promised, here is a little travel guide sharing a few details from our trip and our recommendations. A few of you emailed questions and I tried my best to include those answers. If you haven’t been to Florence, I highly suggest adding it to your travel wish list! xx Ashley

OUR FAVORITE RESTAURANTS

I was so excited about the gelato in Italy, and Florence did not disappoint. Honestly, I don’t have a favorite place because they were all delicious! We ate gelato everyday on our trip, and tried new places each time. You can’t go wrong. My favorite flavors were Hazelnut and Nutella…yum!

I highly recommend trying Simbiosi for lunch or dinner.  Austin and I stumbled upon this place one day and we had the best lunch here. Everything is farm to table and 100% organic. The pizza was absolutely amazing. Seriously, the best pizza we’ve ever had! You must go here.

For the best view of the city, you need to check out Caffe La Terrazza. One of our friends moved to Florence and she said this was a local favorite. We went up here one evening to watch the sunset and sip coffee. It was simply beautiful!

GUCCI SOHO DISCO BAG (SIMIALR STYLE UNDER $300)

For pasta, we loved Zázá. This restaurant was located near Centrale Mercato (which is really neat to see if you have time).  From the homemade pasta to the wine, the whole dining experience was wonderful.

Il Latini was another favorite for dinner. Their house red wine was amazing! I will say, if you go here, go hungry. Like very hungry. The food is served in several courses and very large portions. Il Latini is known for their meat selection, but they have several vegetarian options as well.

We didn’t snap any photos here, but we also loved Ciro & Sons. We ate here our last night, and it was very very good. I recommend getting a spot on the patio if you can!

MUSEUMS & CHURCHES TO VISIT

One of my favorite places was the Duomo. It was absolutely gorgeous. We hiked to the top (wear comfy shoes, lots of steps) and had the most beautiful view of the city. If you can, get there early, the line gets really long.

Another Church that we visited was the Santa Maria Novella. From the beautiful architecture to the history, it’s a must see!

If you want to see The David, you need to visit Galleria dell’Accademia. It also is very busy, I suggest getting there early!

FAVORITE CITY SPOTS

JACKET | PURSE | JEANS | SUNGLASSES | NECKLACE

We loved visiting the different Piazzas. Some of our favorites included Piazza della Repubblica, Piazza del Dumo and Palazzo Pitti. 

I highly recommend walking the Ponte Vecchio and walking through the market. A word of caution, the market gets very busy, but it is neat to experience the market on Ponte Vecchio once or twice. We really enjoyed walking the bridge. It was really neat to see at night!

Florence is full of designer boutiques. We really didn’t do much shopping here, with the exception of visiting Gucci’s flagship store. Even though we have a Gucci in Dallas, I really wanted to visit the original store in Florence. It was neat to tour the store and hear about the history behind the brand. There is also the Gucci Museum located a few miles away from the store. We didn’t get to go, but I’ve heard it was pretty neat if you have the time!

WHERE TO STAY

We stayed at J.K. Place located in Piazza Santa Maria Novella.  This boutique hotel was recommended by our travel agent Taylor and we really enjoyed our stay. This hotel only has 20 rooms, but everyone knows your name and it’s very personal. One cool thing about this hotel is that they give their guests a wifi hotspot to take with you while you walk around the city.