Florence is one of the most touristic cities in the world, with a small and easily accessible on foot old town, which is a great advantage for those travelling with children.
To visit Florence with children, you need to have activities and visits that involve your little ones.
Beware of the heat because in summer Florence can become really sultry: alternate outdoor activities (early in the morning or in the evening) to activities in museums, with refreshing air conditioning.
- Museo Galileo: Perfect for school-age children, suitable also for preschoolers as it is not very large and the rooms are spacious and comfortable to visit. You can’t miss the small interactive room on the ground floor. Ticket €9.00 adult, €5.50 reduced 6-18 years, free under 6 years. Family Ticket (2 adults + max 2 kids up to 18 years old) €22.00
- Uffizi Gallery: The visit of the entire museum, one of the most famous in the world that does not need any introduction, is quite long above all if you want to linger at all the paintings and halls. On the site of the museum, however, I found two fil rouge to follow for your visit with children: one on the flowers, one on the beloved monsters. Alternatively you can do as we did, take an audio-guide and explain in a simple way what strikes your child more, leaving him to live the museum. It will be the art (without filters from the school study) to guide his choices and the path will become unique and interesting. Tickets: Adult €20, reduced (Italian citizens, European Union, Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein between 18 and 25 years) €10, free under 18 years
- Astrophysical Observatory of Arcetri: all children, even very young, are fascinated by the sky and the stars. Why not spending an evening watching them in a very unique way? This year the Observatory presents Summer Nights at Arcetri 2018: every Tuesday and Thursday from 12th June to 26th July, with a grand final on 4th September, meetings, shows, conferences and concerts at the Teatro del Cielo of the Astrophysical Observatory of Arcetri. And at the end of each evening, the observations of the sky with the astronomers.
- Boboli Gardens: Right in the city centre, a true green area full of plants where your kids can walk and run, in all the beauty of the typical Italian garden. You can stop at the Kaffeehaus, a Rococo pavilion which offers a beautiful view of Florence and the Fountain of Ganymede. Suggestive and curious place is the grotto of Madama designed by Tribolo and richly decorated with sponges and stalactites: it will be a bit like playing explorers! Tickets: Adults €7, reduced (Italian citizens, European Union, Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein between 18 and 25 years) €3.50, free under 18 years
- Carousel of the Piazza della Repubblica: a MUST! And maybe while your husband looks at the ride, you can get away and have a look at the beautiful shops of Via dei Calzaioli!
Visit Florence with children, the accommodation is also important!
You can choose Family Apartments, which has apartments all over the centre of Florence, very near main attractions.
We have chosen the Windows on Florence Renaissance Palace apartment, on Lungarno Torrigiani, just a stone’s throw from Ponte Vecchio. From the windows of the large apartment (78 square meters well divided, which give the feeling of greater space) you can enjoy an amazing view of Ponte Vecchio and you can see exactly on the other side the Museo Galileo and the Uffizi Gallery.
The apartment is spacious and furnished in a simple but functional way for the children (except the split of the air conditioning just behind the head in the room with twin beds and a little bad smell in this room, so that Sissi slept with us).
In the living room you will find children’s games and a blackboard to draw. The two bathrooms, one with exclusive service of the double room, guarantee to each their own intimacy. The kitchen is well equipped and livable: you will be able to organize the breakfast perfectly, while for the meals you can make use of delivery services (like Just Eat) or of the many restaurants and pizzerias in the area. In any case there is a small supermarket named Conad at just 150 meters.
The building was supposed to have a porter to leave our suitcases, but we were forced to leave them in the reception in Piazza della Signoria… If you arrive in the morning consider a bit of hustle and bustle for check-in (available from the 2 pm and very little flexible) and suitcases, but the location is really worth it and the double bed is ample and with a really comfortable mattress!
