Florence Hotel Review
Hotel Calzaiuoli  My rating for this hotel out of 5 possible stars. Since it was our anniversary, we upgrade our hotel selection and stayed in a double superior room that we found to be wonderful. The bedroom was very large, there was an extra sitting room, and an all marble bathroom. The breakfast room was charming and the number of selections were unbelievable! The location was perfect for everything we wanted to do in Florence. This is a very nice hotel. (€250)
Italy 2006: Florence
Florence from Piazzale Michelangelo. Click on the panoramic image to open a window with a larger version of this photo.
Florence is a beautiful city less than two hours from Rome by train. We arrived in Florence around midday and decided the best way to get an overview of the city was to take the Florence City Sightseeing Bus Tour. Although many of the attractions along the bus route are easily within walking distance, I highly recommend taking both routes of this bus tour. One of the routes took us to a nearby village of Fiesole (shown in the panoramic photo above as the hills in the background) for a distant view of Florence in the valley. The other route took us to Piazzale Michelangelo for the view shown in the panoramic photo above. It was amazing to find two such spectacular views of Florence!
Place the mouse over an image on the right to view here.
Florence from Piazzale Michelangelo   Florence from Piazzale Michelangelo   Ponte Vechhio   On our way to Fiésole  
In Fiésole, just outside Florence   View of Florence along the bus ride to Fiésole   The City Sightseeing bus ride to Fiésole   The City Sightseeing bus ride to Fiésole  
Under the Tuscan Sun   Basilica of Santa Croce   Piazza de' Pitti    National Library of Florence (Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale di Firenze )  
Joe and Amy waiting for the bus to pick us up again.   Porta San Frediano   Porta San Niccolò   The Gallery of the Uffizi   
Florence is a beautiful city with a rich history. Some of the world's greatest thinkers and artists can be traced to Florence. Names such as Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Dante, and Machiavelli all appear in the history of Florence.

The Arno River runs through Florence.   Joe and Amy   Joe and Amy   Piazzale Michelangelo  
The Church of San Miniato al Monte   Piazzale di Porta Romana   The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, or Duomo   Battistero di San Giovanni, or Baptistery of St. John  
The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, or Duomo   Ponte Vecchio   Piazza della Repubblica   Florence at night  
Piazzale di Porta Romana   Loggia dei Lanzi in the Piazza della Signoria  
Place the mouse over an image on the left to view here.
Although we did not have enough time in Florence to actually go in any of the museums, we did learn that most museums are closed on Mondays and that even with reservations there are lines to enter. Although we missed Florence's most popular attraction, the original David by Michelangelo at the Gallery of the Accademia, we did see a replica in Piazzale Michelangelo.

Our hotel was within steps of the Uffizi Gallery, one of the oldest and most famous art museums in the world. The Gallery of the Uffizi was the first museum open to the public in 1591.

Our hotel was also within steps of the Duomo, or The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore but it was also closed while we were in Florence. The size of the Duomo is overwhelming! Monuments in Piazza del Duomo include the Cathedral, the Dome, Giotto's Bell Tower, the Bapistery, the Church of St. Benedict, and an archeological site for the previous cathedral, Santa Reparata.
Place the mouse over an image on the right to view here.
Palazzo della Signoria, or Palazzo Vecchio   Palazzo della Signoria, or Palazzo Vecchio   Chiesa di San Felice, or Church of St. Felix   Loggia dei Lanzi   Piazzale degli Uffizi   Florence at night  
Under the Tuscan sun   Piazzale Michelangelo   David by Michelangelo   Olive Trees   Florence city wall   Porta Romana at night  
Florence at night   Piazza della Signoria   Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore   Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore   Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore   Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore  
Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore   Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore  

 This video clip is a tour of the highlights of Florence.
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