Custom Florence for the Food Lover

Day 1- Arrival in Florence

Independent arrival at your Hotel strategically located in the hearth of the city center, few meter-away from Ponte Vecchio.
Check in and rest of the day at your disposal.
Dinner at leisure and overnight in Florence.
Restaurant suggestions will be available in the final itinerary.

Day 2 – Florence Food & Art Tour

After breakfast, explore the less known corners of Florence with a native Florentine guide at your complete disposal: small churches, perfumes, frescoes, bakers and tastings along the way will be an extraordinary sensorial experience! The tour lasts 3 hours departing from Piazza Santa Maria Novella and finishes at San Lorenzo market. Along the way, there will be time to dedicate to the stunning frescoes of Domenico Ghirlandaio in Santa Trinita church. The bright colors of the female and male noble garments will take your breath away.
Enjoy the antic perfumes and traditional scents prepared by the Dominican frairs at the ancient pharmacy of Santa Maria Novella. Entrance to the oldest pharmacy of Europe to discover the story of its worldwide products such as the almond paste as moisturizing for the hands and the pleasant pot pourry blend of Chianti flowers.
Walk along the “Via delle Belle Donne” the streets of the “beautiful ladies” and reach Via Tornabuoni, famous for its elegant shops like Armani, Pucci and Ferragamo. Stop at a local “forno” (bakery) to taste the irresistible FOCACCIA with olive oil and pizza slice right from the oven! According to the season we will also try the best local cakes made with grapes, custard, apples, peaches and rosines.
At the end of the tour, your guide will accompany you at Mercato Centrale where we suggest you to have lunch. Mercato Centrale is a place where food is lived, told and prepared by artisans who respect it and know it deeply. It’s a space to be lived and shared and a container that becomes cultural and social content itself, without losing spontaneity and simplicity. Every store has its own workspace and makes dishes and specialities on show to the public: the perfect place for grocery shopping and to discover the truest food (at a fair price) that Italy has to offer. The dishes and specialities can be shared and eaten at the Mercato’s marketplace, open to everyone, or can be bought and taken home.
Dinner at leisure and overnight.

Day 3 – Uffizi Gallery

After breakfast at your hotel, reach the Uffizi Gallery on own and enter using you pre-booked ticket included in the package. Spend the morning visiting one of the oldest and finest art gallery of the World, including masterpieces such as the Botticelli’s Venus and Michelangelo’s Tondo Doni. Balance of the day is at your disposal to relax and explore the most secret corners of the city. Make you way up to Piazzale Michelangelo for one of the best view of Florence at the sunset. Dinner at leisure and overnight.

Day 4 – Hands on Cooking class in San Frediano discrict

After breakfast reach independently (5 minutes by taxi or 15 minutes walking) your Cooking school located in the historical quarter of San Frediano (left bank of the river Arno) and meet your Chef. The experience includes a unique “botteghe walk” in one of the Florence’s most authentic neighbourhoods , avoiding the tourist packed markets before heading back to the school for your lesson which lasts about 3 hours and it ends with lunch. The class is hands on and you will prepare a four courses menu using seasonal products and learn making fresh handmade pasta- Wine is also included.
After lunch rest of the day at disposal to enjoy Florence. If you’re interested in some shopping, via de’ Tornabuoni can suit your wishes! Dinner on own and overnight.

Day 5 – Lucca in a glance

Have breakfast at the hotel. After breakfast, meet your English-speaking driver for the private transfer to Lucca, where your private tour with local guide begins! Get amazed staring at the powerful walls which surround the old town. You will have the chance to walk above the walls of the city, catching a very beautiful view from the above. During the tour, you will also visit the Cathedral and all the other beautiful churches spread in town. Lunch in one of the many restaurants in Piazza dell’Anfiteatro, a picturesque and hidden square of rare beauty. Return transfer to Florence and afternoon at leisure.
Overnight.

Day 6 – Day at leisure in Florence

Breakfast, at the Hotel and day at disposal for individual activities. Recommend a visit to the Gucci museum, small and delightful and free for seniors! Have lunch at one of the cafes or osterias on the square.
Afterwards, perhaps a visit to the Rinascente Department Store, very upscale with a great housewares department. End the day with an Aperol Spritz or glass of white wine in the Caffe La Terrazza on the top level, with a vie of the Duomo.
Dinner on own and overnight.

Day 7 – Palazzo Pitti and Boboli Gardens

Breakfast at the hotel. In the morning, meet your private guide in the hotel lobby and reach with her Palazzo Pitti for a 2 hour- guided tour of this magnificent palace, originally designed by Filippo Brunelleschi for the Pitti family. During the centuries its structure has been altered and enlarged and now it houses some of the most important museums in Florence: on the first floor is the Palatine Gallery, containing a broad collection 16th and 17th century paintings (including works by Raphael), and the Royal Apartments, containing furnishings from a remodeling done in the 19th century.
Your ticket will also allow you to visit the Boboli gardens on own at the conclusion of this tour. Balance of the day at leisure to explore the Oltrarno neighbourhood on own. Dinner at leisure and overnight.

Day 8 – Arrivederci

Breakfast and check out.