What to Do in Florence at Ferragosto with Kids

The 15th of August is unlike any other day in the Italian calendar. Italy essentially stops. Factories have been shut since the first week of the month; families are at the sea or in the mountains; city streets belong to cats and confused tourists who did not read this sort of article beforehand. Florence around Ferragosto is not the Florence of June or early July. It is quieter in its residential quarters, more unpredictable in its restaurant and shop availability, and - if you approach it knowing what to expect - genuinely one of the more pleasant times to visit the city. Families who plan around it rather than against it tend to have a surprisingly good trip.

What stays open and what actually closes

Understanding which parts of Florence remain functional around 15 August is the key piece of planning. The picture is more nuanced than the broad “everything closes” narrative suggests.

Italian state museums run on their normal schedules over Ferragosto. In 2026, the Uffizi, the Accademia, Palazzo Pitti, and the Boboli Garden are all open on 14 and 15 August. The important caveat is that ticketing becomes extremely difficult. Online booking sells out for the days immediately surrounding Ferragosto within hours of becoming available, typically two to three weeks in advance. If you are visiting Florence around this date and want to enter any of the major museums, booking must happen long before your arrival. Turning up without a reservation in mid-August is not a strategy - it is an unpredictable queue that may end in a long walk away.

The Museo dei Ragazzi at Palazzo Vecchio typically continues operating in August, though the programme adjusts for the summer format. Verify directly with Palazzo Vecchio in the weeks before your visit rather than relying on outdated schedule information.

In the commercial areas that serve tourists - Via dei Calzaiuoli, the streets around the Duomo, Via Roma, the immediate environs of Santa Croce - shops and restaurants remain open. These areas have long been detached from the Italian holiday calendar, catering to international visitors year-round.

The difficulty lies in the neighbourhood layer: local bars, family-owned trattorias, pharmacies in residential districts, small grocery shops in Oltrarno and Sant’Ambrogio - many of these close for between one and three weeks surrounding 15 August. Do not assume that a restaurant you found on Google is open during this period. Telephone or email to confirm on specific dates before making it part of your plans.

Supermarkets - Coop, Esselunga, Carrefour - operate at slightly reduced hours on 15 August itself but function normally on 14 and 16 August. Doing a modest shop on the 14th, if you have a room with access to a fridge, is a practical insurance policy for lunch on the day itself.

The genuine advantages of mid-August in Florence

Ferragosto is not only a logistical obstacle. For families who have experienced Florence in June or early July - the tour groups, the queues, the streets at midday feeling like a slow crowd simulation - August brings a different quality of experience in specific parts of the city.

The Oltrarno in August is noticeably calmer than in the first weeks of summer. Florentine locals who would normally fill the bars and piazzas around Piazza Santo Spirito have largely departed for the coast, which means the neighbourhood has a particular quietness in the evenings. Walking the streets between the Ponte Vecchio and the Ponte San Niccolò along the southern bank of the Arno in late evening, with very little traffic and the river visible in the gaps between buildings, is a version of Florence that most visitors never encounter.

The bus network continues to run on a holiday timetable on 15 August. Reduced frequency, but functional. Check the current timetables on the ATAF Firenze website before the day if you are planning to use buses for a park visit or pool trip.

The Arno riverfront embankments in the evenings are particularly pleasant around Ferragosto. The Lungarno Serristori, Lungarno Soderini, and Lungarno degli Acciaiuoli - running along both banks of the river through the historic centre - are cool after sunset, largely uncrowded on the evening of 15 August itself, and offer continuous views of the bridges and the hillside above Oltrarno.

Day trips from Florence at this time of year

One of Ferragosto’s practical advantages for families based in Florence is the ease of day trips to places that are simultaneously less crowded than in early August and fully accessible by train.

Lucca is approximately 80 kilometres from Florence, with trains running from Santa Maria Novella station throughout the day. Journey time is about 80 minutes. Lucca is enclosed by intact Renaissance walls that have been converted into a wide, tree-lined promenade above the city rooftops. Cycling on the walls is the defining family activity here - bicycles are available to hire at multiple points inside the city for around €3 per hour per bike. The streets inside the walls are almost entirely flat, the pace is gentle, and the city is small enough for children to navigate with a degree of independence from age seven or eight. Even on Ferragosto the walled city remains accessible, as Lucca’s main attractions are the streets and walls themselves rather than museum collections.

Siena is reached by express coach from the Autostazione SITA bus station in Florence in approximately 75 minutes. A return ticket costs around €15 per adult. Siena on a Ferragosto afternoon - after the 15th August crowds have shifted or spread out - offers the remarkable experience of Piazza del Campo, the great shell-shaped civic square, in a state approaching emptiness. For children between five and fourteen, Piazza del Campo is one of the most visually striking public spaces in Europe, and unlike most Italian art it requires no preparation or explanation to appreciate.

Viareggio on the Tuscan coast is approximately 90 minutes from Florence by train, with a return ticket in the range of €15–20 per adult and half price for children aged four to eleven. The beach on 15 August itself will be fully occupied - Ferragosto at an Italian beach resort is not a quiet experience. The 14th or 16th is considerably more manageable. Viareggio has an Art Nouveau promenade, straightforward lido beach access, and a railway station directly on the seafront.

Eating in Florence around Ferragosto: practical strategies

Securing a reliable meal in Florence around 15 August requires advance planning rather than spontaneity. These approaches work consistently.

Check your chosen restaurants on Google Maps using the “opening hours” section, and filter for specific dates if the tool allows it. Then telephone to confirm. This two-step verification avoids the irritation of arriving at a closed door with hungry children.

Restaurants oriented towards international tourists - and this includes many of the busiest dining areas around the Duomo and Santa Croce - remain open throughout August. Restaurants serving Japanese, Indian, and Middle Eastern cuisine are particularly likely to be open, as these businesses are often run by families for whom the Italian holiday rhythm does not apply in the same way.

The food hall at Mercato Centrale operates throughout August until midnight. It serves pasta, pizza, Florentine steak, Tuscan street food, and international options from multiple counters in a covered, air-conditioned upstairs space. Prices sit slightly above a neighbourhood trattoria, but the reliability and breadth of choice make it a genuinely useful fallback for families who cannot secure a restaurant booking.

Assembling a self-catering lunch from a supermarket or the Mercato Centrale’s ground floor food stalls is a practical strategy for one or two of the Ferragosto days. Good bread, local cheese, Florentine cured meats, and fresh tomatoes from the Coop near Via dell’Ariento cost well under €10 for a family of four and provide a perfectly satisfying picnic in the Boboli Garden or the Giardino delle Rose.

A central base for the August stay

Charlotte remains open throughout the Ferragosto period. The location at Via Guido Monaco 19, five minutes from Santa Maria Novella station, gives you direct access to trains for day trips, walking distance to the museums that stay open, and proximity to the commercial streets where restaurants and shops remain reliably operational throughout August. For families visiting around 15 August, booking several weeks in advance is strongly recommended - central accommodation fills quickly once the date approaches. Secure your dates early at Charlotte.