Fun things to do in Florence Italy with kids (tried and tested!)
Our curated selection of the best tings to do in Florence with kids, based on our own travels.
One of the questions I receive most often about traveling to Florence with kids is: our kids are not into art, is it worth going to Florence with the children or will they just be bored with the museums?
I love this questions as it allows me to enthusiastically share all the wonderful kid-friendly activities and yours available n Florence they make me love the city as a family destination!
I am from Rome and go to Florence with the children regularly as it is so easy to reach for us and so wonderful.
overt teh course fo tees trips, we have come up with a shortlist of favorite kids’s things to do in the city.
Yo can find here >>> my complete guide to Florence with kids.
While on this pafe, you find my top activities for families in Florence shortlist!
The top things to do in Florence with kids include treasure hunts, museum visits, pasta and gelato classes and visits to local parks.
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Take a scavenger hunt tour with a child friendly guide
Kids can truly enjoy the art Florence is famous for and a kid-friendly guide who can turn art visits into a game is the quickest and best way to make art accessible to them.
I am very fond of two companies that offer tours for kids in Florence:
Mariaclaudia Tours, which offers super fun scavenger hunt bases tours to families with kids in Florence city center. Uffizi Museum and Accademia. best for kids 6 to 11. use code MAMALOVESITALY to book (this is the name of my website all about Italy, it’s me both here and there!)
LivTours which has a fantastic family tours of the Uffizi, one of the hardest museums to visit with kids! Suitable for all ages.
Go on the merry go round in Piazza della Repubblica – Florence highlight for toddlers and small kids
Any any family with small kids what their toddlers loved the most about Florence and you’re sure to get this answer: the carousel in Piazza della Repubblica!
The carousel has been gracing this city center square since the early 1900 and it looks straight out of the movie Mary Poppins.
The ‘giostra’ operates during the day and, in summer, in the evenings too.
It is suitable for kids of all ages, including very small ones thanks to the not-so-loud music and slow movement.
I also went on it!
The carousel is right in the center of Florence, a few minutes walk from Piazza dell Signoria an it is the perfect reward after an afternoon of shopping and museum hopping.
For us, it was an obligatory stop every day in town.
If you want to make sure you don’t miss it, you can follow our footsteps and retrace our children-approved Florence city centre itinerary
Take a gelato class
You can eat gelato easily in Florence but an even more fun things to do there with children is learning to make your own!
An absolutely wonderful and fun child friendly gelato class in Florence I recommend is by Vetulio Bondi, which makes delicious gelato and is also a super fun, upbeat person.
Climb to the top of Florence’s duomo
Florence’s duomo, the church of Santa Maria del Fiore, is one of the top attractions in Florence and wonderful to visit at all ages.
Older kids will want to climb to the top of the dome but be warned: the climb feels quite a few steps!
If you are not afraid of heights, the trek up is worth it as the view is spectacular but if you have any issues with high places or suffer from claustrophobia, this is not the place for you.
Younger kids are more likely to enjoy the 4 legged residents of piazza del duomo.
The elegant horses waiting for tourists just outside the church’s main entrance! The ride on the carriages is expensive (and terrible for the horses), bur cuddles are free.
Take a child-friendly pasta class
A pasta class is a fun activities to do with kids as it is hands on, a way to tap into a local traditional skill and also an easy way to sort out dinner!
A very cool and kid-friendly one in Florence is by Pastamania which you can book via this link
Visit the wonderful Boboli gardens
The person who introduced us to Boboli gardens was a local 7 year old who defined them as ‘marvellous’.
Indeed, the word captures the magic and beauty of the Boboli gardens like no other.
Perched at the back of Palazzo Pitti, the Boboli gardens are an extravaganza of pathways, hedges and statues.
Kids will love the freedom to run around and explore the many nooks and crannies or this aristocratic estate.
Need yo know! Boboli is a monumental garden, not one for picnics of playing football. For those, I recommend spending a day in Parco delle Cascine instead.
Go to the Florence Selfie Museums
The Florence selfie museum is a new addition to family enertainment in Florence and a super fun place for kids as it is colorful and photo friendly.
This is a great rainy day activity inf Florence for kids and perfect if you want to break up sightseeing with somethings completely different!
Find info here >>> Florence Selfie Museum
Enjoy the Interactive Leonardo Museum of Florence
Florence has a wonderful interactive museum showcasing Leonardo da Vinci’s Machines and genius inventions.
Kids can touch and operate most of the exhibits: this is another one of our favourite things to do in Florence with kids on a rainy day.
Learn to make marbled paper
Paper making is a traditional Florentine craft and elegant marble paper creations grace the windows of many beautiful Florence city center shops.
You can buy paper and bring a booklet as souvenir to your friends back home or you can take the souvenir idea to the next level a make a booklet yourself!
Il Papiro Paper shop in Florence holds workshops open to participants of all ages that will teach you how marble per is made and bind and will make you bring home your own creation!
Relax in Parco delle Cascine
Another garden, this one open to the public and perfect for picnics and family days out.
Located immediately outside Florence city center and a short tram ride from the main station, Parco delle Cascine is a vast green space with playgrounds, a swimming pool, bike lanes, etc.
It is the perfect escape from the summer heat: the swimming pool is open to the public for a small entrance fee and has a lovely café too. Just be aware that children summer camps take place here so it does get busy.
See Florence from above in Piazzale Michelangelo
Do you know the iconic shot of Florence, with the Arno river in the foreground and the duomo on the right?
That is taken from Piazzale Michelangelo, a large square overlooking the city.
The square itself is nothing more than a large esplanade, often full of cars and private buses, but the climb up is worth just for the view.
The easiest and most pleasant way to reach it climbing the steps from Oltrarno but if you have a buggy with you, I recommend you take the bus up or fold it for the duration of the climb.
While not steep, the steps are annoying with wheels and impossible if pushing a buggy with a sleeping child on.
Top tips for visiting Florence with kids
- The best way to explore Florence is on foot. You can visit most of the city centre with leisurely stroll and hop on the man local buses for longer distances.
- Tickets for the bus can be bought in tabaccai (lit. tobacco shops but closer to what abroad would be known as a newsagent), and newspaper kiosks and need to be validated at the start of your journey. Buses are reliable and have air conditioning in summer
- The best areas to stay in Florence for families are the city centre, Oltrarno and, a little farther out, le cure.
- Our top picks for family friendly accommodation are Antica Torre Via Tornabuoni (luxury) Hotel Balestri (mid range) Hotel Duca d’Aosta (budget)
I hope you enjoyed this selection of things to do in Florence with kids! Safe travels!
