Oltrarno Neighbourhood
Cross the Ponte Vecchio and you step into Oltrarno — the 'other side of the Arno' — a neighbourhood of artisan workshops, independent wine bars, neighbourhood trattorias and the magnificent Palazzo Pitti. It is where Florentines actually live, and it rewards slow, unplanned wandering more than almost anywhere in the city.
Artisan workshops and independent shops
Via Maggio and the streets around Piazza Santo Spirito are lined with restorers, gilders, bookbinders and leather workers — many operating from the same workshops their families have occupied for a century. Stepping into one of these botteghe (workshops) and watching a craftsman at work is a genuinely rare experience in modern Europe.
Look for Giulio Giannini e Figlio on Piazza dei Pitti, a paper-marbling and bookbinding shop that has been open since 1856. Their hand-marbled notebooks and journals make far more meaningful souvenirs than anything sold near the Duomo.
Piazza Santo Spirito: the neighbourhood living room
Piazza Santo Spirito is the social heart of Oltrarno — a large, slightly scruffy square anchored by Brunelleschi's unfinished church facade, ringed by cafe tables and frequented by students, artists and locals walking dogs. A small organic farmers' market sets up here on Sunday mornings.
In the evenings the square fills with aperitivo drinkers. Pull up a chair at Caffe Ricchi or Il Santino (the wine bar attached to the celebrated Buca Mario sister restaurant, Osteria Santo Spirito) and order a Negroni with a plate of cured meats — this is Florentine life at its most relaxed and real.
More of Uffizi Gallery
Discover where to stay, what to do and the best deals for your trip.
Explore Uffizi Gallery →
