Boboli Gardens with Reserved Entry and Audio Guide
- 1–1.5 hours
- Skip the line
- Free cancellation up to 24h before
- 5 languages
Highlights
Behind Palazzo Pitti in Florence, the hillside gives way to the Boboli Gardens, laid out from 1549 onward for Eleonora di Toledo, wife of Cosimo I de' Medici. Niccolò Pericoli, called il Tribolo, drew up the original scheme, which Bartolomeo Ammannati and Bernardo Buontalenti later carried forward, turning the grounds into the archetype for Italian Renaissance gardens — a sweeping outdoor museum of clipped hedges, statues, and long formal views. Its centerpiece is the Grotta del Buontalenti, a strange and theatrical Mannerist grotto raised between 1583 and 1593, lined with artificial stalactites and once the setting for Michelangelo's unfinished Prigioni. Further along, the amphitheater, the Neptune Fountain, and the island garden of the Isolotto open up in turn, framed by sculpture ranging from Roman antiquity to the 20th century. Guests can also explore Boboli, and Florence more broadly, at their own pace with a digital audio guide.
Inclusions
What's included
- Access to Bardini Gardens
- Downloadable Florence city audio guide
Itinerary
The Boboli Gardens rise on the hillside behind Palazzo Pitti in Florence, begun in 1549 for Eleonora di Toledo, wife of Cosimo I de' Medici. Designed by Niccolò Pericoli, known as il Tribolo, and later expanded by Bartolomeo Ammannati and Bernardo Buontalenti, they became the model for the Italian Renaissance garden, blending geometric hedges, statuary, and grand vistas into a vast open-air museum. Among its highlights is the Grotta del Buontalenti, an eccentric Mannerist grotto built between 1583 and 1593, its walls dripping with artificial stalactites and once home to Michelangelo's unfinished Prigioni. Elsewhere, the amphitheater, the Neptune Fountain, and the Isolotto's island garden unfold along sweeping sightlines, while sculptures spanning Roman antiquity to the 20th century line the paths. Opened to the public in 1766, the gardens remain one of the finest examples of Italian landscape design and, together with Florence's historic center, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Cancellation
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the experience starts, for a full refund.
Know before you go
- Pickup
- Everyone meets at the starting point; there is no pickup.
- Ticket type
- Mobile or paper ticket accepted
- Operated by
- CITY TOURS CO. LTD
- Wheelchair accessible
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Boboli gardens official price Adult (18+) € 13.00 Reduced (18-25 EU) € 2.00 Child (0-17) Free
How it compares in Florence
- Its from-price is 35% below the median of the 169 attraction tickets we list in Florence.
- It is shorter than most of them.
- The operator lists free cancellation on it.
About Florence
Florence, the cradle of the Renaissance, gathers masterpieces of art and architecture into a compact city of stone streets beside the Arno.
The Duomo, with Brunelleschi's great red-brick dome, Giotto's bell tower and the Baptistery's gilded doors, marks the centre of town. A few streets away, Piazza della Signoria and the Palazzo Vecchio face a loggia full of sculpture, and the Uffizi Gallery holds Botticelli, Leonardo and Raphael. Michelangelo's David stands in the Galleria dell'Accademia.
Top-ranked sights in Florence: Piazza della Signoria, Uffizi Galleries (Gallerie degli Uffizi), Florence Duomo (Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore).
Special offers in Florence
Was/now prices come from the operator, never from us.
10% offFree cancellation
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