Palazzo Vecchio (Old Palace) - Piazza della Signoria, Florence
The Palazzo Vecchio (Italian for Old Palace) is the town hall of Florence, Italy. This fortress-palace is among the most impressive town halls of Tuscany. Overlooking the Piazza della Signoria with its copy of Michelangelo's David statue as well the gallery of statues in the adjacent Loggia dei Lanzi, it is one of the most significant public places in Italy.
Originally called the Palazzo della Signoria, after the Signoria of Florence, the ruling body of the Republic of Florence, it was also given several other names: Palazzo del Popolo, Palazzo dei Priori, and Palazzo Ducale, in accordance with the varying use of the palace during its long history. The building acquired its current name when the Medici duke's residence was moved across the Arno to the former Palazzo Pitti.
The Palazzo Vecchio was completed in 1322 and it still serves its original role as Florence's town hall. The tall and imposing bell tower was built to announce city meetings or to warn of flood, fire or enemy attack. Much of the interior was remodelled when Duke Cosimo I moved into the palace in 1540, although it still retains a fairly medieval appearance. Both Leonardo da Vinci and Michelango were approached to redecorate, but it was Vasari who finally undertook the work, creating many elaborate features.

Piazza del Signoria
This splendid open-air museum evokes centuries of greatness and power.
The Piazza del Signoria is a truly unique outdoor sculpture gallery and a cultural centre of Florence, surrounded by some of the city's most celebrated buildings. It has been at the heart of the city's politics since the 14th century and the many striking statues commemorate important events in the city's history.
Although some original buildings (the Loggia dei Pisani and the Church of St. Cecilia) and the ancient brick paving, which gave it greater unity of style, have now disappeared, it remains in all its aspects a square of incomparable beauty and elegance. Dominated by the fourteenth century Palazzo della Signoria with its high crenellated tower, it is surrounded by other important buildings: the Loggia della Signoria and the Palazzo degli Uffizi on the south side, the sixteenth century Palazzo degli Uguccioni on the north side and the Palazzo del Tribunale di Mercanzia (about 1359) on the east side.

Palazzo Medici-Riccardi - Via Cavour 11,
The Palazzo Medici , also called the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi for a later family that acquired and expanded it.
Palazzo Medici Riccardi has a particularly fascinating history , rich in art and also in political, cultural and worldly events. The history of this palazzo, one of the finest and most famous in Florence , is an integral part of the history of the city, marking out all the important stages in its development.
Built in the mid fifteenth century by Michelozzo on commission from the Medici, the building became the prototype of Renaissance civil architecture and its famous classical Renaissance facade has served as a model for many other well-known Italian palaces. The robust and austere pile of the mansion, originally designed as a sort of cube, was for at least a century the most direct and efficacious symbol of the political and cultural primacy of the Medici in Florence .
Over the years the palace has been host to countless famous individuals, including royalty and artists. The palace was the residence of the powerful Medici family until 1540, when Cosimo I moved into the Palazzo Vecchio. Across the road are the stunning Medici Chapels, built to serve as mausoleums to this family, showing their immense wealth and influence.

Palazzo Strozzi - Piazza Degli Strozzi,
This striking Renaissance palace is one of the most magnificent palaces in the city. Construction began in 1489 for wealthy banker Filippo Strozzi, who sadly died two years later, after only the foundations had been laid. The sheer size of the Palazzo Strozzi is simply immense and 15 buildings were demolished to make room for it. Building was finally completed in 1536 and although it only has three storeys, each floor is as tall as a normal palazzo. Palazzo Strozzi is a splendid example of civil architecture with its rusticated stone, inspired by the Palazzo Medici, but with more harmonious proportions. Unlike the Medici Palace, which was sited on a corner lot, and thus has only two sides, this building, surrounded on all for sides by streets, is a free-standing structure. This introduced a problem new in Renaissance architecture, which, given the newly-felt need for internal symmetry of planning symmetry, was how to integrate the cross-axis: the ground plan of Palazzo Strozzi is rigorously symmetrical on its two axes, with clearly-differentiated scvales of its principal rooms. Today, the palace is used for art exhibitions and also houses various institutes and a large library.

Teatro Comunale (City Theatre) - 16, Corso Italia,
Near to the Piazza Vittorio Veneto is the Teatro Comunale, the most important concert hall in the city. Over the years, countless famous names have performed on the stage, such as Maria Callas, Pietro Mascagni, Richard Strauss, Igor Stravinsky, Luciano Berio and many others. Originally the Politeama Fiorentino, an open-air amphitheatre, the existing building was designed by Telemaco Bonaiuti in 1862 and the main theatre area can seat around 2,000 people. As the theatre became more closely associated with Italy's first and most important music festival, the annual Maggio Musicale Fiorentino which had begun in 1931 as a triennial festival and, except for the war years, became an annual one after 1937, so its name was changed once again for the festivals to the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino .

Palazzo Pitti (Giardini di Boboli) - Piazza de' Pitti,
The Palazzo Pitti is situated on the southern bank of the River Arno (a short distance from the Ponte Vecchio) and was designed for the Pitt family by Brunelleschi. The palazzo is now the largest museum complex in Florence. The principal palazzo block, often in a building of this design known as the corps de logis, is 32,000 square metres. It is divided into several principal galleries or museums detailed below. This huge palace is quite imposing and features some wonderful pieces of art by Raphael, Filippo Lippi, Tintoretto, Veronese and Rubens - all displayed in beautifully decorated rooms. The palace is also home to a modern art collection and a costume collection. Outside to the rear is the stunning landscaped Boboli Gardens. The Gardens, behind the Pitti Palace, the main seat of the Medici grand dukes of Tuscany at Florence, are some of the first and most familiar formal sixteenth century Italian gardens. The mid-16th century garden style, as it was developed here, incorporated longer axial developments, wide gravel avenues, a considerable "built" element of stone, the lavish employment of statuary and fountains, and a proliferation of detail, coordinated in semi-private and public spaces that were informed by classical accents: grottos, nympheums, garden temples and the like. The openness of the garden, with an expansive view of the city, was unconventional for its time.. This is one of the top tourist attractions in this part of Florence.

Palazzo dei Congressi - 14 Viale Filippo Strozzi,
Housed in the 18th-century Villa Vittoria, which was built by the Strozzi family, the Palazzo dei Congressi has become the best exhibition and modern international conference centre in Florence. Situated next to the Santa Maria Novella, the Villa Vittoria offers superb facilities for large events and has 13 rooms and an open-air amphitheatre. Outside there are also beautifully landscaped gardens.

Stazione Centrale - Santa Maria Novella - Piazza di Santa Maria Novella,
The station was designed in 1932 by a group of architects known as the Gruppo Toscano (Tuscan Group) of which Giovanni Michelucci and Italo Gamberini were among the members; the building was constructed between 1932 and 1934.
Opened in 1935, Florence's Santa Maria Novella (SMN) railway station is part of the major Italian north-south train network and high-speed trains run regularly between Milan and Rome, stopping in Florence. The station features a large atrium covered by a glass cascade and is one of Italy's most important landmarks in modern architecture. It was built outside the beautiful Santa Maria Novella church, which is where its name originates.

Florence Bus Tours
Air-conditioned guided bus tours operate daily in Florence, departing from the Piazza Santa Maria Novella. English speaking guides are on board the bus and time is allowed for walking around at some of the stops to take in the beautiful surroundings.

Florence Walking Tours
Daily walking tours are available with English speaking guides. Lasting approximately 3 hours, they depart from the Piazza Santa Maria Novella and take in many of the city's most interesting attractions and landmarks, ending at the Piazza della Repubblica.