Florence Duomo Tickets: The Three Passes, the Dome Climb and Guided Tours

Guide card on Florence Duomo tickets reading: book the dome slot as soon as your dates are fixed

The three Duomo passes and what each includes

The cathedral nave of Santa Maria del Fiore is free. You queue at the door for the security check, and the queue can be long at busy times. The cathedral is open to visitors Monday to Saturday, 10.15 a.m. to 3.45 p.m., and closed on Sundays and religious holidays for worship.

Every other monument needs a pass from the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore, which runs the complex. There are no single-monument tickets, and each pass is valid for three days.

Pass	Full	Reduced (ages 7 to 14)	What it includes
Brunelleschi Pass	€30	€12	Dome, Bell Tower, Baptistery, Museum, Santa Reparata
Giotto Pass	€20	€7	Bell Tower, Baptistery, Museum, Santa Reparata
Ghiberti Pass	€15	€5	Baptistery, Museum, Santa Reparata

Children up to 6 go free. Students pay the €5 reduced Ghiberti price only at the ticket office.

With the Brunelleschi Pass you pick a date and time for the dome climb when you buy, and with the Giotto Pass a time for the bell tower. Reservations cannot be changed once issued. The Ghiberti Pass covers the art without any climbing: Ghiberti’s original Gates of Paradise and Michelangelo’s Pietà are both in the museum.

For most people who can manage the stairs, the Brunelleschi Pass is the one to buy, because the dome is what most visitors come for: the climb passes close to Vasari and Zuccari’s Last Judgment fresco inside the cupola and comes out at the lantern, high above the city. If you cannot climb, or do not want to, the €15 Ghiberti Pass is the cheapest way into the museum and the Baptistery.

Booking the dome climb

Book the dome slot as soon as your dates are fixed. Slots often sell out in summer, and without one you will see the dome only from the cathedral floor.

The climbs are on foot. The dome has 463 steps and the bell tower 414, with no lift in either. Both climbs include narrow, steep stretches.

There is no skip-the-line ticket. The Opera’s own FAQ says “There is not, nor will there be, a ‘skip the line’ service,” and that outside sellers of skip-the-line entry to the cathedral or the monuments are not authorized. Your timed slot on the pass is what keeps the wait short.

Check the closures for your dates. The dome is closed from 16 to 20 November 2026 and the bell tower from 9 to 13 November 2026. The whole complex is closed on Easter Sunday, 25 December and 1 January; the museum is closed on the first Tuesday of each month, and the Baptistery closes at 1.30 p.m. on the first Sunday of the month.

Dress for a church. The cathedral and the Baptistery require covered shoulders and knees.

Duomo guided tours: what’s included

A guided tour adds two things to a pass: a guide who explains the building, including Brunelleschi’s double-shell dome and its herringbone brickwork, and a reserved entry time to the cathedral, so you skip the security queue for the free entrance. What each tour includes varies a lot, so read the inclusions before you book. GetYourGuide does not list a well-reviewed Duomo interior tour; the products below are on Viator.

A short guided visit to the cathedral. The Florence Duomo Guided Tour with Dedicated Entrance ($34, 4.8 from 464 reviews) spends about 55 minutes around the square and 45 minutes inside the cathedral with a licensed guide, using a dedicated entrance. It includes no pass, so the dome, bell tower, Baptistery, museum and crypt are extra.
A guided tour with the dome climb. The Climb the Dome, Own the View: Florence Duomo Tour ($125, 4.9 from 592 reviews) is about three hours: a two-hour guided visit to the Baptistery, the museum and the façade, then your reserved dome slot and a three-day pass for the rest. The climb itself is self-guided on its standard departures.
The dome with the cathedral terraces. The Florence Duomo Tour: Dome & Terraces or First Entry Dome Climb ($113, 4.8 from 1,189 reviews) has several options with different meeting points: a guided cathedral visit and dome climb, access to the roof terraces that are closed to pass holders, or an early entry before the cathedral opens. Every option includes a 72-hour pass for the other monuments.

On almost every tour with a climb, the guide explains the engineering at the base and you climb on your own. Pick the $34 cathedral visit if you want the story without the stairs, and a climbing tour if the dome is the reason you came and you would rather not book the slot yourself.

Palazzo Vecchio: tickets, tower and Secret Passages

Palazzo Vecchio, the fortress-like town hall on Piazza della Signoria, is still the seat of the city council and one of Florence’s best museums. Its main hall, the Salone dei Cinquecento (Hall of the Five Hundred), is more than 50 meters long, lined with Vasari’s battle frescoes under a coffered ceiling, and holds Michelangelo’s Genius of Victory; the “Cerca Trova” words painted in one fresco are tied to the story of a lost Leonardo mural. Other highlights are the Studiolo of Francesco I, a small windowless study lined with paintings, the Medici apartments, with Bronzino’s chapel in the Quarters of Eleonora, and the Hall of Geographical Maps.

Official prices, from the civic museums’ ticket office at ticketsmuseums.comune.fi.it:

Ticket	Full (over 25)	Reduced (18 to 25, university students)
Museum	€18	€12
Arnolfo Tower and battlements	€20	€13

Both are sold as separate tickets, each with a €1 booking fee online. Under-18s enter the museum free but still need to book a time. The tower is a stair climb, closes in rain, and does not admit children under 6.

The Secret Passages tour (Percorsi Segreti) is a guided visit in a small group through rooms a standard ticket does not reach: the medieval stairway of the Duke of Athens, the Studiolo of Francesco I, Cosimo I’s small treasury and the roof space above the Salone dei Cinquecento ceiling, where you see the huge timber trusses. It books up, involves narrow stairs, and does not suit wheelchairs, strollers or anyone uncomfortable in tight spaces. Book it through the city’s official museum booking at musefirenze.it and check the current price there.

Do you need tickets for Ponte Vecchio or Piazza della Signoria?

No. Both are free public spaces, open at all hours.

Ponte Vecchio is a public bridge and pedestrian street. Crossing it, looking at the river and browsing the goldsmiths’ and jewelers’ shops costs nothing. People search for Ponte Vecchio tickets for three reasons:

The Vasari Corridor. The Medici passageway runs above the shops on the bridge and reopened on 21 December 2024 after eight years closed. It is ticketed, and you enter it from inside the Uffizi, not from the bridge. The official combined Uffizi and corridor ticket costs €43 on the day or €47 booked ahead, and that one ticket covers both; with a Uffizi ticket already in hand the corridor is a €20 supplement. The route is one way, from the Uffizi to the Boboli Gardens. Our Vasari Corridor tours page covers how a visit works.
The jewelry shops. You can browse and buy freely; there is no admission.
Paid sights nearby: the Uffizi, a few minutes’ walk away, Palazzo Vecchio, and boat or kayak trips that pass under the bridge.

Do not fix a padlock to the bridge: it is banned and can be fined.

Piazza della Signoria is Florence’s main civic square and an open-air sculpture gallery, also free. The ticketed sites around it are Palazzo Vecchio and the Uffizi next door. The square itself and the Loggia dei Lanzi, the open arcade with Cellini’s bronze Perseus with the Head of Medusa, Giambologna’s Rape of the Sabine Women and ancient Roman statues, are free day and night. The Loggia is part of the Uffizi Galleries but needs no ticket. The David on the palace steps is a copy marking where the original stood; the original is in the Accademia.

Booking tips and combining the Duomo with the Uffizi

Book the hardest thing to get first. At the Duomo that is the dome slot on the Brunelleschi Pass; for the Uffizi and the Accademia, reserve well ahead in high season. Fix those times, then fit meals, shopping and the free sights around them.
Use the official sites. For the Duomo complex, tickets.duomo.firenze.it; for Palazzo Vecchio and the Secret Passages, the city’s civic museum box office; for the Uffizi and the Vasari Corridor, uffizi.it. Official tickets are the cheapest. Resellers and guided tours cost more but add a guide, free cancellation on many listings and combined itineraries.
Everything is close. Piazza del Duomo to Piazza della Signoria is about a 5 to 10 minute walk. The Duomo is close to halfway on the 15-minute walk from the Uffizi to the Accademia, so a stop in the square on the way costs little time. The other sights within walking distance are on our list of things to see in Florence.
The Duomo and the Uffizi in one day. This works if you pace it: a dome climb or Duomo tour in the morning, lunch, then an afternoon slot at the Uffizi, which is €25 on the day or €29 booked ahead (from 4 p.m. €16, or €20 booked ahead). Give the Uffizi at least two hours, do not set its slot too close to a fixed dome time, and do not stack the dome and the bell tower back to back. Our Uffizi and Accademia in one day guide plans the two galleries around the walk, and the Uffizi tickets page compares the ways in.
A Leonardo stop. The two Leonardo machine museums are a few minutes north of the Duomo; our Leonardo da Vinci museums guide explains which is which.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to book Duomo tickets in advance?

For the cathedral itself, no: entry is free and there is no reservation, only the security queue. For the dome, yes. The Brunelleschi Pass needs a timed dome slot, and slots often sell out in summer, so book on tickets.duomo.firenze.it once your dates are fixed. The Giotto and Ghiberti passes are easier to get but still sold online in advance.

How much does it cost to climb the Duomo dome?

The dome climb comes only with the Brunelleschi Pass: €30 for adults, €12 for ages 7 to 14, free up to 6. It also covers the bell tower, Baptistery, museum and crypt for three days. Guided tours that include the climb cost more: the Duomo dome and terraces tour on Viator starts at $113.

Is there a skip-the-line ticket for the Duomo?

No. The Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore says there is no skip-the-line service and that outside sellers of one are not authorized. Your timed slot on the pass is what keeps the wait short, and guided tours with a reserved cathedral entry avoid the queue for the free entrance.

Is Ponte Vecchio free to visit?

Yes. Ponte Vecchio is a public bridge, open at all hours and free to cross and browse. The only related ticket is the Vasari Corridor, which runs above the bridge and is entered from inside the Uffizi.

What is the Palazzo Vecchio Secret Passages tour?

A guided visit in a small group (the Percorsi Segreti) through hidden stairs and rooms a standard ticket does not reach: the Duke of Athens’ stairway, Francesco I’s Studiolo, Cosimo I’s treasury and the roof space above the Salone dei Cinquecento. Book it through the city’s museum booking at musefirenze.it, where the current price is shown. It does not suit anyone with limited mobility or a dislike of tight spaces.

Can I visit the Duomo and the Uffizi in one day?

Yes. They are under 10 minutes apart on foot. Book a morning dome slot and an afternoon Uffizi entry, or the other way round, leave time for lunch, and keep the two times well apart. The Uffizi needs two hours or more.

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Florence Duomo tickets: the three passes, the dome climb and guided tours