Climb to Piazzale Michelangelo as the City Spreads Out Below You
You feel the hill before you see the view. Coming up from Piazza Poggi, or along the shady kilometre of via Michelangelo from Piazza Ferruccio, the street bends and the rooftops of Florence begin to drop away behind you. Then the terrace opens: a broad paved piazza on the hillside just south of the river, with the Arno, the bridges and Brunelleschi's dome laid out in a single sweep below. This is the classic panorama of Florence, and it is worth every step of the climb.
At the centre of the square stands a bronze replica of Michelangelo's David, set near four allegories from the Medici Chapels of San Lorenzo. The square is dedicated to Michelangelo, and Giuseppe Poggi's design was conceived as a monument base for copies of his masterpieces. Behind the terrace is the neoclassical building Poggi designed with a loggia, intended as a museum for Michelangelo's works; the museum was never built, and the building now houses a panoramic restaurant.
If you want the view without the climb, buses 12 and 13 run here from the centre, as does the red two-level sightseeing bus.
Walk On to San Miniato al Monte
From the piazzale you can continue on foot to the Basilica of San Miniato al Monte, a little higher up the hill, for another view and a quieter one. The basilica is open Monday to Saturday 9:30am–1:00pm and 3:00pm–7:00pm, and Sunday 8:15am–7:00pm.
Several routes bring you up. The historic way climbs from Porta San Miniato, near the bar il Rifrullo, up via Scalea del Monte alle Croci and Scalinata del Monte alle Croci — a short ascent that follows in Dante's footsteps. A longer, popular route with joggers runs about 3 km from Porta Romana, at the exit of the Boboli Gardens, along viale Machiavelli and via Galileo.
Take in the Art on the Way Up and Down
The hillside and its approaches hold their own reasons to linger. At the foot of the piazzale you'll find the Bardini Museum, with ceramics by Della Robbia, Greek and Roman artifacts and works by Donatello, housed in a building renovated by Stefano Bardini. A short distance away stands Casa Buonarroti, the family house of the Buonarroti, built to commemorate Michelangelo — born in Caprese, in the province of Arezzo — and later turned into a museum, at the corner of Via Ghibellina and Via Buonarroti.
Back across the river, the city's great collections are within reach. The Uffizi holds the Renaissance paintings and classical sculpture that draw the crowds, and the Bargello houses some of the best Renaissance and Mannerist sculpture, including works by Michelangelo and Donatello. Michelangelo's original David, meanwhile, is in the Galleria dell'Accademia — the figure you saw in the piazza is a copy.
Time Your Visit and Know What to Expect
Every tour bus pauses at the piazzale for photos, so it can get mobbed; come early or late if you want the terrace to yourself. In 2016 the piazza was restructured to emphasize its open spaces and create a peaceful setting, with most of the parking spaces removed — so it is a better place to stand and look than it once was.
- On foot: climb from Piazza Poggi at the base of the hill, or take the shady via Michelangelo from Piazza Ferruccio, about 1 km.
- By bus: numbers 12 or 13 from the centre, or the red two-level sightseeing bus.
- By car: a paid lot in front of the piazza has 72 spaces; €1 for the first hour, €2 for each subsequent hour or portion, charged daily including holidays, 8am–midnight. There is also paid street parking along the road up near the Iris Garden and on the road to San Miniato, via delle Porte Sante.
- Food and drink: La Loggia, in the building behind the terrace, runs a coffee bar daily 10am–midnight and a full restaurant with a panoramic terrace from 12–11pm.
Make a Day of the Hillside
The piazzale is not an isolated stop but the summit of a walk. The Viale dei Colli, the panoramic tree-lined street on the left bank, was laid out as part of the same nineteenth-century redesign of the city, and from 1890 to 1935 it carried the tram tracks of the Chianti line connecting Florence with Greve in Chianti and San Casciano Val di Pesa. Walk up through the trees, stand at the terrace, continue to San Miniato, and come back down through the city — that is the day.
Start planning around the climb rather than the destination: pick your route up, decide whether you want the terrace at opening or at dusk, and leave time to sit over a coffee at La Loggia while the light changes over the dome.