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Free booking and cancellationFree payment tour, no set price, booking and cancellation are free
In search of the vanished city: Florence at the end of the 19th century
The Free Tour was born in 2011, as the first free tour group in Florence; since then we offer varied tours and attractiveness of great quality. Authorized guides, national officers specialized in Florence and Tuscany. We are locals, graduates, food experts organized many years ago, as tour guides in Florence!
Tour description
Anyone who comes to Florence thinks they are strolling in a city immersed in the splendor of the Middle Ages, with its ancient vestiges of towers or in that of the Renaissance city dotted with majestic palaces of the time: but this is not the case. With the Italian unification the city completely changed its face and underwent a total metamorphosis: the center of Florence today is only the pale memory of its glorious past. At the end of the 19th century, the "heart" of Florence , centered on the Mercato Vecchio , full of history and magic, was subject to many urban planning crimes prompted by new needs and was sacrificed to the wild building speculation of the time: with it, the old Jewish Ghetto. With the help of your imagination and with the support of many photographs and paintings, we will retrace some of these stages together.
1 - We will start from Piazza SMN for a small introduction and then continue to the Market
2 - Market of San Lorenzo majestic work of the time
3 - We will make a brief stop in front of the facade of the Cathedral to understand the tastes dictated by the new ruling class.
4 - We will proceed towards the "new" via Calzaiuoli to finally reach Piazza della Repubblica, the beating heart of the city before the great demolitions with its post-unification cafés.
5 - We will continue towards Piazza della Signoria where the original layout of the square fortunately remained almost intact.
6 - Finally, with an exceptional guest invented by the creative imagination of Collodi, Pinocchio, we will talk about the Facade and the interior of the Basilica. Before saying goodbye, we will pay homage to the statue of the Divine Poet overlooking the square to remind us that the Poet would never have approved of such a metamorphosis. The story will be fueled by anecdotes, curiosities and small stories that will remain engraved in your memory for a long time.
We are waiting for you for this new and exciting adventure.
Important information for travellers:
- Minimum number 6
- Walkers who wish to cancel the tour confirmed by us are requested to cancel the tour at the latest 24 hours before the start of the tour.
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Meeting point:P.za di Santa Maria Novella, 17, 5012...P.za di Santa Maria Novella, 17, 50123 Firenze FI, Italy
In front of the facade of Santa Maria Novella near the obelisk. The guide will be holding a sign that says "the vanished city", a flag with the Lily of Florence and a
How much does this tour cost?
Free tours do not have a set price, instead, each person gives the guru at the end of the tour the amount that he or she considers appropriate (these usually range from €10 to $50 depending on satisfaction with the tour).