🇫🇷 Lyon → 🇮🇹 Florence · 1 week

Order a bistecca alla Fiorentina at Buca Mario or Trattoria Mario — a thick-cut T-bone from Chianina beef, served blue-rare (the Florentines consider anything more cooked an insult). Order it by weight (minimum 800g for two), and accept that it will arrive without sides unless you ask. This is the signature dish of the city.

Walk up to Piazzale Michelangelo 30 minutes before sunset for the panoramic view over Florence and the Arno — it's the classic postcard shot but genuinely moving. Then continue up the steps behind it to San Miniato al Monte church, which has an even better view with almost none of the crowds.

Book Uffizi Gallery tickets at least 3-4 weeks ahead (€20 + booking fee) for a timed entry slot. Arrive at your booked time, skip the Botticelli room immediately (everyone stops there), and go first to the room with Leonardo's Annunciation and Adoration of the Magi — you'll have it almost to yourself for 20 minutes before the crowd rotates in.

Cross the Arno into Oltrarno — the artisans' quarter on the south bank that most day-trippers miss entirely. Walk along Via Maggio and the streets around Piazza Santo Spirito to see working leather workshops, antique restorers, and the neighbourhood bars where actual Florentines eat lunch. The square has a morning market and excellent aperitivo spots.