What to Pack for Florence
November 4, 2026 · 5 min read
By James Galitsis, Founder of JetKit
Prefer us on GoogleFlorence packs around its own stone: cobbled streets punish anything but broken-in shoes, and its churches turn away bare shoulders, knees and sandals at the door. Summer heat radiates straight off the pavement, and winter stone holds a damp cold. Walking shoes plus a covering layer plus a light scarf covers most of the bag.
Quick Answer
- Broken-in walking shoes with real tread, for the cobblestones
- A lightweight scarf big enough to cover your shoulders in churches
- Breathable linen or cotton, since stone streets trap heat
- Closed-toe shoes rather than sandals, for church visits
- Sunglasses and a hat for long days in the piazzas
- A packable rain jacket, for sudden afternoon showers
- One dressier outfit, with flats or a block heel for dinner out
- A crossbody bag that zips, for crowded sites and narrow streets
- A refillable water bottle, for the city's public fountains
- A light sweater for cool evenings, even in summer
- Jeans or light pants for cool mornings and church visits
- A warm coat and layers, for damp, cold winter days
Why Florence's stone decides this trip
Most advice about Florence treats the heat and the walking as separate problems. They are not. The historic center is built almost entirely from stone, in its buildings and in the streets themselves, and that one material decides both how hot a day feels and how your feet hold up.
The streets are paved in sampietrini, rounded stone blocks laid centuries before rubber soles existed, and they sit genuinely uneven under anything thin, slick or brand new. Flat, cushioned and already broken in wins here. Our guide to packing for days that run hotter than the forecast says goes deeper on choosing fabric once the heat itself starts working against you.
That same stone works against you a second way. It absorbs sun all day and gives the heat back slowly, so the stone absorbs and releases heat slowly, and a Florentine guide describes her own city's summers bluntly: summer is becoming unbearable, with months of heat pushing past 100°F. Regional climate normals put the city's own August average closer to roughly 90°F (32°C), lower than that account's hottest days but still enough to make shade and water a daily plan rather than an afterthought.
Florence's grandest sights add a third layer on top of the same stone. Its major churches, the Duomo chief among them, are themselves ancient stone buildings, and they enforce a dress code at the door that has nothing to do with the temperature outside, covered in more detail below. A traveler who plans around shoes, water and one covering layer has effectively planned around all three consequences of the same material at once.
Common Mistakes
People pack their newest sandals for sightseeing. In practice open-toe shoes are turned away at church doors, because the cathedral complex's own dress code bars bare shoulders, knees and sandals alike.
People wear cute flats without breaking them in first. In practice the sampietrini still bruise unprepared feet within a day, because centuries-old stone paving was never designed around a thin sole.
People pack only for daytime heat. In practice the same walls keep radiating warmth into the evening, because stone releases the heat it absorbed hours earlier rather than cooling the moment the sun sets.
People leave the scarf at home to save space. In practice one covering layer gets reused at every church on the itinerary, because Florence's biggest sights are overwhelmingly religious buildings with the same entry rule.
People assume a light jacket covers a winter visit. In practice the cold feels damp rather than dry, because old stone buildings hold moisture well after the temperature drops near freezing.
The Duomo's own dress code
Florence's grandest churches are also its strictest gatekeepers. The cathedral, the Baptistery and the crypt are run by the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore, and the complex's own visitor rules require shoulders and knees covered at every one of those doors, bar hats, and discourage sandals, for everyone regardless of the season. The rule holds in the middle of an August heat wave exactly as it does in January. The cathedral's own visitor rules are at https://duomo.firenze.it/en/visit/plan-your-visit.
One scarf, worn or folded into a bag, solves the shoulder half of the rule, and a knee-length layer solves the rest without needing a separate outfit just for churches.
Winter adds its own number to plan around: regional climate normals put the city's January average high at roughly 52°F (11°C), with nights close to freezing, and that cold arrives damp rather than dry, because the same stone that holds summer heat also holds winter moisture.
A trip where one bag covers a hot stone afternoon, a church with a dress code, a cobbled evening walk and a sudden shower is more variable than a short Italian city break sounds. That kind of overlap is what JetKit is built to reason through, so what you pack matches the days you will actually have.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should I pack for Florence?
Broken-in walking shoes, a scarf that covers your shoulders, breathable fabric and a packable rain layer cover most days. Add closed-toe shoes rather than sandals, since Florence's churches enforce their own dress code at the door, and a warm coat with real layers if you are visiting between roughly November and February, when the stone holds a damp cold.
What shoes should I wear in Florence?
Flat, cushioned and already broken in. The historic center is paved in sampietrini, rounded stone blocks that sit uneven under thin soles and are genuinely hard on heels. Sneakers, flats or a sturdy sandal with real tread all work; stilettos and brand-new shoes do not.
Do I need to cover my shoulders and knees to visit the Duomo?
Yes, at every door in the complex. The cathedral, Baptistery and crypt are run by the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore, and the complex's own visitor rules require shoulders and knees covered and discourage sandals, for everyone regardless of the weather outside.
How hot does Florence get in summer, and does it feel worse than the number says?
Regional climate normals put Florence's August average high at roughly 90°F (32°C), with July close behind. It feels hotter in the historic center because the city is built almost entirely of stone, which absorbs heat through the day and releases it slowly into the evening.
Does Florence get cold in winter?
Yes, and the stone makes the cold feel damp rather than dry. Regional climate normals put Florence's January average high at roughly 52°F (11°C), with nights close to freezing, and old stone buildings hold that dampness, so a proper coat and real layers matter more here than the daytime number suggests.
Related
More in Destination Packing Guides.