Newly renovated Vasari Corridor opens to all in May 2024

The newly renovated Vasari Corridor will open to all in May 2024. As my always intelligent and attentive readers will know, access to the Vasari Corridor, which runs from the Palazzo Vecchio, via the Uffici Galleries and over the Ponte Vecchio, to the Pitti Palace in Florence, has always been problematic. The renovated corridor re-opens 450 years after the death of its creators: the Grand Duke Cosimo I dei Medici, who commissioned the Corridor on the occasion of the wedding of his son Francesco I and who passed away on 21 April 1574, and Giorgio Vasari, who designed and built it and who died on 27 June 1574, just two months after Cosimo I.

Entry to the renovated Vasari Corridor will be available to everyone without the previous need to reserve a place and be accompanied by a guide.

The renovated Vasari Corridor

The ready accessibility of the corridor is very positive but I have to admit to feeling a bit sad about the relocation of the largest, oldest and most important collection of self-portraits in the world, which used to line the walls of the Corridor towards the Pitti Palace end. This collection, which was admirably displayed in the Corridor and directly linked to the creators of the Corridor, has been transferred to the Uffizi Galleries. The self-portraits have been replaced in the Corridor by a series of Roman epigraphs related to the Florence founded by Julius Caesar in 59 BC, and later becoming the capital of the VI Roman Legio that included Tuscany and Umbria. Obviously, these marble plaques are nowhere near as fragile as the paintings, so I suppose this is the price we must pay for free access to the Vasari Corridor.

 

The Vasari Corridor before renovation.

This, of course, is by no means the first time the Vasari Corridor has been renovated. Up until the late 19 C, there were artisanal workshops built into the arches supporting the Corridor between the Uffizi and the Ponte Vecchio. Those were removed during the 1880's.

View of the Vasari Corridor in the 1880's with workshops still in place.

More about the Vasari Corridor.

Don't forget to visit my Tuscany Travel Guide! Up-to-date news on what to see and where to stay in Chianti and all of Tuscany. Tuscany Travel Guide

Author: Anna Maria Baldini

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The traditional start of the new year in Florence - 25 March.

The 25th of March is the ancient Florentine New Year's Day and, in fact, it marked the beginning of the new year in Florence until as recently as 1750. The Grand Duke Francis III of Lorraine changed the date of the New Year into conformity with the Gregorian calendar, which had already been in force in the rest of Italy since 1582. The 25th of March is the day on which the Church commemorates the announcement of the incarnation by the angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary and was taken as the beginning of the civil calendar in Florence. The feast of the Annunciation is usually held on 25 March but is moved in the Catholic, Anglican and Lutheran liturgical calendars when that date falls during Holy Week or Easter Week or on a Sunday.

Throughout 25 March, you can visit the Brindellone, the famous cart of the Scoppio del Carro (explosion of the cart) event which is held every year on Easter morning. The cart, which is almost 12 m high and 3.5 m wide, can be visited in via del Prato 48, between 10 am and 6 pm. Guides are available who will describe the features of the carriage itself and the events involving it and the historical figures in the procession that takes place on Easter morning.

More about the Scoppio del Carro. 

Since 2020, 25 March in Florence has also been designated Dantedì, to celebrate the beginning of Dante's journey into the Inferno, so famously described in his epic poem, the Divine Comedy.

Multiple fairs, museum opening and other festivities take place on 25 March and the days leading up to and following it in Florence.

More about festivals and events in Tuscany

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Don't forget to visit my Tuscany Travel Guide! Up-to-date news on what to see and where to stay in Chianti and all of Tuscany. Tuscany Travel Guide

Author: Anna Maria Baldini

All content copyright © ammonet Italian Web Site Promotion 2023. All rights reserved.

Visit Tuscany in winter

Winter in Tuscany - it's not always this snowy!

Now seems an appropriate moment to discuss the question of whether to visit Tuscany in winter. The final answer will be a strong 'yes', but let's look at the details. Cons first. Days are short, meaning that you're likely to set out and return from a day of sightseeing in the dark. Weather can be very cold so gloves, scarves and warm coats are necessary. Could be snowy roads at higher altitudes. The larger vacation villas will be closed because of the cost of heating them, and you will need to take care about who pays the heating costs wherever you stay. Pros. Often brilliantly clear days with magnificent views into the distance. No tourist crowds. Despite fewer offerings, accommodation will be easy to find and might have low season prices or heating included. South-facing terraces can be quite warm in the middle of a clear day - definitely warm enough to sit out and enjoy the view. The opportunity to enjoy major features of 'the real Tuscany' such as meals based around the hunting and truffle seasons, enjoying the evening at home or in a restaurant in front of a roaring fire. And of course plenty of Christmas and New Years celebrations, private and public. New Year's Eve in Florence is well worth a visit. So yes - it's well worth spending some time in Tuscany during winter.

The Duomo of Florence during winter 2013

There's plenty of winter accommodation listed on the Greve in Chianti web site. These are all owner direct offerings, so you're getting the best prices, and Greve is the centre and market town of the Chianti Classico wine zone between Florence and Sienna.

 

Abbey of Sant'Antimo near Montalcino

And this is the beautiful Abbey of Sant'Antimo during January 2021.

And there are no mosquitoes in winter!

Author: Anna Maria Baldini

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