How to Book Uffizi Tickets: My No-Stress Guide
Updated: 4 hours ago
Updated October 2026
The Uffizi is the one museum in Florence I tell everyone to book ahead. Lines at the door can be long, and time slots on busy days sell out. Booking is easy once you know where to do it. Here is how I book Uffizi tickets, which days to avoid, and the times I like best for a calm visit.
Where do I book official Uffizi tickets?
Book on the official Uffizi website, uffizi.it, which links to the official ticket shop at tickets.uffizi.it. You pick a date and an entry time, pay online and get a ticket by email. Check the official site for current prices and any booking fee.
You can also book through the official call center on 800 615 615 from Italy, or +39 055 0354135 from abroad, open every day from 8:00 to 19:00. The ticket office is under the loggia in Piazzale degli Uffizi, but on busy days I would never count on a walk-up slot.
Many third-party sites resell Uffizi tickets, often bundled with a tour. If you only want entry, the official site is the simplest route. If you want a guide, see my guide to the best tours in Florence.
How do I book Uffizi tickets step by step?
Go to the official Uffizi tickets page and choose the Uffizi Gallery.
Pick your date. Remember the museum is closed on Mondays.
Pick an entry time. Your slot is the time you should be at the entrance.
Choose your ticket type and pay online. Check the official site for reduced and free categories.
Save the email ticket on your phone and bring photo ID.
When is the Uffizi closed?
The Uffizi is closed every Monday. It is open Tuesday to Sunday from 8:15 to 18:30, and the last entry is one hour before closing. Holiday hours and special openings change, so check the official calendar for your dates.
Is the Uffizi free on the first Sunday of the month?
Yes. On the first Sunday of every month, entry to the Uffizi is free under Italy's Domenica al museo program. You cannot book ahead: free tickets are handed out at the entrance on the day, so arrive early and expect a long line. Priority access applies only to visitors with disabilities and their companions, pregnant women and EU school groups. The next free Sundays are 1 November and 6 December 2026.
My honest take: if you only have one shot at the Uffizi, pay and book a quiet morning slot instead of queuing for hours on a free Sunday.
What is the best time to visit the Uffizi?
I book the first slot of the day at 8:15, Tuesday to Friday. The rooms with Botticelli's Primavera and The Birth of Venus are calm for the first hour, before tour groups arrive. My second choice is the last two hours before closing, when the groups thin out. I avoid Tuesdays after a Monday holiday and Sundays in high season.
That 8:15 slot is far easier when you sleep a short walk away, and the team I use for Florence villas and hotels can help you pick the right base.
Give yourself at least three hours. I explain how to pace the visit in my Uffizi guide, and what is changing inside in the new Uffizi.
Can I book the Vasari Corridor?
Yes, but separately. The Vasari Corridor, which links the Uffizi to Palazzo Pitti over the Ponte Vecchio, is visited by reservation only, in timed slots between 10:15 and 16:35, with Friday evening openings until 20 November 2026. Book it on the official Uffizi site, even on free Sundays.
Combined tickets and the Firenze Card
The Uffizi sells a combined PassePartout ticket that covers the Uffizi, Palazzo Pitti and the Boboli Gardens over several days. It suits anyone planning to see all three. Read my Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens guide first.
If you have a Firenze Card, you still need to reserve an entry time. Do it through the official call center, at the ticket office or on tickets.uffizi.it.
Tips for the day
Arrive 15 minutes before your slot. Security checks can take time.
Guided groups are capped at 16 people, and groups of more than 6 must use headsets.
Pair the Uffizi with the Accademia and Michelangelo's David on a different day, not the same morning.
Official site vs resellers: how to avoid scam ticket sites
This is the part that trips up most of my friends. Since 13 October 2025 the Uffizi Galleries have a new official ticket service, run for the museum by CoopCulture, and every ticket is now issued in the visitor's name. The only official online shop is tickets.uffizi.it, linked from uffizi.it. Older guides still send you to B-ticket or Firenze Musei. For the Uffizi, that advice is out of date.
Check the address bar. The museum uses uffizi.it and tickets.uffizi.it, nothing else. Sites that add words like gallery, official, tickets or Florence to the name are resellers, and some are outright scams that never deliver a valid ticket.
Make the names match. Type each visitor's name exactly as it appears on their passport. If the name on the ticket does not match your ID at the door, you will not get in, and there is no refund.
Walk past the street sellers. People near the loggia offering fast entry cannot give you a ticket in your own name, so their tickets will not work.
Tours are a different thing. A guided tour from a well known company is a fair choice if you want a guide, it just costs more than booking entry yourself. See my guide to the best tours in Florence.
Sold out online? The ticket office under the loggia still sells same day tickets, but on busy days the wait is long and the day can sell out.
Booking for a group? Each account can buy up to 10 tickets per day.
Skip the line and timed entry, explained
There is no secret fast lane at the Uffizi. A skip the line ticket is simply a ticket with a reserved entry time, so you skip the ticket office queue, not security. Everyone goes through the metal detector, and backpacks, umbrellas and large bags go to the free cloakroom just past the entrance.
Your time slot is when you should be at the door, and I aim to be there 15 minutes early. Once inside, there is no time limit until closing. The museum adds a booking surcharge to tickets bought before the day of your visit, and same day tickets at the office do not carry it. For most trips the reserved slot is still worth it, because the walk up line can eat half a morning.
Tickets are released in blocks months ahead. For April to December 2026, sales opened on 2 February 2026. For spring and summer trips I book the day my flights are confirmed.
Which Uffizi ticket should I buy?
The official shop sells a short list of tickets and combos. Here is what each one covers, so you know what you are clicking on. Check uffizi.it for current fares.
Uffizi single ticket: timed entry to the gallery. The right choice for most first visits.
Afternoon ticket: a discounted Uffizi ticket, new in 2026, for entry from 4:00 PM. It gives you up to two and a half hours, enough for the highlights if you head straight for the big rooms.
Uffizi plus Vasari Corridor: one named ticket with a reserved corridor slot. You enter the Uffizi two hours before your corridor time.
Palazzo Pitti: one ticket for all the palace collections, including the Palatine Gallery, the Gallery of Modern Art, the Museum of Costume and Fashion and the Treasury of the Grand Dukes.
Boboli Gardens: on its own, or combined with Palazzo Pitti on one ticket. A Boboli and Bardini Gardens combo is sold only at the ticket offices on the day.
PassePartout 5 Days: five consecutive days at the Uffizi, Palazzo Pitti and Boboli. You book your Uffizi entry when you buy, and the Uffizi has to be the first museum you visit. A version with the Vasari Corridor is also sold.
Annual PassePartout: a year of unlimited priority entry to all three museums and their temporary exhibitions, with a family version too. Ideal if you live here or come back often.
Firenze Card: the city museum pass. You still need to reserve an Uffizi time, on tickets.uffizi.it under Uffizi reservation for Firenze Card owners.
Visitors under 18 of any nationality enter the state museums free with ID, but they still need a named ticket, so add them when you book.
My rule: with one or two days in Florence, buy the single Uffizi ticket. With three days or more and a love of art, the PassePartout makes sense, because Pitti and Boboli deserve a full afternoon. Read my Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens guide before you decide.
Free first Sunday and other free days in 2026
The Domenica al museo program is running in 2026. On the first Sunday of every month, the Uffizi, Palazzo Pitti and the Boboli Gardens are free for everyone, with normal opening hours. You cannot reserve, and priority entry is suspended except for visitors with disabilities, their companions and pregnant women. Tickets are still named, so bring ID. The last two in 2026 are 1 November and 6 December.
The galleries have also opened free on the national holidays of 25 April and 2 June, and on 4 November the masterpiece rooms on the second floor of the Uffizi open free. Free days that fall on a Monday may only include some museums, so check the notices on uffizi.it the week before.
If you do try a free Sunday, be in line well before 8:15 and expect a crowd in the Botticelli rooms.
Uffizi opening days and hours
Open: Tuesday to Sunday, 8:15 AM to 6:30 PM.
Closed: every Monday, plus 1 January and 25 December.
Last entry: the ticket office closes at 5:30 PM, and staff start moving visitors to the exit at 6:30 PM.
Special openings: extra evening openings and holiday hours are announced on uffizi.it. Palazzo Pitti and Boboli keep their own hours, so check them separately.
Best time to go and how long to spend
Best days: Wednesday to Friday. Tuesday is busy after the Monday closure, and weekends and free Sundays are the busiest of all.
Best times: the first slot at 8:15, or the Afternoon ticket after 4:00 PM, when most tour groups have left.
Best months: November to February, outside the holidays, are the calmest. From Easter to October, book well ahead.
How long: two to three hours for the highlights, half a day if you love art. Add the Vasari Corridor as a separate slot.
Take a break: the cafe on the second floor has a terrace looking out to Palazzo Vecchio. It is my favorite pause in the middle of the visit.
What to see first at the Uffizi
The visit starts on the second floor, and that is where most of the famous paintings hang. The mistake I see every time is people spending their energy on the first long corridor and arriving at Botticelli tired. This is the order I use when I take friends through.
The Botticelli rooms. The Birth of Venus and Primavera now face each other in the rooms reopened in June 2026.
Leonardo. The Annunciation and the Adoration of the Magi.
Michelangelo and Raphael. The Doni Tondo, Michelangelo's only finished panel painting in Florence, with Raphael close by.
The Tribuna. The octagonal Medici treasure room, a jewel box you view from the doorway.
The first floor. Caravaggio's Medusa and Bacchus on the way out.
Some rooms close for short periods while they are rehung, so glance at the closed rooms list on uffizi.it the day before. For the full walk through, read my room by room Uffizi guide.
The Uffizi transformation: what is open now
The Uffizi is in the middle of its biggest makeover in decades. In June 2026 the Botticelli rooms reopened with Venus and Primavera in sealed cases, without the big glass screens that used to sit in front of them. The Flemish rooms on the second floor are getting new hanging and lighting, and a room for Andrea del Castagno's Illustrious Men is due to open.
Work on a new visitor entrance in the monumental hall facing Piazza del Grano is set to begin soon. The scaffolding on the Piazzale should come down in the first half of 2027, and the Nuovi Uffizi building site is expected to finish in 2028. None of this stops a visit, but it explains the odd closed room. I cover it in more depth in my guide to the new Uffizi.
Where to eat near the Uffizi
The streets right around the Uffizi are full of tourist menus, but a few good places sit within five minutes of the exit.
All'Antico Vinaio, Via dei Neri: the famous schiacciata sandwiches. Go before noon to beat the line.
Osteria Vini e Vecchi Sapori, Via dei Magazzini: a tiny trattoria behind Palazzo Vecchio. Book ahead, and note it is closed on Sundays.
Gelateria dei Neri, Via dei Neri: my post museum gelato stop.
Caffè Rivoire, Piazza della Signoria: thick hot chocolate with a view of the square.
Ora d'Aria, behind the Uffizi: Michelin starred, for a big dinner after a big day.
For more, see my guide to the Best Restaurants in Florence, my list of 20 Florentine foods to eat, the best sandwich shops in Florence and the best gelato in Florence.
Plan the rest of your Florence days
Do the Uffizi and the Accademia on different days if you can. Two big museums in one morning is too much, and my Accademia and David tips explain how to book David. For everything else, start with the best things to do in Florence, then pick an itinerary: my 3 day plan for first timers or 3 days in Florence at a slow pace.
Uffizi tickets FAQ
Do I need to book Uffizi tickets in advance?
I strongly recommend it. Booking a timed slot on the official Uffizi site saves you the ticket office line, and busy days sell out.
What is the official website for Uffizi tickets?
The official site is uffizi.it, which links to the official ticket shop at tickets.uffizi.it. The official call center is 800 615 615 from Italy or +39 055 0354135 from abroad.
Is the Uffizi open on Monday?
No. The Uffizi is closed every Monday. It opens Tuesday to Sunday from 8:15 to 18:30, with last entry one hour before closing.
Can I book the free first Sunday at the Uffizi?
No. Free entry on the first Sunday of the month cannot be booked in advance. Tickets are handed out at the entrance, so arrive early.
How long do I need at the Uffizi?
Plan on at least three hours to see the highlights without rushing.
Does the Firenze Card include an Uffizi reservation?
You still need to reserve an entry time with the Firenze Card, through the official call center, the ticket office or tickets.uffizi.it.
Is tickets.uffizi.it the official Uffizi ticket site?
Yes. It is the only official online ticket shop, linked from uffizi.it and run for the museum by CoopCulture since October 2025. You can also book through the official call center or buy same day tickets at the ticket office.
Do Uffizi tickets have to be in my name?
Yes. Since 13 October 2025 every Uffizi ticket is named. Enter each visitor's name exactly as on their ID, because a mismatch means no entry and no refund.
Is there a skip the line ticket for the Uffizi?
Booking a timed ticket in advance is the skip the line option. It saves you the ticket office queue, but everyone still goes through security.
Is the Uffizi PassePartout worth it?
It is worth it if you plan to see the Uffizi, Palazzo Pitti and the Boboli Gardens within five consecutive days. For a short trip with only the Uffizi, the single ticket is simpler.
Are children free at the Uffizi?
Visitors under 18 of any nationality enter free with ID, but each child still needs a named ticket.
What should I see first at the Uffizi?
Head for the Botticelli rooms on the second floor first, then Leonardo, Michelangelo's Doni Tondo and the Tribuna, and finish with Caravaggio on the first floor.
Planning more museums? Start with my art and museums hub and 3 days in Florence.
About the author
I'm Jason GaNung, and I write every guide on Florence Life. I have spent extensive time in Florence over many trips, and I have stayed in many of the hotels and villas I cover, so my picks come from my own stays, not press releases. More about me
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