The Sights and Sounds of Florence’s Piazza del Duomo

Heading into Florence I knew Piazza del Duomo was going to be visually impressive. Knowing this didn’t have me prepared for the epic scale of this religious complex, though.

As I walked through Florence’s medieval roads from the train station, I could feel an energy in the air as we came closer to Piazza del Duomo. Then, all of a sudden as if bursting into life from nothingness, there it was: Florence’s magnificent Duomo. To say I was shocked by its sheer size is an understatement. It’s a behemoth among cathedrals, yet its scale fills the piazza with a sense of wonder that makes one eager to explore its ins-and-outs.

In this guide to Piazza del Duomo, I’ll walk you through the details needed to make your visit efficient and enjoyable.

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Orientation to Piazza del Duomo

Before heading into the sights of Piazza del Duomo, you should have a wander around the square to familiarize yourself with everything. This is also a great time to simply admire the facades of the religious complex. Seeing these magnificent buildings up close and personal is one of the best parts of visiting Florence!

If you purchased a combo ticket for the sights in advance, there’s a handy map on your digital ticket showing you where the entrances for each attraction are. Make sure to take advantage of this to save yourself some time. This is important because it isn’t always clear where to go for some of the attractions.

For instance, you don’t enter the Duomo for the tower climb from the main entrance. Rather, there’s a smaller entrance on the north side of the building. Similarly, the Gates of Paradise remains closed so people can see this artistic masterpiece, but if you walk around to the north side of the Baptistery there’s another entryway for visitors.

Enough boring details – let’s get to these world-famous sights!

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The Duomo Tower Climb

Asides from standing around like a tourist with a look of dumbstruck awe on your face while you gaze at the magnificence of the Duomo, the top thing to do in Piazza del Duomo is to ascend Brunelleschi’s Dome. It’s 463 steps to the top where your reward is panoramic views of Florence stretching out below.

The climb itself is long but not particularly too difficult. There are several spots where you can step to the side to rest if needed. Make sure to remember you only have 45 minutes per your reserved time slot, so don’t dawdle for too long. Along the way are many small windows and inaccessible terraces with painting-like views of the city if you are looking for some artsy photos.

About halfway up you’re treated to a walkway along the interior dome for close-up views of the dome’s frescoes. The highlight is the Last Judgment depicting scenes from the end of days where the fortunate ascend to Heaven and the less fortunate are doomed to eternal torment in comically vivid detail. Some of the scenes of Hell here are enough to make the most ardent horror fan squeamish!

Several more minutes of increasingly tight staircases later and you’re at the top for romantic views of Florence. One of my favorite parts of all of Florence was the view from here. The tiled rooftops and higgledy-piggledy streets stretching into the mountains are what I think of when I think of Florence.

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Piazza del Duomo’s Baptistery

After catching my breath, we walked over to the Baptistery across from the cathedral. The Baptistery of San Giovanni as we see it today was built in the 11th century over an older building from the 4th or 5th century.

Its most well-known feature is the Gates of Paradise created by Lorenzo Ghiberti in the 15th century. This artistic wonder is comprised of 10 panels depicting scenes from the Old Testament. The reliefs themselves are astonishing, but what makes them so significant is their use of perspective. Ghiberti’s masterpiece was one of the first Renaissance works to use mathematical equations to create 3D perspective, creating art that seemed to stretch into the horizon of the individual panels.

But it’s only a model! That’s right, the Gates of Paradise on the Baptistery is a copy of the original doors. Fret not! You’ll see the original Gates of Paradise in the Duomo Museum soon.

The inside of the baptistery also has its fair share of Renaissance splendor. Chiefly, the mosaiced ceiling is absolutely gorgeous. The ceiling is covered with concentric rings of medieval mosaics showing various religious iconography. Christ in Judgement is easily the most impressive. Its larger size hints at its importance. Gazing up from the center of the baptistery’s floor at this image of Jesus amid the other golden mosaics can be a moving experience.

Take your time admiring the ceiling. There’s not much else to see inside the Baptistery, so don’t worry about potentially missing anything if all your time is spent looking up!

The Duomo Museum

We wrapped up our tour of Piazza del Duomo with the Duomo Museum. This museum, called the Opera del Duomo Museum in Italian, contains artwork and statues celebrating Florence’s Renaissance history. Most of the pieces contained within this museum were removed from the Baptistery and Duomo to be stored here.

The Duomo Museum is remarkably uncrowded considering how good of a museum it is. Admittedly, some of it is a little ho-hum, but there are three pieces that make the museum a must-see attraction.

Almost immediately you see the first of these classics, coming face to face with the original Gates of Paradise. The artistry is virtually the same as what’s seen in the copy on the Baptistery, but there is something about seeing the original masterpiece that stirs an additional emotional response. Stepping away from the Gates of Paradise, the entire room here holds numerous statues that once adorned the facades of the Baptistery and Duomo. While none of the statues are memorable, seeing them all together in one space like this is a stunning sight.

The other two things worth seeing in the Duomo Museum are Donatello’s Penitent Mary and Michelangelo’s Pietà Bandini. These are both immaculate carvings from two Renaissance masters. The Penitent Mary is especially memorable with her devastatingly mournful facial expression.

Perhaps the only downside to the Duomo Museum is its layout. Your hit by these three fabulous works of art almost immediately, but then you still have about ten more rooms of artwork to visit. By giving you the highlights first, it makes the rest seem a little lackluster in comparison.

Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore

We actually didn’t end up going in the Duomo. That might sound like tourism sacrilege, but hear me out!

My first priority in Piazza del Duomo was to climb Brunelleschi’s Dome as soon as it opened to avoid bottlenecks on the stairs. I succeeded on that count. My second priority was Giotto’s Bell Tower to get all the stairs out of the way. I also succeeded there.

Next, was the Duomo. I had read how long the line for the Duomo can get, but I thought we’d get done with the tower climb and the campanile before the line to enter got too long. I did not succeed on that count. By the time we went to get in line, there must have been at least 200 people waiting.

After seeing the Duomo from the interior dome, I frankly didn’t think it was worth the wait. It looked stunning in its sheer size, but other than that it seemed kind of devoid of interesting sights. The only thing I regret missing was the Basilica of Santa Reparata as it can only be accessed from inside the Duomo.

Santa Reparata is an archeological site beneath the Duomo. It’s believed to be one of the earliest sites of Christianity’s spread into Tuscany before being enclosed by the foundations of the Duomo we see today. You can see various artifacts from that time to give a greater sense of the history of Piazza del Duomo.

Since originally posting this article, I have read a couple things saying you can skip the line for the duomo with the Brunelleschi Pass on your way to visit the Basilica of Santa Reparata. This is why thorough planning is important!

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Ticket Information for Piazza del Duomo’s Sights

There are three different combo tickets for visiting the various sights of Piazza del Duomo. Each ticket provides for some combination of visits to the campanile, Baptistery, Duomo Museum, the Duomo’s tower climb and Santa Reparata catering to your individual interests and schedule. Another convenient feature of these tickets is they are good for up to three days from the activation date selected when you purchase them.

Ticket Tip! Save a screenshot of all your tickets on your phone the day before doing some sightseeing. This saves you the hassle of frantically going through your emails to find the ticket at the time of your visit.

Brunelleschi Pass

The Brunelleschi Pass includes all the main attractions in Piazza del Duomo including the climb to the top of Brunelleschi’s Dome. These tickets cost €30; reserving a time for the dome climb is mandatory (this is done when you purchase your ticket online).

We opted for the Brunelleschi Pass because it’s the only option that allows you to climb Brunelleschi’s Dome. Even with missing out on Santa Reparata this is still the most worthwhile ticket option because of the tower climb.

Giotto Pass

For €20, the Giotto Pass gives you access to the campanile, Santa Reparata, the Baptistery and the Duomo Museum. This ticket is a good option if you are only interested in doing one tower climb as both give fairly similar views.

Keep in mind you only get close views of the dome’s frescoes by doing the Duomo tower climb. While the views from their respective roofs are similar, you will miss out on this incredible experience by only climbing Giotto’s Bell Tower.

Ghiberti Pass

The Ghiberti Pass is for all you land lovers. Whether you’re afraid of heights or have already climbed twenty other church towers in Italy, this pass is for you. It gives you access to the Baptistery, Santa Reparata and the Duomo Museum for only €15.

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Tips for Visiting Piazza del Duomo

See Piazza del Duomo Early and Late

The best way to see Piazza del Duomo is early in the morning. It’s such an evocative experience seeing the epic scale of the duomo and Ghiberti’s Gates of Paradise without hundreds of other people crowding the square. Take your time admiring the 3D perspectives in the Baptistery’s Gates of Paradise, take in all the detail of the Duomo’s facade, and watch the sun slowly rise from behind Brunelleschi’s Dome.

You should also make it a point to wander through Piazza del Duomo at night when the floodlights come on to light up the buildings. There’s something magical about seeing these grand, historic buildings lit up at night. In particular, the massive Duomo lit up against the inky black sky is an astonishing visual.

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Avoiding Crowds at Piazza del Duomo

If you have your heart set on entering the Duomo, make sure to show up shortly before it opens to get a good place in line. Otherwise, you’ll be waiting for quite some time to go in the Duomo.

Asides from that, the other sights tend to not have long waits for entry. That said, arrive early or late in the day for the smallest crowds in the Baptistery and Giotto’s Bell Tower. The Duomo Museum is notoriously uncrowded regardless of the time of day.

As far as the Duomo tower climb is concerned, you should purchase these tickets well ahead of time to reserve your time. As such, it doesn’t make much of a difference what time you visit since there are only a set amount of people that can do the climb at any given time slot.

Dress Appropriately

Despite being such popular tourist destinations, the Duomo and its Baptistery are functioning religious buildings. Remember to dress appropriately during your visit. This means no bare knees or shoulders, no sandals, no hats and no sunglasses.

I did see people not following the dress code, but regardless of how strongly they enforce these rules, you should still be respectful of your surroundings.

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Beware of Scammers in Piazza del Duomo

I witnessed two different scams around Piazza del Duomo. The most common were “art” vendors who place oil print posters on the road where people would typically be walking. This scam occurs when someone accidentally steps on one of these posters at which point the vendor demands payment for their overpriced copy. Make sure you are watching where you walk!

The other scam I saw a lot of was people walking around peddling cheap jewelry or flowers. They will do the standard thing where they’ll come up to you to show their wares, but when you say no, they try to physically place whatever they’re selling in your hands. Less clever peddlers will only ask how you like it, but the more conniving ones will let you walk away a few steps as if you just got something for free. Then, they demand their payment. If one of these scammers approaches you, it is best to ignore them and just keep walking. The second you give them any attention, they pounce.

Here’s my Florence itinerary to help you plan the rest of your stay in this wonderful city, and if this is part of a bigger trip, make sure to check out my 2-day Venice itinerary!

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