Florentine Crafts & Workshops: Private Half-Day Walking Tour
Explore the artisanal craftsmanship and backstreets of Florence, the cradle of the Renaissance, on this behind-the-scenes, three-hour walking tour.
On your private tour, you will:
- Enjoy the personalised attention of a private tour guide as you wander through the less well-known side streets and alleyways of Florence;
- Uncover Florence’s rich history of artisanship – from leather to paper marbling and meet the talented artisans along the way;
- Visit a highly specialised Jeweler and admire his magnificent handmade jewellery;
- Learn the art of bookbinding and the craft of Florentine paper marbling;
- Pop inside the Leather School of Florence, where you may catch local tanners at work;
- Cross over the Ponte Vecchio to explore the Oltrarno area of Florence, known for its crafts and delicious local restaurants;
- Visit an array of local artisanal stores and workshops from instrument makers, to silversmiths, and cobblers who still make shoes by hand!
- Hear about the Church of Santo Spirito, known for its perfect proportions and home to a wooden crucifix made by Michelangelo at the age of 18;
- End the tour in Piazza Santo Spirito surrounded by its many restaurants, bars and cafes where you can sit down for a delicious lunch.
Florence is justly famed for being the “cradle of the Renaissance”. It was the birthplace and home of many luminaries from Dante to Brunelleschi, from the Medici to Michelangelo. You’ll find some of the greatest works of art, pottery, and sculpture by the world’s most famous artists inside the Uffizi and Accademia and many other galleries – but Florence is also famous for her more humble craftsmen.
On this private, three-hour walking tour, you'll go under the bonnet of Florence. Your expert local guide will show you the less well-known streets and alleys and artisanal districts of the city. You’ll get to know the artisans, tanners, jewellers, papermakers, silversmiths, cobblers and many others as you explore the city from a different, more local and truly fascinating perspective.
You’ll visit a plethora of markets, shops, stalls, schools and workshops and have the chance to watch these specialist experts at work and ask them about their livelihoods – many will have a generational family history of their craft.
Crossing the Ponte Vecchio – with its delightful array of antique shops and stalls – you’ll learn all about the Church of Santo Spirito, a fascinating and much-overlooked church – that houses a crucifix by an 18-year-old Michelangelo. Rather gruesomely, it was in the basement of this church that the early Renaissance artists would dissect cadavers to draw from. This was how Michelangelo became an expert anatomist!
Your guide will show you the trendy neighbourhood beyond the church, and there you have a huge choice of local restaurants and cafés in which to sit down for a well-deserved lunch and drink.
