Anna’s guidebook

Florence is indeed still a place where you still can find things you won’t be able to find anywhere else. We advise you don’t leave all your shopping on Sundays; most places in the city center are now open 7 days/week, usually between 10 am and 7:30 pm, but many smaller independent retailers and artisans still close on Sundays, and many observe the tradition of the lunch break, therefore closing between 12:30pm and 3:30pm. The main shopping areas of Florence are: Via Tornabuoni and nearby Via della Vigna Nuova, where all major luxury retailers have got their stores. Oltrarno - as the areas around Piazza Santo Spirito and Piazza Pitti are known as - you will find small artisan shops and great antiquity and furniture makers and sellers. If you are looking for something special and specific (luxury linen, ceramics, antiquities, carpets or else) let us know and we’ll do our best to advise.

You can do a wine tasting at all wine bars (enoteca in Italian) as well as enjoy tastings organized by restaurants which, combined with a full-course meal, will give you the chance to appreciate each wine at its very best. However, for an all-rounded experience, you should definitely visit direct the wineries that produce the wine. A Tuscan vinery is always a good idea; tasting their wines on the spot and maybe visit the winery and vineyards is an awesome day out. You can reach many in one hour drive or less and we are happy to arrange a driver for you if you require, although the drives are easy and beautifully scenic - a great part of the fun actually. The Chianti Classico road has always existed. Stretching between Florence and Siena and encompassing the villages and towns of Gaiole in Chianti, Radda in Chianti, Greve in Chianti, Barberino Val D’Elsa, Colle Val D’Elsa and, more recently, Montalcino and Montepulciano, this small wine-region produces perhaps one of the best-known and appreciated wines: the Chianti Classico Wine. Wine has been produced in this area for over 2000 years, since Etruscan time. Over the centuries the area passed from the Etruscans to the Romans first, and then to the opposing armies of Florence and Siena who fought for its control in medieval times. Today the Chianti Classico region is there for travelers to treasure and enjoy, testament to its heritage is the unique man sculpted landscape, worked over the centuries with the passion and commitment that have made this region one of the most admired wine & food sources in the world.