i understand that there's a lot of talk online about reservations of tickets for entry to some museums in particular the Uffizi Galleries and the Accademia Gallery in florence, is that absolutely neccesary? thanks!

Absolutely unless you wish to spend time standing in blocks long lines. We had reservations at the Uffizi and even at that had to stand in the reserved line for 5-10 minutes before we got in. We were also reserved at the Accademia, but were able to get in immediately with our reservation number.

Here's info for the Uffizi:

Via della Ninna 5
50122, Firenze, Italia
Tel: +39 (0)55 2388651-652
Fax: +39 (0)55 2388699

I thought had similar info for the Accademia but can't find it at the moment. A search will bring up a lot of posts on this subject, however.

I reserved both museums through http://weekendafirenze.com/ and had to pay a few euro, which was easier for me than trying to call because of the 9 hour time difference.

It is also possible to get your tickets when you get to Florence. We came in on a day trip in July, went to the Uffizi about 11:30 am, and got tickets for 3:30 pm the same afternoon. While others waited in line for 2 hours or more, we saw other sights, had a lovely lunch, and came back for our entry appointment. If you have some flexibility in your schedule, this might be the easiest.

No they are not absolutely necessary. We had our hotel call for reservations at the Uffizi, and we were glad to have them as there was a long line waiting to get in. On the other hand, we were just walking by the Accademia and saw there was no line, so we just went in. If you are on a tight schedule, I would get the reservations. They don't cost that much more, and if you have your hotel get them, you don't have to use them if there is no line when you get there.

It probably depends on the time of year. Two years ago, I visited the Uffizi at the end of September without a prior reservation. I bought a ticket at the Uffizi and was able to visit the Galleries 45 minutes later. Just lucky maybe...

Hi,

If you ask your hotel to make reservations for you, there is no charge unless you use the reservation.

In late October we called the Accademia from our Florence rental apartment (no charge for local calls) and made a reservation for 11:30 for the next day.
When we got to the Accademia, there was hardly any line at all for those without reservations so we switched to that line (and avoided paying a reservation fee).