The Duomo Square

Overview

This is the heart of the city, the Florentine square most evidently steeped in history, art and faith. During this tour, you can discover the magnificent mosaics in the Baptistery, the audacity of the Middle Ages builders, the dispute between Ghiberti and Brunelleschi and the adventurous story which led the latter to design the magnificent cupola of the Cathedral. Plus masterpieces by Giotto, Donatello, Michelangelo… you’ll be left speechless!

Places

Saint John’s Baptistery
Santa Maria del Fiore Cathedral
Opera del Duomo Museum

Info

Tour duration: 3 hours, visiting inside all the Monuments in the Duomo square.

With an all-inclusive ticket, you can also climb the Cupola and the Bell tower. This can be done independently or we can accompany you, on request.

We recommend dressing in an appropriate way as we will be visiting holy places.

The tour of the Baptistery, Cathedral and Museum is suitable for all visitors and is not particularly difficult.

The climbs to reach the top of the Cupola and Bell Tower each involve climbing 400 steps: these are therefore not suitable for visitors with reduced mobility and are definitely not recommended for visitors with heart conditions or those who suffer claustrophobia or vertigo symptoms.

Fees

Guided tour starting from 150,00 € max 3 hours

The fees do not include museum tickets, transportation costs or the rental of radio systems.

The Admission to the Santa Maria del Fiore Cathedral is free.

Combine ticket valid to enter Saint John’s Baptistery and Opera del Duomo Museum: 15,00 €
Reduced ticket (Schools' groups, children 7-14 years old): 5,00 €
Free admission: 0-6 years old

For groups, we recommend renting radio systems. We can manage the rental, on request.

By booking this tour we can follow you step by step, helping you to make the most of your all-inclusive ticket in the time you spend in Florence. If you are planning to visit the monuments on Piazza del Duomo independently, we recommend reading our BLOG instead.

What to expect

Piazza del Duomo in Florence is one of those places one never stops discovering: it welcomes newcomers with its imposing beauty and daily astonishes those who walk through it regularly. This is why we have designed a tour dedicated entirely to this religious centre, featuring visits to all its main monuments.

We will start with the Baptistery, which Dante Alighieri dubbed “my beautiful Saint John”: over the course of its 1000-year history, these stones have seen the baptisms of entire generations of more or less famous Florentines. The inner cupola is fully covered in a rich golden mosaic depicting stories from the Bible with lively details.

We will then focus on the Cathedral and the history of its construction, from the ancient Church of Santa Reparata to the foundation of the new Santa Maria del Fiore, an ambitious project which occupied the Florentines for almost six centuries and was to lead to the construction of what was at the time the largest church in the world. The bare interior decoration stands in contrast with the rich external marbles and hides a secret key for understanding the entire square: come with us and we will reveal it!

Above the altar is the majestic cupola built by Filippo Brunelleschi amidst criticism and admiration from his fellow citizens. The edifice is still studied and admired today for the amazing balance supporting its structure.

And there’s more! Moving to the back of the Cathedral we can access the new Museum of the Opera del Duomo, hosting all the original works created for the monuments of the square: the ancient façade of Santa Maria del Fiore, the doors of the Baptistery, the bas-reliefs of the Bell tower, the “Magdalene” by Donatello, the “Deposition” by Michelangelo… and many more.

And if you are still hungry for art and history, the tour can continue by climbing the Cupola or Giotto’s Bell tower: the view of Florence from above will conquer the heart of even the most sceptical traveller!