Florence

Churches in Florence: Which Are Worth It?

You can easily see the nine essential churches in two days if you group them geographically. Five are free to enter. Four require tickets. I live here and still find new details every visit. Here is a practical breakdown without fluff.

Santa Maria del Fiore (The Duomo): Free Entry, Paid Climb

Free to enter. Paid climb to the dome (20 EUR) and bell tower (15 EUR). Combined Brunelleschi Pass 20 EUR.

Queue outside the main door is short before 09:00 but swells to 30 minutes by 11:00. Skip it. Enter from the left side door (Via dei Servi side) which often has no line. Inside: look up at Vasari's Last Judgment fresco. It covers 3,600 square meters. The facade is 19th century, not original. The real treasures are the bronze doors of the Baptistery across the piazza. Those are included in the pass. Do the dome climb first (463 steps, narrow, no elevator). Book online three days ahead in summer 2026. Ticket valid 72 hours.

Santa Croce: 12 EUR, Worth Every Cent

12 EUR. Open 09:30 to 17:30. Last entry 17:00.

This is the burial place of Michelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli, and Rossini. The tombs are along the nave floor and walls. The Pazzi Chapel (cloister) is included. Allow 45 minutes. The Giotto frescoes in the Bardi and Peruzzi chapels are faded but powerful. Avoid the audio guide. Download the free app instead. Dress code enforced. Women have been turned away for tank tops. Men for shorts above the knee. There is a shelf of donated scarves at the ticket desk.

Santa Maria Novella: 10 EUR, Best Hidden Frescoes

10 EUR. Open 09:00 to 17:30. Closed Sundays.

It is two minutes from the train station. Masaccio's Trinity fresco is on the left wall near the middle. It is the first painting in history to use linear perspective correctly. Tourists walk past it. Do not. The Strozzi Chapel has Filippino Lippi frescoes. The cloisters with Spanish Chapel are included. Budget 40 minutes. Skip the small museum upstairs.

San Lorenzo: Free Church, 10 EUR for Medici Chapels

Church free. Medici Chapels 10 EUR. Biblioteca Laurenziana 3 EUR.

The church itself feels empty because Michelangelo never finished the facade. But the Medici Chapels have his New Sacristy with the allegories of Day, Night, Dawn and Dusk. The Laurentian Library (Michelangelo's staircase) is worth the extra 3 EUR if you like architecture. The church has a market outside every morning. Expect noise.

Santo Spirito: Free, Quietest Church

Free. Open 10:00 to 17:30. Closed Wednesday.

Michelangelo's carved crucifix hangs above the high altar. He made it when he was 17. The church is shaped like a Latin cross with 38 side chapels. I come here to escape crowds. No photography allowed. The piazza outside has a daily market until 14:00 and good bars for an aperitivo. The church fills for evening mass at 18:00. Avoid that time.

Orsanmichele: Free, Strange, Small

Free. Open 10:00 to 17:00. Closed Monday.

Originally a grain market, then a church. The exterior tabernacles hold statues by Donatello, Ghiberti, and Verrocchio. The originals are inside the museum on the upper floor (also 10 EUR but often closed). The ground floor church is tiny. Spend 15 minutes. The real show is walking around the exterior.

San Miniato al Monte: Free, Best View

Free. Open 09:30 to 19:00. Closes earlier in winter.

Climb the stairs from Piazzale Michelangelo (10 minutes uphill). The mosaic facade glows gold in afternoon sun. Inside: the crypt has 11th century frescoes. The chapel of the Cardinal of Portugal is a Renaissance jewel. The monks sing Gregorian chant at 16:00. Come for that. Bring water. No water fountain inside.

Ognissanti: Free, One Amazing Fresco

Free. Open 07:00 to 12:30 and 15:00 to 18:30. Closed Sunday afternoon.

Ghirlandaio's Last Supper is in the refectory behind the church. Better than the famous one in Santa Maria Novella because it is less restored. Also Botticelli's tomb is here. The church is quiet. 10 minutes is enough.

Badia Fiorentina: Free, Secret Choir

Free. Open 10:00 to 12:00 and 15:00 to 17:00. Closed Sunday.

Tiny church near the Bargello. Filippino Lippi's Vision of St Bernard is on the left altar. The choir loft above has a 15th century wooden seat that is rarely open. If you come at 11:00 on a Tuesday or Thursday you might hear the organ practice. 15 minutes.

Comparison Table: Which Churches to Enter?

Practical Warning from Experience

Churches in Florence close randomly for funerals, weddings, and restorations. Always check Google Maps reviews from the same day. The official websites are often outdated. Do not rely on them. On Sunday morning most churches are closed to tourists until 13:00 because of mass. Santa Maria Novella is completely closed Sunday. Duomo is open but you cannot walk through the nave during mass. Use Sunday afternoons for San Miniato and Santo Spirito.

Dress code: covered shoulders, covered knees. This applies to all churches. I have seen women in shorts denied entry at Santa Croce in August. Carry a light scarf. Sun hats must come off inside. No photography with flash. No selfie sticks. Backpacks must be removed at Santa Croce and Duomo. Bags larger than 35 liters are left at the ticket counter for free.

Ticket scammers work the Duomo piazza. They offer "skip the line" for the dome for 50 EUR. The real line is 30 minutes. Buy online yourself. One restaurant near Santa Croce overcharges by 5 EUR for table service. Walk to Via dei Macci for better prices.

What to Look At Inside Each Church

Duomo: Vasari's fresco on the dome. The clock above the entrance (24 hour dial, still working). The mosaic floor in the crypt (free with dome ticket). Skip the museum unless you love statuary.

Santa Croce: Galileo's tomb (nose is damaged from relic seekers). The pulpit where Donatello carved. The wooden crucifix by Cimabue (badly damaged in the 1966 flood, still haunting).

Santa Maria Novella: Masaccio's Trinity. The stained glass rose window by Ghiberti. The Spanish Chapel's Triumph of St Thomas Aquinas (fresco with Dante and the cathedral).

San Lorenzo Medici Chapels: Michelangelo's Night statue. Her left arm is folded. The Sagrestia Nuova is small. Stand in the center and turn slowly.

Santo Spirito: Michelangelo's wooden crucifix (hangs above the altar, look up). The column spacing. Brunelleschi designed it. He died before finishing.

San Miniato: The mosaic of Christ between the Virgin and St Minias. The inlaid marble floor. The crypt columns are Roman spolia. The view from the cemetery behind the church is better than Piazzale Michelangelo and has no crowd.

Orsanmichele: The four patron saints on the outside. The painted tabernacle inside by Bernardo Daddi. The original statues are on the upper floor museum.

Ognissanti: Ghirlandaio's Last Supper. The perspective is wrong on purpose. Look at the ceiling.

Badia Fiorentina: Filippino Lippi's Vision of St Bernard. The Virgin's expression is unusual. She looks sad, not beatific.