CITY GUIDE CITY GUIDE THE FERRARI GUIDE: FLORENCE Florence, capital of the Renaissance, is a vibrant city, which more than any other place will surpass your expectations. Explore the extraordinary museums, the churches and palaces, the streets full of workshops, antiques shops and art galleries, the restaurants with their unique cuisine and the exclusive shopping that is hard-to-resist, just like the magic hills surrounding this special city Words Laura Antonini Photography Gabriela Noris 000 >> CITY GUIDE CITY GUIDE HISTORIC stAY CENTRE In 2008 the prestigious FOUR SEASONS within walking distance of the main monuments Via dei Banchi (fourseasons.com) arrived in the city, opening up a of the city and the nearby streets of antique shops. Concentrated into a small area, the historic centre luxurious complex in the Palazzo della The only luxury five-star hotel on the banks of of Florence now boasts a large pedestrianised Florence Catheral Gherardesca, which for five centuries was the the Arno, THE FLORENCE ST REGIS (stregis.com/ area (introduced in 2011) that also encompasses Via delle Belle Donne home of Florentine nobility, overlooking the florence), reopened just under a year ago. Piazza del Duomo. largest private garden in Florence. Frequented by princes and other members of the This can feed many different passions: a love of The restaurant has been remodelled to enhance Saudi royal family, it has a ballroom with a history and art, of flavours and traditional cooking, and the venue. Here the slow food chef Vito Mollica spectacular ceiling that’s nine metres high, a spa San of handicrafts; areas of interest that can be interchanged Pancrazio (one Michelin star) prepares each dish according and a suite designed by Bottega Veneta. é Tomabuoni é to make even a stay of only a few days continuously fresh d Via to the seasonality of the produce. Almost impossible to find because of its Via dé Pescioni Via dé Vecchietti and interesting. In good weather the centre is assailed by Via dei Calzaioli From the large to the small: just around the entrance hidden among the buildings, and look- groups of tourists, but there’s no shortage of alternative Via Roma corner from Florence’s central station, in the ing out onto Brunelleschi’s dome and the Piazza itineraries to get away from them. With a little organisa- Via degli Strozzi Via degli Speziali beautiful Piazza Santa Maria Novella, you’ll find del Duomo, there’s the charming GRANDUOMO tion and forward planning of one’s activities (it’s always Calzaioli dei Via the recently renovated JK PLACE FLORENCE APARTMENT COMPLEX (granduomo.com), which Via della Vigna Huova advisable to book museum visits ahead of time), the Casa di (jkplace.com), a boutique hotel with only 20 offers luxury rooms and apartments with a Via degli Anselmi Dante more exclusive visitors can carve out for themselves a rooms, each one different from the other, that is doorman and bespoke services. quality stay, and leave the crowds behind. Those who like shopping can choose between designer labels and streets famous for their craftsmen’s shops. Via Porta Rossa Via Della Condotta These are workshops where today, as in the 16th Via Porta Rossa century, expert hands can still braid leather, mould precious materials, like gold and silver, into original jewellery, create paintings and sew natural textiles, SEE AND DO such as silk, linen and Casentino’s boiled wools. Via dé Tomabuoni Get a taste for art in museums, including the GALLERIA DEGLI UFFIZI (uffizi.firenze.it) with SHOP masterpieces from Giotto to Michelangelo, You’re really spoilt for choice when it comes to Leonardo to Raffaello, Botticelli to Tiziano, palaces, shopping in the historical centre. Following the like the PALAZZO STROZZI (palazzostrozzi.org) or streets leading out of Via Tornabuoni and its churches, from SANTA MARIA DEL FIORE various offshoots and side roads (from Via Strozzi (duomofirenze.it) to SANTA MARIA NOVELLA to Via de’ Rondinelli), trendsetters have on (Piazza Santa Maria Novella). hand the best of high-fashion boutiques. Alternatively, embark on a tour of the local FERRAGAMO (ferragamo.com) has its head office fashion museums. Among them, The SAlvATORE in Palazzo Spini Feroni in Via Tornabuoni This page – left, inside the FERRAGAMO MUSEUM (museoferragamo.it) itself and a shop that stocks the Ferragamo’s Uffizi Gallery; above, the Sala displays more than 13,000 models of shoes created Creations shoe line, featuring some of the brand’s Vendita at the Santa Maria over the 80 years of the brand’s history. The new Novella pharmacy; below, the historic models. GUCCI and PUCCI, to name but a 458 Spider parked in Via GUCCI MUSEUM (gucci.com) is set in the historic few labels born in Florence are also in this area. Tornabuoni, one of the city’s Palazzo della Mercatanzia, overlooking Piazza For men there is the luxurious tailoring collec- famous shopping streets. della Signoria, and gathers the best of the brand’s Opposite page – the 458 tion at STEFANO RICCI (stefanoricci.it), which is a Spider in front of the Chiesa di production, along with a bookshop café and shop worth visiting just for its spectacular boutique Santa Maria del Fiore that sells a line designed ad hoc by Frida Giannini, fitted out inside Palazzo Tornabuoni: a 900 sq m of the present creative director of the fashion house. travertine, crocodile and walnut. Part of the Florentine fashion rectangle is the EAT AND DRINK multi-brand EREDI CHIARINI shop, which sells an original line of ties and John Malkovich’s Florentines meet for aperitifs at the FUSION BAR Technobohemian line, while in via Tornabuoni (Vicolo dell’Oro 3). Sitting in a space that is also an you must visit LOREttA CAPONI (lorettacaponi. art gallery, you can sip cocktails created by the com), whose workshop created the layette for barman-DJ Karim. Madonna’s son Rocco and the sheets for the For a cheap chic lunch, there’s RISTORANTE wedding of Charles and Diana embroidered with BORGO SAN JACOPO (Borgo San Iacopo 62/R), the royal coat of arms. looking out over the Arno, and for three-star To personalise your table dressing, visit dining, try RISTORANTE ENOTECA PINCHIORRI. RICHARD GINORI 1735 (richardginori1735.com) Its owners Giorgio Pinchiorri and Annie Féolde the 100-year-old white gold works, which is still have also opened ETICHEttA PINCHIORRI in production in the Sesto Fiorentino area and (enotecapinchiorri.com) in the conservatory of for which Giò Ponti was one of the creative the St Regis hotel on Piazza Ognissanti. Etichetta directors. For Florentines it’s the place to go to offers an impressive wine list and gastronomic create your wedding list: inside there’s an unbe- creations by Italo Bassi and Riccardo Monco. lievable range of products. There’s the terrace with a 360-degree view of the To make sure you don’t get lost in the boundless city’s major monuments at SESTO ON ARNO variety of workshops, the OSSERVATORIO (sestoonarno.com), where chef Entiana Osmen- DEI MESTIERi d’ARTE (info@osservatorio zeza prepares Mediterranean traditional dishes. mestieridarte.it) has created a new professional Grab a sandwich at ’INO (ino-firenze.com), near figure, the Quality Handicraft Assistant (QHA), a the Galleria degli Uffizi, where Alessandro Frassica personal shopper more than a traditional tourist offers specials with five-star ingredients. Above – the Ferrari guide, who can help visitors to discover the best of Follow the Florentines to PROCACCI 458 Spider parked in the city’s main the many art shops located in the city. The FERRARI (procacci1885.it) to drink a glass of wine and shopping district STORE is located at via degli Strozzi 4r. nibble on tiny truffled sandwiches. 000 >> CITY GUIDE CITY GUIDE This page – Piazza SANT’AMBROGIO della Signoria, This page – Palazzo Vecchio Along with Oltrarno, this is one of the few central hen’s eggs, bread with natural rising agents, and fruit. Dummy Stewart and the Uffizi districts where you can breathe in that authentic There’s no problem if you haven’t espoused the Officer of the Gallery. Opposite page – above, a Florentine atmosphere you find in the prose of writers vegetarian philosophy, as you can find excellent Order of the British Empire, market stall on like Vasco Pratolini. butchers in the covered part of the market and, if you wearing his Piazza dei Ciompi; In the day it’s an exhilarating experience to go to the want a snack between meals, you can have a made-to- Officer of the below, classic Tuscan flavours at open-air food market. Every morning the growers arrive order sandwich from one of the traditional tripe stands. Order of the British Empire, Il Cibrèo from the countryside ready to show off the best seasonal In the evening the district is still lively and always wearing his produce from their land. Vegetables, but also goose and busy thanks to the many bars in the area. Officer of the Order of the British Empire, wearing his SEE AND DO The life of the district revolves around the open-air markets. As well as the food market in PIAZZA DEI CIOMPI (home of the famous goldsmith and architect Lorenzo Ghiberti), you can visit the flea market in the pedestrian zone every day. Browse among the stalls behind the atmospheric LOGGIA DEL PESCE (designed by Vasari) and buy antiques and Florentine handicrafts, as well as modern and designer pieces, all at very agreeable prices. Not far from the piazza is the synagogue and JEWISH MUSEUM (moked.it/firenzebraica). EAT AND DRINK Those looking to experience the true flavours of Tuscan cuisine should head to CIBRÈO (cibreo.it), just round the corner from Piazza di Sant’Ambrogio, where chef Fabio Picchi has created an original vino-gastro centre.