This full day tour of Florence is for anyone who wants to experience first hand the Florence of the powerful Medici Family. I will tell you exciting stories of rivalry, riches beyond belief, and the powerful family that ran Florence for centuries. Our first stop during our walking tour in Florence will be the Convent of St Mark, where Cosimo the Elder spent the last days of his life. This community was also the home of one of the Medici’s fiercest enemies: the Dominican friar Girolamo Savonarola, who inspired Florence citizens with an austere lifestyle. We will walk through the vibrant outdoor market until we reach the Church of San Lorenzo that was remodeled at the request of the Medici family and later became their “private church.” It features Brunelleschi’s Old Sacristy, one of the most important examples of early Renaissance architecture placing importance on proportion and unity of elements. Now it is on to to the Medici Chapel, a private mausoleum of the Grand Dukes, where you can admire Michelangelo’s New Sacristy and his amazing statues sculpted for the Medici tombs.
After a break for lunch, we will continue our tour with the first of the prestigious Medici residences, the Medici Riccardi Palace. This is the place where Lorenzo the Magnificent lived and had a young talented boy named Michelangelo as a permanent guest for some years. We won’t miss the Magi Chapel inside, showing the journey of the three Kings upon the background of a lush landscape, dotted with family portraits. We will finish at Palazzo Vecchio, today the City Hall of Florence, which was the residence of the family in the 16th century.