Next stop on my lil trip was to Florence. Spoiler alert: Florence was my favorite city of the trip (I've already booked a trip back... eek). Idk man, it's just so beautiful and relaxed and you can eat anything you want and never get bloated. What more does anyone want?
Spoiler alert: there's a lot of bloggy BS below. If you are like me and you are an impatient lil bug, you can just click here to get to an itinerary list.
Day 1:
I took an Italo train from Milan to Florence (Firenze SMN). My ticket was ~55 EUR and I think I booked it about 3 weeks out, so you can plan pretty far in advance. I took the 8:40am train that got into Florence at 10:15am so I'd still have plenty of time in Florence without waking up at the buttcrack of dawn. The trains are so much nicer than in the US, they move so quickly, every time I take public transit in Europe I want to cry (it's fine, iz no problem).
I stayed in the PLUS Florence Hostel. I booked a private room with a private bathroom for only 60 EUR a night. Honestly, it was such a steal. The rooms were so clean and modern. The hostel felt incredibly safe (as most of Florence does tbh). I always try to google "best hostels for solo female travelers" when I plan a trip and this was one of the most consistent answers. There's a beautiful roof deck and my room even had a cute lil balcony with doors I could open for some air. The view from my bed when in the morning for the sunrise was gorgeous. I cannot recommend enough for someone looking to save a few bucks when in Florence.
They do let you drop your bags off before check-in, so that's exactly what I did. I then headed to the Mercato Centrale to grab some lunch and explore before my museum reservations. I ended up getting a plate of pasta and zucchini (don't judge my combo) from bufet F. Ili Perini. If memory serves me correctly the pasta was sooo good, authentic, and unpretentious.
I had some time to kill before Galleria Academia (I booked tickets beforehand), so I just posted up at a coffee shop and got a cappuccino while reading my book (ok it's a kindle so i guess e-book but that sounds lame). Then it was off to the Galleria Academia to see David and his lil penis. Fun fact: apparently the reason all these old sculptures have tiny penises is because the ancient Romans believed that a man could only have a big dick or a big brain (jury still out on this one). No man wanted people to think he was dumb so instead he would choose for his sculpture to have a tiny dick which is just so funny because today guys would FOR SURE choose the opposite.
Apparently I didn't think about the fact that I'd be doing back to back art galleries when I planned this, so unless you're a big art girlie I'd probably space these out. The Uffizi was my FAVORITE art museum in Italy. The Botticelli paintings were stunning. It's a truly magical place, plus you can take a little break and go to their outdoor bar for your 100th Aperol Spritz.
I will say, buying tickets for museums in Italy is SO confusing. 1) Because the Italians aren't exactly known for their organizational skills and 2) Soooo many companies are trying to take advantage of tourists and charge fees to basically buy the tickets for them. This is the official website. I bought my tickets for the Galleria Academia (€16) and the Uffizi (€24) on here. It looks like now you can also buy tickets to the Boboli Gardens (up next), but when I went you had to buy them in person.
After the Uffizi you're basically at the Ponte Vecchio so I walked across and got some pictures of the river. Ponte Vecchio (the Old Bridge) is covered in tiny shops. When the bridge was reconstructed in the 1300s it had a variety of merchant shops. In the 1400s the mix of shops started to include "less aesthetic" things like grocers and the government was like gtfo that's not cute and replaced them all with goldsmiths and silversmiths. Today it's still completely filled with jewelers! My mom bought a necklace when she was in Italy in her 20s and so that was something I really wanted to do while I was on my trip. Even though it's touristy, I was riding a high from the day and decided this was where I would get mine. I just got a simple gold chain that I can wear every day.
At this point I had walked for a million miles but I was on a mission. I went to the Boboli Gardens and by the time I got there around 5pm they were just about to close so they let me walk in for free. The views were pretty, there's this big fancy fountain, and there were a lot of couples laying out on blankets. Overall a nice place to stop and relax for a bit if that's what you're into.
On the way back to the hotel I got some gelato at Galateria Pitti (cash only) which was SO good. Then as though my feet didn't want to murder me enough already, I made a quick stop at Piazza della Pubblica on the way back. There's a very instagrammy carousel.
Dinner was at 13 Gobbi which I think 1000 people recommended to me when I mentioned I was going to Florence. The Rigatoni was delicious but I do remember getting something else with pork and I didn't realize pork in Italy is more often wild boar. The wild boar had little hairs on it and even to this day when I think about it I cringe. So unless that appeals to you, I'd say stick to the pasta !!
Day 2:
Obviously I couldn't walk another step after the previous day, so I booked a wine tour out to the Chianti region. I booked through Viator with the tour group Walkabout. The name of the tour was: Taste of Chianti: Tuscan Cheese, Wine and Lunch from Florence. The bus was kind of like a Jeep/bus hybrid that was super comfortable.
We met up in front of the National Library at 9am so I stopped for some breakfast at a local cafe. Melaleuca Bakery is right on the river and was so adorable. I wouldn't say it's a "must go" but if you're looking for a good quick coffee/pastry for breakfast it's definitely worth stopping by!
The tour group had ~20 people that ranged in age from 25-70. The guide was really good at keeping people engaged and honestly everyone was so nice. I always find that people on tours are super friendly towards solo travellers and normally go the extra mile to help you feel included. There's always some sort of mother/daughter pair that's willing to adopt a solo traveller, so that's what I usually look for.
We stopped at 3 wineries and then visited the town of Greve. The wineries were: Villa Le Corti, La Cantinetta di Rignana, and Lamole di Lamole. We did lunch at La Cantinetta di Rignana where you can eat family style at beautiful outdoor tables overlooking the Chianti region. I would highly recommend! Last stop was Greve which is a really cute little town that we just stopped in for about an hour to use the restroom and get some snacks for the way home.
I didn't make any dinner reservations for that night because after the 200 glasses of wine we had I was exhausted. I'm pretty sure between the day of walking followed by a day of drinking, I fell asleep as soon as I got back to the hotel.
Day 3:
Another day of insane walking (no complaining, tyvm). I did balance it out though with some of my favorite food of the trip. I started the morning with breakfast at the Brunellesco Caffe which was a very cute and understated cafe not far from the Duomo but just removed enough to be quiet. They have some outdoor tables you can sit at while you enjoy a pastry and cappuccino.
When I travel to a new city I love signing up for a walking tour. I usually find the free tours offer really great guides and it's a good low pressure way to see some of the sights and get some background on why they're historically significant. This is the website I used to book and I signed up for the 10:30am tour. In retrospect it probably would have been better to do this before my day 1 activities, but it just didn't work out that way with what tickets were available for the museums (and it doesn't really matter). I got a bit more of a historical background on some of the sights I had already seen and learned a ton about the Medici family and the history of Rome. We visited the Piazza della Signoria, the Ponte Vecchio, Pitti Palace, and Piazza Santo Spirito.
The tour ends right by some of the city's famous schiacciata shops. Schiacciata is a type of bread similar to a foccacia and the sandwich shops in Florence use it for their sandwiches. If you live in NY you might have seen this type of sandwich at All'Antico Vinaio. The guide's main piece of advice was to look if the sandwich shops make the Schiacciata fresh to order. If they have sandwiches already sitting in the case, then they're likely to be stale/old and more of a tourist trap. I went to the place she suggested and it was incred.
This fuel was important because even though I just walked for 2.5 hours it was time to climb the famous Duomo steps. I'm going to be honest... this was a HARD climb. If you are not in shape or you hate climbing stairs or you hate small spaces, this might not be for you. Unfortunately there are no elevators...just the 463 steps. When I was in Italy, Omicron was starting to pop up in Europe so I chose to wear a mask when I was inside public spaces. The walk up might be easier without it? Although you would miss out on the very fun experience of an old man screaming at you in Italian for wearing a mask (you can run from the USA, but you can't hide from crazies!!).
The view from the top was INCREDIBLE (as it would obviously have to be to get anyone to climb those stairs ever.) When you get back downstairs you can look at the rest of the Cathedral and then check out the other places included in your ticket. I think I went to the Baptistery and the Museo. I honestly don't remember much except for this cute lil stone lion that was in the Museo... so while you should check them out because you paid for it, I wouldn't call them a MUST DO experience (but they're also super quick).
After a brief intermission for my 4pm siesta back at hotel, I headed to the Piazzale Michelangelo to watch the sunset. The park is beautiful and as you headed over to the stairs you can grab a bevvy from one of the little carts. Everyone starts getting their spots on the steps pretty early, so try to get there at least half an hour before sunset. I obviously got another aperol spritz but there were also people there that had brought food and were eating their dinner while waiting.
After the sunset, I headed to one of my best dinner's of the trip. A guy I know at work recommended it to me--it's the restaurant of his friend who left America when she married an Italian man and they opened this spot. Enoteca Pitti Gola e Cantina has an amazing tasting menu that was such a good value for the incredible food and wine pairing. I sat at a table outside, right across from the Pitti Palace. I made a reservation via email for their tasting menu which comes at the extremely reasonable price of €55 for 4 courses and wines (only €45 if doing vegetarian or you can go with the €65 option that includes truffles). Everything was DELICIOUS and it felt magical sitting next to the Pitti Palace.
Day 4:
Okay so day 4 was really only a half day in Florence and was originally supposed to be a full day in Sienna...but I had to improvise. I know a lot of people love Sienna, but I really wasn't feeling it. I think it was a mixture of two things:
Every activity in Sienna is literally just climbing to a high point and then looking over Sienna. What's that remind you of? Oh climbing tall things in Florence and then looking over Florence? Lemme tell you, VERY similar experience. If you go, you do not need to do both the Duomo and the Torre del Mangia (spoiler alert: they both show you the same view!!).
I just really loved Florence and wanted one more day there. The idea of spending time just shopping in Sienna rather than experiencing more of Florence wasn't sitting right with me, so I decided to ~follow my bliss~.
Anyways with that in mind, here's how my Sienna (half) day went. I took a local train on Trenitalia from 8:10am to 9:38am. You can book both legs of the trip in advance and I believe if you pay up for a certain type of ticket you can switch what time you take the train back (but don't quote me on this). The tickets were only €9.50 each way (so much less expensive than when I just want to go back to NJ from NYC skdlfj;a).
I booked the "Gate of Heaven" ticket for the Duomo di Siena which entitles you to a tour that brings you to the top of the Duomo to look out over the city. The view isn't super impressive from the top (not sure if the Torre del Mangia is any better) but the inside of the Cathedral is beautiful. If I'm remembering properly, they give you a link to listen to a tour on your phone in the Cathedral but the cell reception in Sienna is TERRIBLE so it took a while to get it to download (even with the local Wifi they had...I think?).
The main attraction in Sienna is the big town square (which is a poor description because it's actually round). The Piazza del Campo is still in the medieval style and it slopes downward in the center. It's also the home to the famous Palio (horse race) held annually between all of Sienna's neighborhoods. I remember there were opera singers putting on a free concert and a bunch of tour groups throughout the square. As you climb up (literally) onto the surrounding streets there's a lot of stores but I found most of them were very touristy and not necessarily where I wanted to spend my money (especially with only carryon luggage). I managed to scope out one restaurant with the lil bit of cell service I had that was tucked away but offered seating on the square. It was perfect for people watching and also was a bit less of a tourist trap (I think) versus some of the other more expensive restaurants around.
Trattoria La Porticina is sadly now closed but I will think about that plate of pasta for a long long time. These thick noodles were covered in sundried tomatoes, arugula, burrata, lemon juice, and poppy seeds. Just look at this gorgeous lil plate of pasta!!
So that was about when I had enough of Sienna and with the little cell service I could find, I got myself back to the train station and took an earlier train back to Florence (they leave about every 30 minutes).
I used my extra time in Florence to explore Santo Spirito (a neighborhood my tour guide from the day earlier had recommended). I grabbed some gelato at Sbrino and sat in the Piazza Santo Spirito to do some people watching. After that I walked around the city a bit longer and got some shopping in. I found this beautiful print store where they make traditional copper prints and I bought this hand-painted piece of the Florence skyline.
After a rest at the hotel (obvi), I grabbed some dinner at Gustapizzeria. Everyone and their mother recommended this place to me and the pizza was excellent. I think it's right by a bunch of the study abroad schools so it was packed with college students but there were also some families and other tourists. They have some good seating outside which was perfect for a late summer night. After dinner I met up with a friend from the previous day's wine tour at Bitter Bar for some speakeasy type cocktails.
That's a wrap on Florence!! It's truly an amazing city and I can't wait to go back (and eat).
Ok I promised a bullet point itinerary, so here it is:
Day 1: Florence
8:30am: Take the Italo train from Milan to Firenze SMN and drop off bags at PLUS Florence Hostel
11am: Grab lunch at Mercato Centrale
12pm: Post up at a cafe and rest
1pm: Tickets to Galleria Academia
2:30pm: Tickets to the Uffizi. Make sure to stop at the rooftop bar for a drink.
4pm: Walk over the Ponte Vecchio and do some shopping
5pm: Visit the Boboli Gardens
6pm: Get Gelato at Gelateria Pitti
7pm: Rest up at the hotel and stop by the Piazza della Pubblica on the way back.
8pm: Dinner at 13 Gobbi
Day 2: Chianti
8am: Grab breakfast at Melaleuca Bakery
9am: Meet up with the Chanti Wine Tour
Villa Le Corti
La Cantinetta di Rignana
Lamole di Lamole
Stop in Greve for coffee and snacks
Day 3: Florence
8am: Breakfast at Brunellesco Cafe
10am: Meet up for Walking Tour - La Bussola Free Tours
Piazza della Signora
Ponte Vecchio
Pitti Palace
Piazza Santo Spirito
1pm: Grab a schiacciata sandwich
2pm: Climb the famous Duomo steps
3pm: Visit the Baptistery and Museo
4pm: Rest up at the hotel
5pm: Head to the Piazzale Michelangelo to watch the sunset
8pm: Dinner at Enoteca Pitti Gola e Cantnia
Day 4: Sienna & Florence
8am: Take the Trenitalia to Siena
10:30am: Visit the Siena Duomo and do the free audio tour
12pm: People watch at Il Campo
1pm: Have lunch at Trattoria La Porticina (RIP)
2pm: Do some shopping and walk around the streets
3pm: Catch a train back to Florence
5pm: Get gelato at Sbrino and enjoy Piazza Santo Spirito
6pm: Do some shopping and exploring in the Santo Spirito neighborhood
8pm: Dinner at Gustapizzeria
10pm: Drinks at Bitter Bar
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