Not many visitors to Italy know just how easy it is to visit Florence from Naples and see the famous sites of the Renaissance City such as Michelangelo’s David and the Uffizi Galleries. Having done it myself, here’s how you can take a day trip from Naples to Florence.

How to visit Florence in a day from Naples

While a small city in geographical terms, Florence is a heavyweight when it comes to Italian art, history and cuisine. 

Some of Italy’s most famous historical figures – including Dante, Michelangelo, Da Vinci and Machiavelli – either came from Florence, or lived and worked in the city for long parts of their lives.

This cultural legacy is combined with Florence’s history as a centre of commerce under the powerful Medici family. As a crossroads between the Vatican and the great kingdoms of Europe through the late Middle Ages until the unification of Italy, Florence was one of the most important places in the world for a long time. 

This means now that Florence is a showcase for some of the most incredible Italian art, architecture, food and drink.

With just one day to visit Florence, maximising your time will be key to ensuring you have the best possible visit from Naples.

Here are two important tips based on our years of visiting Florence and living in Italy:

Book in advance

Florence is a small city with a handful of must-see sights, but it attracts a huge number of visitors annually. 

In addition, being a small city means that the restaurant and bar scene is far more competitive compared to somewhere like Rome.

Considering this, we recommend booking ahead for anything you absolutely have to see or do. You should also reserve any restaurants/bars that you really want to dine/drink at. Not doing so runs the risk of arriving and being turned away. Why take a chance when most things can be booked online in a couple of minutes?

Be flexible – unexpected things happen

Even if you plan every element of your trip, anything can happen when travelling. This is not a Florence/Naples/Italy specific tip, just a general consideration when traveling.

The chances of unexpected things happening are heightened if you are somewhere that you are not already familiar with, when factors like language barriers come into play.

As such, you should be prepared to go with the flow if the unexpected happens. Your train is delayed? Take the next one and adapt – if you’re anything like me you’ll regret not going on your trip if you decide to cancel. One of the sights you’d like to visit is fully booked? Visit somewhere else, there are no shortage of alternatives in Florence!

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Depending on what you’ve done during your trip from Naples to Florence, by this point it will likely be early-to-mid evening. If you don’t mind arriving back in Naples a little later, I have one final Florentine experience to recommend; aperitivo.

Florence has a strong aperitivo heritage (it’s the birthplace of my favourite drink, the Negroni after all) and if you stick around into the evening, you’ll see the city come to life with locals and visitors alike enjoying a pre-dinner drink.

Here are some of our favourite spots for an evening drink in Florence:

Piazza della Repubblica

This large square in the historic center of Florence loosely follows the footprint of Florence’s ancient Roman forum, and like in ancient times, this area is still a hub of activity. Facing the square you’ll find two of Florence’s most famous bars – Paszkowski and Gilli – where you can order food and drink any time of the day, making it the perfect place for a pre-return-to-Naples recharge.

Piazzale Michelangelo

If you opt to make the trip across the river Arno (I’d recommend doing so via the Ponte Vecchio so you can see Florence’s most famous bridge up close), and up the small hill to the southeast of the centre of Florence you’ll find the monumental Piazzale Michelangelo.

This scenic square offers the best views of the city of Florence. Once you’ve had your fill of the view, across the road from the piazza, you’ll find La Loggia del Piazzale Michelangelo. They offer a high-end aperitivo experience serving the best quality drinks with immaculate service, all in a traditional and refined setting.

Piazza Santo Spirito

If you’re looking for a more local experience for your aperitivo, again head across the river Arno via Ponte Vecchio to enter the Oltrarno neighbourhood. Make your way to Piazza Santo Spirito where you’ll find several bars facing the square and Basilica of Santo Spirito.

We love this square as the drinks are on the cheaper side, service is fast and efficient, and you can people-watch as locals go about their lives and visitors enjoy their vacations.

Typically, the latest trains leaving Firenze Santa Maria Novella station with arrival at Napoli Centrale depart around 8PM and get in at 11PM.

However, I would not recommend booking the last train in case of any issues. It’s always good to have a fallback option…unless of course you don’t mind getting stuck in Florence for a night (not the worst thing admittedly!).

Depending on where you ended up during the final part of your day in Florence, you should factor in around 45 minutes to get back to the train station. Whether you are walking across the city, catching a bus or using a taxi, it has never taken me any longer than this to get from one side of Firenze to the other.

At Santa Maria Novella train station you’ll find several cafes and shops to grab any refreshments you want for the train. The station itself is not large so just keep an eye on the departures board and make your way to your train when you have a set platform.

Then, sit back and enjoy the journey back to Napoli – you’ve earned a rest!

If you’re planning to do a day trip from Naples to Florence and are looking to skip the main sites, here are two other great ways to spend your day:

Shopping

Florence is renowned throughout Italy for its shopping, with a focus on fashion and particularly leather-made goods. The history of this goes back centuries, so if you’re in the new market for a new jacket, bag, pair of shoes or anything else leather, Florence is a great place to start browsing.

Focus on Food & Drink

I’ve detailed on this page how to ensure you experience some authentic Florentine cuisine during your day trip from Naples to Florence as well as see the key sites.

However, if you’re a real foodie, why not dedicate your whole day to indulging in Florence’s famous food?

You can either take a look at this guide from Florencewise covering the best places to eat, or book a dedicated food tour – take a look at recommended experiences from our partners here:

• Explore Florence’s local neighborhoods and markets, tasting traditional food and wine along the way
• Learn all about Italian gelato before making your very own flavor concoction in this gelato-making experience
• Make fresh pasta dishes in a historic setting, accompanied by plenty of wine, before eating what you have prepared
• Discover the story of Florence on this walking tour of the historic center, including multiple stops for food, wine and gelato

It will be a long day, but a very fun day, going from Naples to Florence by train. The city of Florence is perfectly laid out to explore in one day, and helpfully the high speed trains run all day and night. Just be sure to book your tickets for places like the Accademia and Uffizi Galleries in advance!

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