5 Non Touristy Things to Do in Florence – There’s more than Michelangelo

5 Non Touristy Things to Do in Florence (tired to tourist guides?)

Are you tired of touristic tips? We are! This is why we created the 5 cool things to do in Florence!

You can get the secret local tips for Florence only right here, only with us. We are the Hostelgeeks. We love to share with you, always authentic travel tips. And so we share with you as well our non-touristy things to do in Florence.

Good to know: You have to buy the ticket to see David Statue beforehand. It is usually sold out 7 days before.

Make sure you check out as well our secret tips of Rome, travel tips for Bologna, and last but not least our 5 tips to discover the hidden Venice.

Find our guide to where to eat in Venice here.

We share here secrets to eat out cheaply with recommended restaurants by locals.

Florence is marvelous and so many things to see.

But, as you already know, Florence is a popular tourist destination.

Read: best hostels in Florence – compared

Sharing non-touristy stuff for Florence

Thanks to a local friend (living there since 2009), we discovered the non-touristy part of Florence.

This includes small cafés to chill, local pizza places, and ice cream.

Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?

  1. Who wants a local pizza? Cheap and super delicious!
  2. Get a café/ smoothie here and enjoy a different view to Ponte Vecchio
  3. Vegan gelateria, lounge to chill, and even small events
  4. An unusual (and unexpected) thing to do in Florence
  5. Artsy café with great coffee and Panini

Additionally, we will give you some basic introduction to Florence.

This includes public toilets, lots of espressos, and the best way to get around.

Fun Things to do in Florence

If you are bored (or even sick) of touristic guides, then this guide is your solution. Usually, you have to download the travel guide.

However, the secret spots to Florence are publicly available here.

Fan of printed guides? We recommend Rick Steves Guide to Florence.

So, let’s take a look at what’s on it:

1. Best Pizza in Florence

Wow, wow!

Delicious, cheap, easy-going!

It was surprising to see that you can get this amazing pizza for such a low price – in FLORENCE!

We are talking about „Gusta Pizza“.

100% delicious Italian pizza, made by two fun chefs, clearly enjoying their job. We talked to them.

They make more than 800 Pizza a day – at least!

You can get a Pizza Margarita for only 4,50€ and choose between 7 different Pizzas.

Non Touristy Things to Do in Florence? Get the best Pizza in town

2. Popcafé, Panini and Art Gallery

This café is located right around the corner of our tip #1 in this guide, the pizzeria, and right at the square “Piazza Santo Spirito”.

We love to come here as the coffee is great, the panini are delicious, and the vibes artsy.

There are many magazines, newspapers, artistic things to discover.

You and your eye will be busy here for sure.

Also, there are different exhibitions by local artists, and different events.

This is their facebook page, so you can take a look if some events are taking place.

For us, this is the perfect place to slow down from all the hectic in the city.

Non Touristy Things to Do in Florence

3. Albero Café + a window to the bridge

The Ponte Vecchio is a beautiful bridge. You may have seen it already hundreds of times.

It is also a touristic hot spot.

BUT, right behind the bridge (coming from the main train station), you can actually find a great place to get a coffee and juice for the local price.

We recommend getting a coffee here or a juice (or even something to eat).

Take the drinks with you and follow the street “Borgo S. Jacopo”.

On the right-hand side you will see an entrance with views to the river and the bridge.

A beautiful, calm spot to enjoy a lovely view.

4. Unusual thing to do in Florence: Street Art Hunting + Shop

This was astounding! Florence is loaded with cute, hidden street art.

Keep an eye on the street signs, and the alleys of the city.

You can score some great photos, plus enjoy the creativity of the local artist.

And even better: There is a street art shop of the artist Clet Abraham!

You can buy stickers, postcards and more at this little shop, supporting local art.

Check out their facebook if you like street art, you will be impressed.

Address: Via dell’Olmo, 8, 50125 Firenze, Italy

PS.: Here you can find a detailed article with background information about street art in Florence and Italy.

Street Art in Florence - Non Touristy Things to Do in Florence

5. Vegan Gelateria, Snacks and Concerts: Vivaldi

This Gelateria is located on the way to/from the Piazza Michelangelo, and a great place to get a rest.

Have a coffee, tasty ice cream, and sit down in the lounge of Vivaldi.

If you are lucky, you will get a seat at one of the couches. And don’t be shy. It is common to join other people on the table.

However, ask first if it’s okay. We never got a no.

Additionally, they organize different concerts and events.

Address: Via dei Renai, 15

Basic recommendations for Florence

Florence is gorgeous AND super popular.

You will spot quite a lot of big tourist groups surrounding monuments, blocking streets and so on.

Our recommendation: get up early and head to the city center!

As in every touristic city around the world, the tourism life starts from 9am.

The time before, you will have the freedom to walk around quietly and watch the city awakening.

Make sure you check as well, Get Your Guide for activities and tours.

This is our trusted website where we always book our tours.

Here you can find all tours and skip-the-line tickets in Florence. For absolutely unique tours like exclusive access to Accademia after hours, check out Walks of Italy.

1. Toilet vs. Espresso

Using a public toilet around Florence costs usually 1€ (sometimes even more).

We recommend walking into a café and get an espresso (±1€) or Cappuccino (±1,50€) instead.

This way you “pay” for the toilet plus you have a good coffee.

Coffee Shops in Taipei are with great interior design

2. Bike

We love riding a bike around the city. It is faster, you can see more in less time.

Florence is certainly a city where it is worth it to rent a bike! Take this into consideration.

Bike Tour ,a fun way to discover a city

3. Unique Tours

There are a lot of walking tours in Florence. Join them! There are free tours for the budget traveller, and guided tours by Walks Of Italy.

You will hear some fun facts and background stories of the city, absolutely worth it.

You can find many cool tours in Florence with Get Your Guide.

My favorite tour company is Walks of Italy.

They offer unique tours around Florence, Italy, and a few destinations around Europe and the US.

What makes them unique?

Well, they host tours with unique access. This can be the exclusive access to the Duomo and its terrace and the Accedemia. Meaning, you and a small group of max 15 people can admire the David Statue – with no crowds around!

This is absolutely amazing!

We joined their tours in Venice, Florence, and Athens.

Check out Take Walks here

Unique Tours in Florence

4. Skip The Line Ticket for Michelangelo

It might not be surprising: Michelangelo is the #1 thing to see in Florence.

Make sure you get your timed entrance ticket BEFORE going there.

This way you skip the line and don’t waste your valuable time waiting in a queue.

You can either just book your skip the line ticket or you can join a guided tour.

The Best Guided Tour: The unique tour still is the VIP After Hours tour. You will enter the Florence Accademia after normal closing hours, and experience an close-encounter with Michelangelo’s David without the usual crowds.

Book Accedmia Skip The Line Ticket here

Michelangelo Skip the line ticket

Where to stay in Florence?

We elaborate a useful article with the 3 best hostels in Florence and best hostels in Tuscany.

For the best hotels in Florence for families and couples, check out the guide on where to stay in Florence.

This article includes the following hostels, with all the details, and our top recommendations for each type of traveler.

Sneak peek:

  1. Ostello Bello Firenze – best for Solo Traveler
  2. YellowSquare Florence – best for Digital Nomads
  3. Archi Rossi Hostel – best for Couples
  4. Extra: PLUS Hostel – best for Backpackers

YellowSquare Florence Swimming Pool

A great option to stay is actually in Bologna. There you will find our favorite Combo Hostel.

Besides staying at a fabulous Hostel awarded as a 5 Star Hostel, you will also get to enjoy an absolute fantastic non-touristic city. Bologna is certainly one of our favorite hidden gems in Europe. Stunning food, local prices, great vibes.

Travel to Bologna, thank us later! Here is my handmade guide for cool things to do in Bologna.

Remember, we also have guides for Rome, and even Venice.

We Hostel Bologna, 5 Star Hostel in Bologna - Non Touristy Things to Do in Florence

More useful information

Cheap Flights:

Still looking for cheap flights? Take a look at Skyscanner.com. It’s a powerful flight search engine.

Here is our full review of Skyscanner.com.

Walking Tour:

We enjoy a walking tour as the first thing to do when arriving to a new city. It’s usually the perfect introduction, since the guides usually share tips and tricks on the city.

Find all Get Your Guide tours with prices here.

Packing List:

5 years traveling in style and counting. We share our best packing tips in our smart packing list. You can even download the list and print it out.

Find the packing list here.

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