Boboli & San Miniato al Monte

When museum and/or tourist overload strikes – a common occurrence in this culturally resplendent city – consider stretching your legs amid some urban greenery in this soul-soothing eastern neighbourhood on the Oltrarno (aka 'the other side of the river'). Fronted by the grandiose palace of Palazzo Pitti, jam-packed with museums, Boboli's magnificent tier of palaces, villas and gardens climbs uphill to San Miniato, a hilltop ’hood famously crowned by a copy of Michelangelo's David and one of the city’s oldest and most beautiful churches. Views, predictably, are sweeping and soul-soaring.

Explore Boboli & San Miniato al Monte

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Palazzo Pitti
Commissioned by banker Luca Pitti in 1458, this Renaissance palace was later bought by the Medici family. Over the centuries, it was a residence of the…
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Giardino di Boboli
Behind Palazzo Pitti, the fountain- and sculpture-adorned Boboli Gardens – slowly but surely being restored to their former pristine glory thanks to a €2…
Piazzale Michelangelo
Turn your back on the bevy of ticky-tacky souvenir stalls flogging David statues and boxer shorts and take in the spectacular city panorama from this vast…
Villa e Giardino Bardini
This 17th-century villa and garden was named after 19th-century antiquarian art collector Stefano Bardini (1836–1922), who bought it in 1913 and restored…
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Clet
Should you notice something gone awry with street signs in Oltrarno – on a No Entry sign, a tiny black figure stealthily sneaking away with the white bar…
Forte di Belvedere
Forte di Belvedere is a rambling fort designed by Bernardo Buontalenti for Grand Duke Ferdinando I at the end of the 16th century. From the massive…
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Basilica di San Miniato al Monte
Five minutes' walk uphill from Piazzale Michelangelo is this wonderful Romanesque church, dedicated to St Minius, an early-Christian martyr in Florence…
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Galleria Palatina
Raphaels and Rubens vie for centre stage in the enviable collection of 16th- to 18th-century art amassed by the Medici and Lorraine dukes in Palazzo Pitti…
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Torre San Niccolò
Built in 1324, the best preserved of the city’s medieval gates stands sentinel on the banks of the Arno. In summer, with a guide you can scale the steep…

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Palazzo Pitti
Commissioned by banker Luca Pitti in 1458, this Renaissance palace was later bought by the Medici family. Over the centuries, it was a residence of the…
G
Giardino di Boboli
Behind Palazzo Pitti, the fountain- and sculpture-adorned Boboli Gardens – slowly but surely being restored to their former pristine glory thanks to a €2…
Piazzale Michelangelo
Turn your back on the bevy of ticky-tacky souvenir stalls flogging David statues and boxer shorts and take in the spectacular city panorama from this vast…
Villa e Giardino Bardini
This 17th-century villa and garden was named after 19th-century antiquarian art collector Stefano Bardini (1836–1922), who bought it in 1913 and restored…
C
Clet
Should you notice something gone awry with street signs in Oltrarno – on a No Entry sign, a tiny black figure stealthily sneaking away with the white bar…
Forte di Belvedere
Forte di Belvedere is a rambling fort designed by Bernardo Buontalenti for Grand Duke Ferdinando I at the end of the 16th century. From the massive…
B
Basilica di San Miniato al Monte
Five minutes' walk uphill from Piazzale Michelangelo is this wonderful Romanesque church, dedicated to St Minius, an early-Christian martyr in Florence…
G
Galleria Palatina
Raphaels and Rubens vie for centre stage in the enviable collection of 16th- to 18th-century art amassed by the Medici and Lorraine dukes in Palazzo Pitti…
T
Torre San Niccolò
Built in 1324, the best preserved of the city’s medieval gates stands sentinel on the banks of the Arno. In summer, with a guide you can scale the steep…

Top attractions

These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Boboli & San Miniato al Monte.

See
Palazzo Pitti
Commissioned by banker Luca Pitti in 1458, this Renaissance palace was later bought by the Medici family. Over the centuries, it was a residence of the…
See
Giardino di Boboli
Behind Palazzo Pitti, the fountain- and sculpture-adorned Boboli Gardens – slowly but surely being restored to their former pristine glory thanks to a €2…
See
Piazzale Michelangelo
Turn your back on the bevy of ticky-tacky souvenir stalls flogging David statues and boxer shorts and take in the spectacular city panorama from this vast…
See
Villa e Giardino Bardini
This 17th-century villa and garden was named after 19th-century antiquarian art collector Stefano Bardini (1836–1922), who bought it in 1913 and restored…
See
Clet
Should you notice something gone awry with street signs in Oltrarno – on a No Entry sign, a tiny black figure stealthily sneaking away with the white bar…
See
Forte di Belvedere
Forte di Belvedere is a rambling fort designed by Bernardo Buontalenti for Grand Duke Ferdinando I at the end of the 16th century. From the massive…
See
Basilica di San Miniato al Monte
Five minutes' walk uphill from Piazzale Michelangelo is this wonderful Romanesque church, dedicated to St Minius, an early-Christian martyr in Florence…
See
Galleria Palatina
Raphaels and Rubens vie for centre stage in the enviable collection of 16th- to 18th-century art amassed by the Medici and Lorraine dukes in Palazzo Pitti…
See
Torre San Niccolò
Built in 1324, the best preserved of the city’s medieval gates stands sentinel on the banks of the Arno. In summer, with a guide you can scale the steep…

Guidebooks

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