Getting ready to book your trip to Florence? Make sure to take a look at all our top travel resources and suggestions for an amazing trip.

When you’re starting to plan your Italy travels, whether they’re focused on Florence or on a wider exploration of this amazing country, there’s a lot to think about.

The last thing you want is to find your hotel is far away from all the main sights, you’ve packed the wrong footwear or end up booking a sub-par tour (all of which I’ve done over the years).

Take advantage of our favorite travel resources for booking an incredible trip, including:

• Choosing your accommodation
• Booking your flights
• Getting around in Florence and Italy
• What to pack for Florence
• Arranging tours and activities
• Protecting yourself with travel insurance
• Managing your travel spending

The first step is deciding where in Florence you want to stay. Do you want to be in the heart of things or in a quieter neighborhood? Prefer to walk everywhere or happy to use public transport or taxis?

You can use the in-depth search tools available here to filter by facilities, type of property, reviews and much more to find the accommodation that’s right for you.

Or use this handy map to look for apartments, B&B’s and hotels in Florence:

We use Skyscanner to book flights, which gives you lots of potential flight options which can be filtered by timings, prices and more.

Search with specific dates or use their helpful tool which shows you when the cheapest options are available for your chosen route.

I would recommend organizing your airport transfers ahead of time for a smooth journey to and from your accommodation.

You can take a regular taxi into the city, but the lines can be long and if you’re in a large group you will need to take multiple cars.

Using the public transportation in Florence is straightforward, whether you’re using the buses or trams.

You can also use regular white taxis or apps such as FreeNow or ItTaxi.

If you have time in your itinerary, take advantage of Italy’s excellent railways to travel further afield with Trainline.

This app gives you access to timetables and live departure times, you can book online well in advance or last minute and all the tickets are stored digitally on your phone, making day trips to places like Rome simple.

Trainline has routes served by both Italo and Trenitalia, the two train companies in Italy, so you can compare timetables and pricing.

Trainline also covers multiple European countries and the UK, so is a very useful app if you’re a regular Europe traveler.

Check out all our essential packing recommendations here, broken down by season and including what not to bring with you.

Looking to replenish your travel wardrobe ahead of your trip?

Check out our Amazon store for some of our top recommendations.

There’s so much in Florence to explore that it can sometimes be overwhelming to do it by yourself.

My view has always been that taking a tour with a top-quality provider is a great way to make the most of your trip.

I recommend booking your Florence tours with one of our approved partners, all of which have expert guides, great booking options and availability:

Liv Tours

Liv Tours are a family owned business born out of love for Italy, who offer small group tours that are designed to give you a special experience.

With tours run by local expert guides that offer something a little different to the average Florence tour, Liv Tours provide exclusive access to sites and follow sustainable and responsible tourism practices.

Specializing in experiences with a difference, Liv Tours are our preferred company when it comes to private tours.

Other tours and experiences

One thing you should absolutely not forget to arrange for a trip to Florence (or anywhere really) is travel insurance. Having peace of mind just in case something happens is priceless.

One of the most common things I get asked about is money.

How much cash to bring, what cards are accepted in Italy, foreign transaction fees and much more are all popular topics of discussion.

I’ve found that the simplest way to avoid any problems when you’re in Florence is to set up a Wise account with a debit card before you travel.

This card allows you to hold multiple currencies in one account, charges minimal ATM fees for withdrawing cash and can be used in countries all over the world without incurring large fees or currency exchange fees.