If you’re planning your first visit to Florence, where you stay will shape the entire experience. Florence is compact and walkable, which means a well-chosen hotel puts the Duomo, the Uffizi, and the Ponte Vecchio at your doorstep. A poorly chosen one means commuting to the magic instead of living inside it. We’ve visited Florence […]
Some cities in Italy overwhelm you with options. Siena does the opposite, and that’s exactly what we loved about it. The historic center is compact and entirely walkable, the main sights are clustered within easy reach of each other, and the city has a pace that makes it easy to slow down. The things to […]
Two days in Florence is the sweet spot for a first visit. It’s enough time to see everything that matters, without the feeling that you’re sprinting from one landmark to the next. With two days, you can climb the dome of the Florence Cathedral, stand in front of Michelangelo’s David, spend a proper morning in […]
Florence is one of the most rewarding cities in Europe, and the best things to do in Florence range from climbing Brunelleschi’s iconic dome to watching the sunset from Piazzale Michelangelo. We know this firsthand, having visited Florence twice. Our first trip was a quick day and a half visit in July with our kids. […]
The first time we visited the Siena Cathedral, it was a hot July afternoon and our kids, then 9 and 11, were well past the point of cathedral fatigue after several days of museums and churches. We weren’t expecting this to be the stop that won them over. But inside, with the mosaic floor on […]
The Florence Cathedral, the Duomo di Firenze, is one of the most recognizable buildings in the world, and yet seeing it for the first time still catches you off guard. The sheer scale and detail of the marble facade up close is something no photograph quite prepares you for. We’ve now visited the Florence Cathedral […]
There are a lot of ways to see Florence from above, from climbing the Duomo dome, walking up to Piazzale Michelangelo, or ducking into a museum rooftop café. But the best way, in our opinion, is from a rooftop bar in Florence at golden hour with a Negroni in hand. Tim and I have been […]
Milan makes a surprisingly easy and rewarding stop between Florence, Venice, and the Cinque Terre. With high-speed trains and compact sightseeing, you can see the Duomo, Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper, and stroll through the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, all in just a few hours. Milan also co-hosted the 2026 Winter Olympics, bringing the world […]