Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore
Florence's cathedral is one of the most audacious buildings ever raised by human hands — its terracotta dome still dominates the skyline nearly six centuries after Brunelleschi solved the engineering puzzle no one else could. Standing at its marble-clad base, craning your neck at the alternating bands of white Carrara, green Prato and pink Maremma marble, you feel the full theatrical ambition of t
Climbing the Dome
The 463-step climb inside Brunelleschi's double-shell dome is not for the faint-hearted, but the reward is a panorama of terracotta rooftops, the Arno valley and the Apennine hills that justifies every breathless step.
Halfway up you pass the interior walkway that rings Vasari and Zuccari's Last Judgement fresco — a rare chance to inspect the lurid devils and golden angels from just metres away, rather than squinting from the nave floor 90 metres below.
Giotto's Campanile & the Baptistery
The freestanding bell tower designed by Giotto offers an alternative — and arguably better — viewpoint because you can look directly at the dome itself rather than from it. Its Gothic reliefs depicting the Arts, Sciences and Sacraments are exquisite even at street level.
Don't overlook the octagonal Baptistery of San Giovanni directly opposite the cathedral façade. Lorenzo Ghiberti's gilded bronze 'Gates of Paradise' (the originals are in the nearby Museo dell'Opera del Duomo) stunned Michelangelo enough for him to coin that legendary nickname.
Practical Timing
The Piazza del Duomo is mobbed by mid-morning; arrive before 8 am to photograph the façade in golden light with almost no crowds, and to join the dome queue before it snakes around the block.
A single Brunelleschi Pass covers the dome, campanile, baptistery, crypt and Museo dell'Opera del Duomo — extraordinary value for what is effectively a full day of world-class art and architecture.
More of Piazza del Duomo
Discover where to stay, what to do and the best deals for your trip.
Explore Piazza del Duomo →
