Cool story! Great job climbing up 463 stairs! Coincidentally we just watched a travel youtube episode in Florence and watched the young couple climb stairs. Later they did almost as many at the nearby bell towers and were able to overlook the dome. They were tired!
Not sure I’d be up to that kind of climb. In 2018 were traveled with same couple to Paris. The other hubby and I climbed up the stairs for Notre Dame (387 stairs) and Arch D’Triomphe (284 stairs). That tired me, despite my running hobby.
The lines are much shorter at the bell tower. But the views from the top of the dome are better. The climb was easy as it’s broken into multiple sections, with a big break as you walk round the inside gallery at the base of the dome. The curved steps between the two layers of the dome are the most interesting.
We climbed the church (not the bell tower) it was well worth the exertion for the view from the top and also the interior view on the way up. My daughter is afraid of heights but I keep dragging her to the top of places we visit (notre dame, st pauls, duomo, etc.) She thought the view from the duomo was great, but wouldn’t go anywhere near the edge.
Hi Colorado_mom - on the climbing steps thing- I climbed almost to the top of St. Peter’s in Rome - it was a real workout and I had to go very, very slowly.
I walk 5x a week for about 3-4 miles and was NOT prepared for the climbing. It’s a whole other level of fitness, I think…?
For others curious about Florence, here’s the youtube we watched last night (hubby accesses from the big TV). We were there ourselves once for a day, and it captures the views nicely. Fair warning - there is a lot of time spent eating…. which was a fun change of pace from all the museum youtubes we’ve watched. It’s 43 min long, but set up by chapter so that you can click to topic(s) of most interest
I love climbing any towers, domes, etc., but St. Peter’s was one of my favorites! I especially liked the first level where you could go out on the roof with all of the statues and look down on everyone below. And then as you got higher, the hallway walls would slope with the shape of the dome. That was wild.
But then again, we also walked up the Eiffel Tower (to the second level). The elevator line in the summer was super long. There was nobody walking up. I loved that one too, though it’s not quite in Italy. I guess technically, St. Peter’s isn’t either!
Thanks for all the help and tips. We made more progress today on our Florence planning:
prior: 2 nights Amsterdam, 7 night Viking Rhine Getaway to Basil
Thurs: 6pm arrive by train, taxi to hotel near Sante Croce
Friday: 10am market/cooking class (5 hours)**
Sat: 9:30am Uffizi guided tour**, TBD activities near Duomo
Sun: 10:30am; Accademia guided tour**
2:30 tour of 2 wineries (5 hours)**
Mon: Drive to hotel near Rome airport, TBD small town / winery lunch
Tues: fly home
** Viator booking, with24hr cancellation policy (last 3 items at this point only reserved, no payment yet )
Gosh, I have quite the assortment of tour printouts. (Yea, a bit wasteful… but really helpful for group collaboration).
Packing planning is a bit more complicated this trip because there is a good chance that our Viking river cruise (free food/drink) and Italy adventure will add a few pounds. There will be plenty of walking too, but probably not enough to compensate. And I definitely want to sample a lot of gelato in Italy! And pasta too… ha, reminds me of the first part of “Eat, Pray, Love” movie.
I was really trying to find various stylish, packs me clothing for Italy in the Spring. It turned out I wore stretchy pants and Merrells hiking shoes the whole time! And didn’t feel out of place at all. Not sure if that helps, but there was a lot more style flexibility there than I thought…!
Thanks! I will for sure have sneakers. Maybe low hiking boots (waterproof), but more likely leather SAS oxfords which are easy to pack. Also maybe sandals.
Any experiences for strictness on Italian church dress code? Duomo cathedral says,
“ * Dress code: access to the Florence cathedral is only possible in appropriate clothing. This means covered knees and no bare shoulders, sandals, headgear or sunglasses.”
I have a friend that read it is necessary to cover head, but I’ve not seen that (but will have a scarf if needed). Worrying most about the day I might climb up the 460 steps (friend wants to do it). Florence temps this week in high 80s, hopefully lower in a few weeks…. but I overheat easily, would be good if I could wear shorts. Considering zip-offs (dumpy, unless I buy new). Or I have a sheer cape I could make into a bit of a skirt over top of shorts, but it would come to top of knees rather than covering them. Skirt is another possibility.
I believe we climbed the Duomo on an 80 degree day (in late October the entire trip was unseasonably warm) in sneakers, capris (so my knees were covered), and a short sleeved shirt. I don’t remember anybody specifically checking our attire, but I wouldn’t chance it.
A sleeveless top (i.e. one that still covers most of the shoulders but has no sleeves) has definitely passed muster at all the churches I’ve been in, or a top that has short sleeves but a more open neckline (i.e. more shoulder exposure) has also been fine. My sister has been given (or had to buy) some modesty shawls when wearing tops with straps (not spaghetti straps, but maybe 1.5" wide straps). The modesty shawls the church will provide are usually sheer, disposable, and about 1 Euro.
I generally always bring a shawl with me that I carry in my bag that I can put on if I get cold, or use it as a pillow on a train window, and not worry about what I’m wearing each particular day. I pick a shawl that will go with nearly all my outfits so I only have one for the trip. You could also look into a linen or silk or other lightweight shawl material that could help with protection from UV rays that would also be light (and cover any modesty needs).
Skirts, dresses, or linen pants are all common options to stay on the cooler side while in Europe.
Fashionista I am not, but my mom is pretty big on following the rules in churches about keeping shoulders and knees covered. At St Peter’s when we did the dome climb in July, I wore one of my typical $3 Walmart tees with a long skirt that I got from a second hand store. Very light, and elastic waist that the previous owner stretched out, and its floor length. Can’t remember the shoes I wore. I probably wore my sandals but you likely couldn’t see them under my skirt. Maybe I wore tennis shoes.
Thanks for the input! I did buy a pair of lightweight light grey capris (actually longer - mid calf) at a thriftshop. They fit my color scheme (grey sneakers, grey sandals). It’s not a great look on me, and they are longer than I’d like for the climb… but I may keep them because my other long pants are a heavier material.
Too bad about the knees rule because I have a nice black skort that is a few inches above. Could maybe do a longish light skirt, but I have a vision of it blowing up over my ears at top of tower.
I wore a skirt that hit just above my knee in Italy and went in many churches. I can’t speak for the Duomo in Florence as we didn’t go in. The only place we went that was strict was the Duomo in Milan.
I saw few women in shorts in Italy. The ones I did see were more younger women who had nylon arickings on under shorts which I think was a fashion choice not for covering. My husband lives in shorts. He wears them every day even to work. For Italy he decided he wanted to not feel as touristy and many days wore a lightweight pair of pants from Lululemon.
I have this in black and I found I had no problem with going in churches. It’s versatile, comfortable and washes easily.
It can be purchased at a lot of places online.
Thanks for the clothing hints! Later I’ll continue that discussion here
Still debating Florence Duomo climb (harder to get tickets, but it seems to have a nice half way stop) or Bell Tower climb. Both around 400 steps. I keep reading the warnings about fitness requirement. Decided I’d better get back out for a run today, after a week of other distractions.
