Florence - December 5-6th, 2019

Tarantino2020!

New member
Please HELP! My daughter is turning 20 on Sunday, December 8th. She has never been to Florence and it’s been 30+ years since my last visit. What is the best way to show her the highlights? Do you recommend a tour? Places to eat and shop? What is there to see/do in December? Is it cold? Looking for ideas to ROCK her world and have her fall in love with Florence the same way I did over 30 years ago....
 
Makin' Florence Rock!

Buongiorno,

So the first thing to remember is the December 8th is a National Holiday - and though restaurants will be open, many shops and such may have varied hours.

My experience with my 20-year-old niece - sometimes you never know what is going to spark their WOW factor, but let's give it a try.

Though the popular sites make a lot of sense to us (the churches, the museums, and national monuments) they might not make so much sense to her - you could start by suggesting that you are going to do a walking tour, on your own, and have her look through these themes itineraries (http://www.visitflorence.com/itineraries-in-florence/). A few that might spark interest for her are the spots from Dan Brown's book Inferno or following Michelangelo thorough Florence. I particularly like the city wall walking tour, but the idea of the city "as it was" always intrigues me.

If you are going to look at doing the museum route then definitely book a guide who will run you through the line - waiting in long lines can be a downer. For example, the Duomo is amazing - but the line on the 8th could be daunting (the holiday celebrates the Annunciation so churches may be busy). I did the Duomo rooftop terrace tour - so it is something really different from most tours (exclusive) and it gets you into one of the most iconic dites:
https://www.visitflorence.com/florence-tours/duomo-terrace-tour.html
http://tours.visitflorence.com/en/13618/travel-tips/Skip-The-Line-Museums-with-Guided-Tour/ttd

With kids it's not always what they see as much as how they see it and who they see it with - so maybe an activity would be a great addition to a day of sightseeing, for example, a cooking class?
https://www.visitflorence.com/what-...es/small-group-cooking-class-in-florence.html


Sometimes mixing the local sites with the local flavors?
https://www.visitflorence.com/florence-tours/art-and-food-walking-tour.html

And it might really help if she had a few ideas on her own, maybe if she read through a few of our suggested itineraries for two and three days, she would come up with a list of places that you two could go and search out on your own? (but I would still finish the day with a cooking class!)
http://www.visitflorence.com/itineraries-in-florence/two-days-in-florence.html
http://www.visitflorence.com/itineraries-in-florence/3-days-in-florence.html

The only thing I don't really suggest (unless she really wants to) is trying to leave the city to see Pisa or Lucca... one day in the city barely scratches the surface, leaving it early will just add to your travel time and not let you absorb its natural beauty.

Buon Viaggio,

Donna Denise
 
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