Living in and around Florence is a blessing and a curse. I adore living in Italy and exploring, but when tourist season explodes, it becomes exhausting even to go downtown Florence.
I have learned the smaller backstreets and quieter neighborhoods to take friends when visiting. You can’t come to Florence and not see the top sights, but you can also visit smaller museums, get off the main roads where the tour groups walk and stop to slow down and take in the city.
Live like an Italian: Stop often for a coffee, a drink, or a small snack. Enjoy people-watching. Take breaks.
The video below shows walking over the bridge from San Niccolo, one of my favorite quieter neighborhoods in Florence, heading up towards Santa Croce. The statue on the bridge was put there by Clet, an artist from Belgium who has his studio in San Niccolo.
Tourist Tips: Get a small cross-body bag for your passport and credit cards—something as small as possible. You can carry a backpack, purse, etc., for your larger items. The pickpocketers here are experts. Another friend, who comes every year, arrived on Sunday and lost her wallet and passport on Monday. She was sitting having a gelato, and a man with a gelato sat beside her, bumping her, and next thing you know…. it’s gone.
I find crowds overwhelming, not to mention the increase in pickpocketers. I lost a wallet in Venice recently, and it wasn’t crowded! I was in a fancy pastry shop and was near an elegant older man. The only person it could have been. I was really upset as I had bought myself a lovely Gucci wallet as my retirement present to myself and only had it a few months. Lost the wallet, drivers licence, credit cards and cash.
They spent 9,000 euros in the 30 minutes time it took me to discover the loss and call it in. Luckily, my bank covered the cost.
Keep a copy of your passport and documents on your phone.
You can simply take a foto of print out copies. You will need to information to replace them. Also any phone numbers to cancel credit cards.
I lived in downtown Florence for over 20 years. It’s gorgeous. I never get tired of the beauty, it is always breathtaking. When it is overcrowded, it is exhausting. Often people get disorientated, they say Stendhal syndrome was named here. A sensory overload of too much beauty.
One of my tips is to take a break.
For some, it’s a simple 3-hour lunch break. Shops used to close from 1 pm until 4 pm, allowing the workers to go home for lunch and rest after lunch.
I adore naps, sonnellino. You don’t have to sleep, but just getting off your feet and relaxing breaks up the day and makes it easier to stay up later and enjoy the city's magic at night when the tour buses and crowds are gone.
If you look up while walking at night, you can often see the rooms with their affrescoed ceilings.
Tips on Eating like an Italian: Being on vacation and not having a kitchen is hard. Florentines tend to go to restaurants for full meals, and when I moved here, some restaurants had signs that read, “We only serve full meals.”
Things have changed, but locals know where to go for small bites rather than meals.
Vinaio- a small wine bar with snacks. In Italy, you don’t drink without eating something.
Wonderful wines by the glass accompanied by something small to eat. Most people have heard of Bruschetta, but we serve Crostini at a wine bar, smaller pieces of bread, sometimes toasted, with a topping.
In Venice, these are called Cicchetti. Normally, Italians don’t drink wine without eating something. At many winebars, you can also order a panino or they may have small Taglieri, boards with meats, cheeses etc.
Upstairs in the Mercato Centrale at San Lorenzo, the top floor is a gourmet food court. It gets crowded at mealtime, but if you go just before or after, it’s perfect.
Lots of wonderful artisan food stands. Above are the panini at my local truffle hunter’s stand. They also do pasta and risotto. Everything truffled.
There are over twenty stands, including pizza, Chinese, sushi, burgers, steak, fish, vegan, wine bar, beer, pastry, and more. There are plenty of places to sit and free bathrooms, and it’s open daily from 10 a.m. until midnight.
Don’t forget about the Italian TAX FREE offer if you are shopping.
This year, when you spend at least 70 euro in a shop, you can ask for the Tax free offer. ( make sure to ask before buying, some shops may not participate in the offer.)
You receive the VAT tax refund, around 15%. In Italy, tax is included in the price, not added on after.
Be sure to have your passport with you or a fotocopy. You need it for the paperwork.
Shipping items home: If you want to ship items home, I suggest Mailbox Etc. Don’t use the Italian post office.
Another solution is to bring or buy an extra suitcase. It’s often cheaper to pay for an extra bag, and your items arrive with you. I have friends that buy wine and have a “wine suitcase”. Others bring fabulous wine wrappers and simply put the wine in their luggage.
TRAVEL LIGHT: You don’t need a million outfits. If you are traveling by train, or walking to and from the train station to your hotel or apartment, you really suffer schlepping around huge suitcases. Do yourself a favor, bring less.
There was just a great article by Rick Steves on FB.
I frequently hear people ask for recommendations on places to eat which are not touristy.
Florence is a tourist town. Unless you get out and into the smaller neighborhoods, it’s hard to not be a “tourist restaurant”. Florence lives on tourism.
If you don’t want to be eating surrounded by tourists like yourself, try eating at 8:30 or 9pm like an Italian.
Some of the restaurants I see suggested by tourists for other tourists are places my husband would never go to, but everyone loves them.
It’s hard to have a bad meal.
When I was waiting tables, I remember some Italian Americans coming in and in Italian, ordering a Braciole in Florence. When I brought it, it wasn’t what they thought it was. That happens.
In Florence, a braciola is a beef scallopine. In Naples, where many Italian Americans come from, a braciola is a stuffed braised beef roll. Not at all the same.
Florence is famous for the Bistecca alla Fiorentina which are meant to be shared. It is a 2-3 pound bone in steak, cooked rare.
If you want a smaller piece of beef, order the Tagliata.
This is a boneless entrecote steak. Always cooked rare or it is tough. The meat here is excellent and melts in your mouth. If you don’t want it rare, order something else.
If you love Italy and want to learn more about traditional recipes, I am celebrating my 40th year in Florence and turning 70. I am writing a culinary memoir and it’s filled with stories and recipes.
Weekly posts
You get my ebook- Secrets From my Tuscan Kitchen- 90 recipes to become a Florentine cook.
Access to the archives. Last year’s project was a monthly guide to the Markets of Italy. Twelve city guides plus recipes online.
Wonderful post! In addition to having a copy of your documents on your phone, email them to yourself and someone you trust. If your phone dies or is stolen, you have a back up that you can retrieve at an Internet cafe.
Great advice. I've always marveled when I see tourists in Rome setting out for the Colosseum at 2pm in July. No Italian would ever do that. Sometimes it's good to try to learn from the lifestyle of the people who have lived in the environment for a thousands of years. Mid-day break, have a snack. All of the sites will still be there at 4:30.