Archive for 'Florence'

If you are a da Vinci fan that is planning on finding a luxury villa in Florence this Autumn, be sure to pencil a visit to the Uffizi Gallery into your trip.

The Uffizi is to host the Codex Leicester in an exhibition, celebrating the 500th anniversary of da Vinci’s death, from the 29th of October 2018 to the 20th of January 2019, giving you plenty of time to plan a trip that will overlap with the show!

Called, “The Codex Leicester. Water, Nature’s Microscope”, it is to be curated by the Museo Galileo’s director Paolo Galluzzi and has been made possible due to a loan of the object by Bill Gates, who has been its owner since 1994.

You have found an ideal vacation rental in Florence, you have packed your perfect holiday outfits, you've booked tickets to the Uffizi, you know where you're going shopping...it's all organised. The only thing left to do is start planning your menus because there is no bigger priority when you're visiting Tuscany than trying the famous and celebrated local cuisine. We have written about all sorts of Tuscan dishes before – from Lampredotto, a Florentine street food favourite, to Florentine-style peas, a typical side dish – but there is one key dish that meat-lovers, in particular, can't miss out on: Bistecca alla Fiorentina.

If you have found a luxury villa in Florence and are planning on running around and seeing as much of her many sights as possible, it might also be a good idea to take some time to stop, breathe and relax. There is so much to see and do and we recommend making the most of your time in the city but don't forget that you're on holidays! Enjoy it and unwind. One of the best ways to do this is to hit up a spa, kick up your feet and indulge in some pampering – you deserve it!

Roberto Casamonti opened his first gallery forty years ago on the chic via Tornabuoni and there are now locations in seven in cities all around the globe. Having made his fortune in the art world, the 78 year-old has decided to give back to the world with art and purchased the piano nobile of the Renaissance Palazzo Bartolini Salimbeni in order to display and open his truly extraordinary private art collection to the public. Opened on the 25th of March this year, this gallery is located just off piazza Santa Trinità and free to visit (with an appointment) until the 31st of May, with a fee thereafter.

One of the many museums of Florence is the charming and singular Stibbert Museum. Less well-known to international tourists but with an astounding collection, it has an extensive collection of objects and art works from all around the world. Based on the collections of the wealthy Federico Stibbert who was the grandson of Giles Stibbert (Commander-in-Chief of the British East India Company and Governor of Bengal), inherited a great fortune, and then dedicated his life to accumulating an extraordinary collection of art, arms, costumes and objets d'art. He filled his home with these objects and after he died in 1906, he left the villa and everything inside to the city of Florence, and it was opened as a museum.