What to Buy in Florence

The city of Florence is a paradise for those who love shopping. Here you'll find a range of quality shops offering array of goods, from clothes and shoes, leather goods (bags and wallets), made-to-order jewellery, art works, home decoration, ceramics, quality Italian linen, perfumes and food and wines.

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We love Riccardo Luci's little store, where you'll find a range of products decorated in marble patterns (diaries, photo albums, wallets, leather bookmarks..). If you are in Florence, you should really visit this shop to see these beautiful products and buy some. Plus, the owners are wonderful and helpful and Riccardo will show you how things are made.

For edible souvenir, head to Leonardo Firenze (Via Porta Rossa, 14R and Via dei Macci, 65 R)), store selling yummy handmade biscotti (pistachio, white chocolate, fig and almond). brutti ma buoni, panettone, colombe and other bakery products. This is by far the best place to buy biscotti in Firenze. They have a lot of different flavours and they are all very very good! They gave us samples of every single thing in the display!!

Would recommend 1000% and encourage any visitors to buy several packs of biscotti or brutti ma buoni for friends and family so that they too can experience true joy.

For more edible souvenirs, go to Mercato Centrale (in San Lorenzo district) and buy a piece of Parmigiano Reggiano, Tuscan salami, prosciutto, pasta, spices, a jar or pesto or other Italian delicacies (you'll have a hard time to choose; open Monday to Saturday 7:00 am - 2:00 pm).

Not far from the train station (Via della Scala, 16), you'll find the Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella, one of the oldest herbal pharmacies in the world, offering a range of quality oils, perfumes, skin and body lotions, soaps as well as herbal medicines. This is ideal place for buying gifts to the dear ones.

Just around the corner from the Uffizi Gallery, you'll find Coin department store, where you can shop for clothes, cosmetics and kitchenware and home products on the top floor. On the ground floor, you can grab a range of foccacia sandwiches, pastries and drinks and sit down on the outdoor terrace to enjoy.

We love also Ballerini pasticceria cioccolateria (Borgo Ognissanti 132) offering typical Tuscan sweets like ricciarelli, cantuccini, panforte and panpepato, then chocolate praline, as well as freshly baked bread and pizza (ideal for a quick snack). You can enjoy your sweets there with a cup of espresso.

Via del Corso and Borgo degli Albizi, both has a range of small stores offering affordable clothes, shoes, leather goods, perfumes and cosmetics with small eateries dotted between (we love Bolleblue, small store with natural cosmetic).