ITALY - Best of Europe 2014 - page 1158

60, reservation tel. [phone], www.polomuseale.firenze.it . To avoid long lines in peak
season, get the Firenze Card (described earlier) or make reservations (see here ) .
Avoiding Lines: In peak season (April-Oct), the museum is most crowded on Sunday,
Tuesday, and between about 11:00 and 13:00. It's smart to buy a Firenze Card or reserve
ahead (see here and here for info on both options). Those with reservations or the Firenze
Card line up at the entrance labeled With Reservations . If you show up without a reservation
orFirenzeCard,andthere'salongline,trydroppingbytheMyAccademiaLibreriareserva-
tion office, just across the street from the exit, to see if they have any reservations available
later that day (€4 reservation charge). On off-season weekdays (Nov-March) before 8:30 or
after 16:00, you can sometimes get in with no reservation and no lines.
Audioguides: The museum rents a €6 audioguide (€10/2 people; rent from souvenir
counter in ticket lobby). You can download a free Rick Steves audio tour of the Accademia;
see here .
Nearby: Piazza S.S. Annunziata, behind the Accademia, displays lovely Renaissance
harmony. Facing the square are two fine buildings: the 15th-century Santissima Annunziata
church (worth a peek) and Filippo Brunelleschi's Hospital of the Innocents (Spedale degli
Innocenti, not worth going inside), with terra-cotta medallions by Luca della Robbia. Built
in the 1420s, the hospital is considered the first Renaissance building. I love sleeping on
this square (at the recommended Hotel Loggiato dei Serviti) and picnicking here during
the day (with the riffraff, who remind me of the persistent gap—today as in Renaissance
times—between those who appreciate fine art and those just looking for some cheap wine).