From Bologna to Florence: full day (train + cathedral + tour)
Description
Discover Florence on a day tour from Bologna by high-speed train in First Class. Upon arrival, meet your Guide in front of the Museum of Mercy and immediately enter the majestic Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore : thanks to exclusive skip-the-line access through a reserved side door, you will completely avoid the long waits. The Certified Guide will accompany you for 30 minutes among the secrets of Brunelleschi's Cathedral and Dome, then you can stay inside to continue the visit independently. The ticket also includes independent access to the Museum of Mercy. After some free time for Lunch or Shopping, an atmospheric group walking tour awaits you in the afternoon. With an expert Guide you will stroll through elegant squares, markets and iconic bridges, discovering the stories and masterpieces of the cradle of the Renaissance. The tour will end in front of the Duomo, where you will greet the Guide before reaching the station for the return to Bologna in total relaxation.
Tour Options
Itinerary
The symbol par excellence of the city. The Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, with its extraordinary dome designed by Brunelleschi, represents an absolute masterpiece of human ingenuity. The polychrome marble facade and the interior frescoes of the Last Judgment leave you breathless. A unique experience to discover the history and spirituality that animate the heart of Florence. Entrance to this Attraction is included. Access will be through a side door reserved exclusively for your group, skipping each line completely. Together with a certified Guide, you will enjoy a 30-minute tour and, at the end, stay inside the Duomo as long as you want.
The first stop of the group guided tour is this beautiful monumental square with an elegant nineteenth-century style, famous for its historic literary cafes and the characteristic vintage carousel that enchants the center.
Your Guide will take you to the New Point of Sale Lodge. Originally an ancient centre for the trade in silks and precious objects, the Loggia is home to the famous Pig Fountain: a must-see stop where you can caress the shiny muzzle of the bronze boar and toss a coin to wish each other luck.
The Guide will then take you to see the undisputed symbol of Florence: Ponte Vecchio, one of the most photographed places in the world. Survived wars and floods, it is famous for its goldsmith shops, which still retain the ancient artisan charm. Walking along the bridge, you can enjoy a lovely view of the Arno and the Listing of the city, while breathing an atmosphere suspended in time.
Among the stops, the Uffizi cannot be missed. One of the most famous museums in the world for its incomparable collection of Renaissance masterpieces, enclosed in the imposing Vasari architecture that connects Palazzo Vecchio to the Arno river, creating a breathtaking corridor of art even to be admired from the outside. The tour does not include admission.
The political and artistic heart of Florence, Piazza della Signoria is a veritable open-air museum. Here stand the majestic Palazzo Vecchio and the Loggia dei Lanzi, which houses sculptural masterpieces such as Cellini's Perseus and Giambologna's Rape of the Sabine Women. Every stone tells the story of Medici power and the great artistic revolutions that marked the Renaissance.
The walking tour will end right in front of the majestic Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, where you will greet your Guide and the group. From here, you will have time to take one last shot or buy a souvenir before reaching the station independently to take the high-speed train and return to Bologna in total relaxation.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(1)
I rarely leave negative reviews, but I want other travelers to have realistic expectations before booking this experience. I paid over $200 for the “From Bologna to Florence: Full Day (Train + Cathedral + Tour)” experience. The title gave me the impression of a structured full-day tour with organized activities and guided sightseeing throughout most of the day. What I actually received was train tickets to Florence, a short cathedral tour, a walking tour later in the afternoon, and more than four hours completely on my own in between. The company later explained that the free time was intentional so guests could explore independently. My issue is not with having free time — it’s that the experience was not presented in a way that matched my expectations of a “full day tour.” Florence attractions often require advance reservations, and had I known I would have so much unstructured time, I would have booked museums or other activities ahead of time. The experience itself wasn’t terrible, but the wording and presentation created expectations very different from reality. Book this only if you are comfortable spending a significant portion of your day exploring on your own.
Dear Maritza, thank you for sharing your feedback. While we are glad you found the guided experiences themselves to be of high quality, we must clarify the facts for future travelers, as the itinerary is explicitly detailed on the platform and was shared with you prior to departure. This full-day experience includes high-value components: Premium High-Speed First Class round-trip train tickets from Bologna, an exclusive Skip-the-Line entrance with a certified guide for the Duomo, an independent entry ticket to the Misericordia Museum, and a second structured group guided walking tour in the afternoon with a dedicated professional guide. The product description clearly states that the central hours of the day are free for lunch, shopping, and independent exploration. We sent you the complete itinerary via WhatsApp the day before departure, which you duly received and confirmed. Despite our team providing immediate assistance both late at night and early in the morning, no preferences or requests regarding your free time were ever mentioned. We would have been more than happy to organize and book any extra activities or experiences for you during those hours, had we been asked. Regarding your comment about booking other venues: please note that your tour took place on a Monday, the day when the Accademia Gallery or the Uffizi that you mentioned observe their official weekly closure. No amount of advance notice would have made entry possible. For this reason, we explicitly included the ticket to the Misericordia Museum, which was open and available to you. We deliver a transparent, flexible experience backed by continuous customer support. We wish you the best in your future travels.
