Jean

The thing about spending the night in Milan is you have to check in/out of hotels and take your luggage, all of which (to me) burdens the day. Even if you can leave your large suitcases at the Florence hotel, you still have to spend time getting to and checking into the Milan hotel (and later, checking out). I'd rather just hop on the 7:00 am train and hit the sights in Milan.

IMO, Venice is not a day trip from Florence. The first fast train doesn't depart until 9:30 am and takes two hours. The last fast return train departs at 6:30 pm.

Jean

Is this where you've been checking train schedules?

http://www.ferroviedellostato.it/homepage_en.html

cathies

There is a lovely walk in Florence that we enjoyed immensely. Google San Mineato Church (that's probably not the right spelling) and check out where it is in Florence. We walked from the Duomo to this church, it took several hours, but it took us through residential areas of Florence and also offered fabulous views back towards the town centre. The church itself is lovely and I remember it as a great day.

Day trips to Siena and San Gimignano are also very easy from Florence. Florence to Siena can be easily done by bus or train. Someone else may need to post about getting to San Gimignano as we had a car that day.

Another poster suggested hiring a car - I'm not sure if it might be excessively expensive due to your age??

Spend time in Florence in the evenings. Once the day trippers have all gone it is so different. I think there is magic in the air in Florence in the evenings.

DO NOT miss David in the Accademia. If there are long queues then just pop back at about 5pm when you will find the tour groups are gone and you will only wait about 10 mins for entry. Accademia is open until about 7pm which is plenty of time.

stepsbeyond

ohgirlfriend,

I agree with Jean that Venice is not a feasible day trip from Firenze -- and if you are looking to get beyond tourism, you'll go nuts in Venice. As for Milano, I want to point out that all the big fashion design labels -- Armani, Dolce&Gabbana, Prada, etc. -- all have stores in Florence. Plus, one of biggest fashion designer outlet malls in Europe is just outside Firenze in Barberino di Mugello. (Ask the tourist office in Firenze for best directions.)

You mention that your husband is a designer but you don't say what he designs. Milan is only one design center in Italy. Many other places specialize in the design of particular goods. Perhaps if you talk more about your specific interests in design, you can get pinpointed advice.

If your sightseeing list for Firenze (Florence) doesn't include the Museo San Marco, that is a unique art venue -- fabulous, really -- that doesn't get anywhere near as many tourists as the museums like the Uffizi and the Accademia. It's not really a museum but a monastery, where the monks cells were painted with murals for contemplation by Fra Angelico.

http://www.polomuseale.firenze.it/en...usei/sanmarco/

Some tourists know to go inside the church of Santa Maria Novella to see The Holy Trinity by Masaccio, but not everybody takes the time to go to the cloisters and Spanish Chapel. Here is a website to give you information about all there is to see in the Basilica.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilic..._Maria_Novella

Finally, on a nice weather day, you might like to get above Firenze in the Tuscan hills to Fiesole, with its beautiful views and Roman ruins, but also just to take the rustic walk to Settignano, whose views and landscapes inspired Michaelangelo and many, many other Florentine artists, and later other American and European painters, sculptors, poets and novelists. This website includes a link to a nice walk, plus the simple logistics from down Florence:

http://www.settignano.com/e/index.html