Florence Cathedral & Brunelleschi’s Dome

Tickets, the Dome Climb & Visitor Guide to the Duomo Complex

⏱ 2-4 hours👤 All ages$$

Florence Cathedral, the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore, was begun in 1296 and took some 140 years to complete, its enormous nave clad outside in intricate green, white, and pink marble. But its glory is the dome: when the cathedral's great octagonal drum was finished, no one knew how to span it — until Filippo Brunelleschi devised an ingenious double-shell design, built without traditional scaffolding, and completed it in 1436. The largest masonry dome ever built, it remains a defining symbol of the Renaissance and of Florentine ambition.

The cathedral complex is a cluster of monuments on and around the Piazza del Duomo. Entering the cathedral itself is free (though lines form, and modest dress is required). The paid highlights, covered by a combined complex ticket, are the climbs and museums: the 463-step climb up Brunelleschi's Dome (with a close-up of the dome's interior frescoes en route and a panoramic view from the top — reservation required); Giotto's Campanile, the elegant bell tower, climbable for another fine view; the octagonal Baptistery, with its gilded bronze "Gates of Paradise" by Ghiberti and dazzling ceiling mosaics; the crypt of the early church beneath the cathedral; and the excellent Opera del Duomo Museum, which holds the original Baptistery doors, Michelangelo's Bandini Pietà, and Donatello sculptures.

It's a half-day's worth of sights in one place. The dome climb is the must-do for the able (it's steep and narrow, with no elevator, and requires a timed reservation), but the museum and the views from the bell tower are rewarding too. Book a combined ticket in advance, reserve a dome-climb slot, and dress modestly for the religious sites. It's the geographic and visual center of Florence, a short walk from the Accademia and the Uffizi.