“ Florence, 22nd January 1817... the proximity of those great men whose tombs I had just beheld, was already in a state of trance. Absorbed in the contemplation of sublime beauty... as I emerged from the porch of Santa Croce, I was seized with a fierce palpitation of the heart...” ( excerpt from Rome, Naples et Florence, Stendhal). The beauty of most church apses are made by those artistic furnishings like the altar (table), decorated cross, altarpieces but here just imagine them without the furniture and is just breathtaking! Gothic, stained glasses and painted every single inch by the Gaddi family, Vasari and most famous Giotto who painted the smaller right chapels. There are some sculptures made by Donatello. Cimabue badly deteriorated cross by the 1966 flood is there too. Many illustrious are buried there: Michelangelo, Galileo Galilei, Foscolo, Rossini also cenotaphs like Dante Alighieri and Florence Nightingale. When we went there, no lines at the ticket booth and the basilica (is Franciscan) was almost empty with few people so had a very relaxed visit. As per title, not to be missed.

We stopped in here at the last moment and there was no line to get tickets. Entry was very easy. Large church with many masterpieces and tomb of Galileo. The Medici and Pattsi chapels were here as well. Nice break from the crowds and heat. Also toilets were on the property

A fantastic tour, and free! Santa Croce comes alive with Dan Harper, our Irish/American expert on Italian history and art. Reach it to Dan to arrange a tour, and let this gastronome suggest a restaurant or two. Danharperflorence@gmail.com

To buy entry tickets, one needs to go towards the left backside of the building. This is not very obvious hence pointing it out. When we visited late afternoon, there was a decent queue for the tickets. Once inside, watch out for the resting place of Michaelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli and Dante among others.

My husband and I visited the basilica and were blown away by the architecture, sculptures and design of each persons tomb. The feeling once inside it quite eerie but that quickly changed once we walked around saw Leonardo Da Vinci, Michelangelo Buonarotti, Dante Alighieri, and Galileo's tombs which took about a little over an hour to see everything. Do not pass this up!

The interior of the church is a lot like lots of others in the city. The stars are the memorials and tombs of some of the great and the good Italy from renainssance artists to modern scientists. Its a whos who of Italian history and well worth the trip.

We read the trip advisor reviews from the free tour offered by Dan Harper and we were pleased to get a quick response from Dan when we asked about availability. We joined a tour on the same day and we had a great experience. Dan is such a nice guy and really brings everything to life in his tour. The Basilica is incredible and the stories told by Dan show how much rich history this site has. Although the tour was over 2 hours long, it didn’t feel like that and Dan filled the time from start to finish with his great presentation. It really was the best part of our trip to Florence and we would highly recommend finding time to fit this in. We contacted Dan by email: danharperflorence@gmail.com

We had an amazing English speaking tour with Dan Harper, a local volunteer who helps promote beautiful things about Florence in his role here as a docent for a local art society. Dan visited Florence 40 times and then moved here several years ago and he shared amazing insights about the artwork and design of this exceptionally beautiful and fully loaded structure. We did make a free will donation to the art society after the tour but certainly not compulsory. We just finished 2 1/2 amazing weeks all over northern Italy and this was one of the most wonderful things that we did. You can reach Dan easily at danharperflorence@gmail.com

A unique Basilica as it is the burial place of a number of famous people, including Marconi, Dante, Michaelangelo, Galileo and Leonardo da Vinci, to name a few. The interior is also includes many amazing pieces of artwork by various artists, including Giotto. Really awe inspiring experience and well worth a visit.

Fantastic church. Home to many famous Italian legends,Galileo, Machiavelli, Michelangiolo and more. Highly recommend. While others are waiting to get into St Marks, you can be through Santa Croce! Highly recommended!!