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The Basilica of Santa Maria Novella in Florence



If you get to Florence by train the Basilica of Santa Maria Novella will be the first basilica of the city that you see. As soon as you enter the piazza you’ll feel immediately plunged into an oasis of happiness and the traffic noise will be far away. Sthen, settle down your stuff in your apartment in Florence then, and come back here as you are ready to visit the basilica.

The facade of the basilica realized in polychrome marbles, as it is typical of all the basilicas in Florence, is among the most important examples of the Florentine Reinassance, although it was begun before the XV century and completed in 1920.

Once inside the basilica, walk till the end of the nave to go see the Crucifix by Giotto, put back here after a long restoration process. One curiosity? The spans of the naves get more and more narrow as you procede towards the altar, so to give the impression of a length major than the actual one.

Before visiting the cloisters, stop at the the chapels: among the ones on the right, in the Filippo Strozzi Chapel you can admire the frescoes by Filippo Lippi, among the ones on the left, in the Gondi Chapel, the Cricifix by Filippo Brunelleschi, his only wooden sculpture and, in the last one on the left, the Trinitŕ by Masaccio.

Complete worthily your visit taking a glance at the monumental cloisters: the Green Cloister, with the paintings by Paolo Uccello, which you enter from the magnificent Cappellone degli Spagnoli (Spanish Chapel), and the Grand Cloister, that, as the very name suggests is the biggest of the whole city and from which you can access the library and the ex-papal apartments.

 

Our most requested apartments in the Florence historical centre:
Apartment Fiore
Apartment Fiore
Beautiful apartment sleeping 6+2 in Florence historic centre, at a stone`s throw from Santa Maria Novella railway station. Air conditioning, Internet connection and panoramic balcony with view over the Duomo and the Medici Chapels. More details
Apartment Savonarola
Apartment Savonarola
Beautiful apartment sleeping 4 in Piazza San Marco, in Florence historic centre, just a few hundred metres from Piazza del Duomo and many other Florentine monuments. Air conditioning, Internet connection. Panoramic view over the cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore and Giotto's bell tower. More details
Apartment Guelfa
Apartment Guelfa
Elegant apartment in Florence historic centre, in the district of Santa Maria Novella, close to Florence main railway station, the market of San Lorenzo and the Duomo. Sleeping 6/7 people, Internet connection. More details
Apartment Paola
Apartment Paola
Bright apartment in San Lorenzo district, in Florence historical centre, close to Santa Maria Novella railway station. 2/4 sleeping accommodations, wonderful view on the Cappelle Medicee, air conditioning, Internet. More details