Best bike tours in Florence, cycling routes and itineraries
Cycling is a great way to explore Florence and its surroundings! Just like many other florentines, I love riding my bike on cycling paths and cobblestone covered alleys and on the hills that are embracing the city. If you are thinking about taking one of the many guided bike tours in Florence… well, let me tell you that’s a good idea!
There are so many different options! Should I rent a regular or an electric bike? Stay in the city or escape in the countryside? How long the tour should last? This is the reason why I thought about writing a post that could help you choosing the best bike tour in Florence for your holiday.
The bicycle tours I selected are given by reliable companies that I know and trust and are led by licensed, professional, local tour guides. Booking your tours on Viator guarantees you maximum reliability and flexibility: most tours have a free cancellation policy.
Rent a bike in Florence: tips for cycling
Take a bike tour only if you are at least an occasional biker. Which means you must have a certain experience and you can safely ride a bike.
The historic centre wasn’t made for bikes! Cobblestone is charming but is driving cyclists mad, pay attention to it.
There are several cycling routes in Florence, but definitely not enough, and not very well planned. Use the bike lanes as much as you can, driving in the car lane can be dangerous, but sometimes you can’t avoid it.
Also, in the city centre, pay attention to the hundreds of pedestrians walking in the middle of the street and watching the sky. Don’t be afraid to ring your bell.Be prepared to ride in public roads at times. Cycling paths are never enough.
Wearing a helmet for riding a bike in Italy is mandatory only for children under 14. But you can still wear it for your safety even if you’re older! All the tours mentioned in this post are providing free helmets.
Best bike and e-bike guided tours in Florence
In my opinion, those two ones are the best bike tours in Florence for small groups, with the best value for money. During the tour you will have a licensed tour guide, who will explain the places you will visit. Your guide also know all the cycling routes in Florence, and will guide you through the streets and squares of the city.
The same Florence bike rental company is giving two different versions of the same tour: with and without piazzale Michelangelo. The bike tour without piazzale Michelangelo is super easy, takes place in the historic center and is within everyone’s reach, you won’t have to ride in busy streets or uphill, the city is flat!
Piazzale Michelangelo is on the top of a small hill facing the city and offering a stunning view of Florence, but consider that you’ll have to ride uphill for about 10-15 minutes to get there.
You can take the tour at three different times of the day: morning, afternoon or evening.
Florence bicycle tour with gelato tasting
After cycling through the city streets, there is nothing better than a refreshing gelato. If you like the idea you have two options:
- Regular bike tour with gelato tasting (2.5 hours)
- Electric bike tour with gelato tasting (2 hours)
The difference between the two tours is that with the regular bike you will stay inside the historic centre, where there are few cars and no slopes. With the e-bike, however, you can also add Piazzale Michelangelo to your itinerary, which is located on a hill, and admire the view of Florence from above.
By the way, discover the best views in Florence
Florence electric bike evening tour
This Florence bike evening tour with wine tasting is perfect for escaping the summer heat and daytime crowds. Also at night there’s very little or no traffic, so your bike ride is even easier.
With your bike you can easily reach Piazzale Michelangelo and admire the skyline of the city. You’ll also see piazza della Signoria, piazza Santa Croce, the Duomo and many other iconic places under the sunset light.
The tour starts at 6.00 pm, lasts two hours, and includes a stop to enjoy a glass of wine with a view on the city. If you are taking this tour in summer, be aware that the sun will set after 8.00 pm (so after the ending time tour). In early may the sun will set around 8.00 pm. In late june will set around 9.00 pm or so.
Rent your own bike in Florence and cycle around
If you prefer to cycle around on a more independent route, you can rent your own bike and move around the city at your own pace.
You will find dozens of bike rentals in the historic center of Florence, and if you want you can also book your rental bike online with free cancellation up to 24 hours in advance (or you can rent an e-bike). Keep in mind some areas of the historic center are so crowded that cycling is impossible sometimes, and be careful of one-way streets. Even if they look like they are closed to vehicles, most of the historic centre is not traffic free… just a traffic limited zone. So be prepared to ride your bike sharing a narrow street with cars and scooters, sometimes.
Easy bike itinerary in the historic centre of Florence
In case you want to do a self guide bike tour, I prepared a cycling itinerary through the historic center of Florence, which hits all the main squares and the most important places. It is a short route with no uphills that anyone who can ride a bike can do. But you must pay attention to one-way streets, and especially to the busiest areas of the centre, in particular between the cathedral and Piazza della Signoria. In that section you will most likely have to get off and push the bicycle by hand. Considering that you will want to stop to look at the monuments up close and take some photos, my itinerary takes about a couple of hours.
The cycle route starts in Piazza San Lorenzo and is (almost) circular. In the end you have two options:
- Finish your tour in Piazza Santissima Annunziata.
- Return towards the Arno river and reach Piazzale Michelangelo to enjoy the view of the city from above. This addition takes at least an hour, and since Piazzale Michelangelo is on a hill, to get there you’ll have to cycle slightly uphill for about 10-15 minutes. But the magnificent view makes up for the effort!
My bike itinerary hits:
- Piazza San Lorenzo
- Piazza Duomo and the Cathedral
- Piazza Santa Maria Novella
- Palazzo Strozzi
- Piazza della Repubblica
- Porcellino Fountain
- Piazza della Signoria
- Ponte Vecchio photo spot (lungarno Anna Maria Luisa de’ Medici)
- Piazza Santa Croce
- Piazza santissima Annunziata
Extra tips:
After piazza santa Croce and before heading to piazza Santissima Annunziata, make a quick stop at Vivoli for one of the best gelato in Florence.
You can’t cross Ponte Vecchio by bike, it’s way too crowded, that’s why I added a stop at a good spot where you can take a nice photo of it.
Tuscany e-bike tour from Florence with lunch and wine tasting
This full-day bicycle tour is the perfect opportunity to discover the Tuscan countryside by bike, effortlessly and also enjoying the excellent local food and wines.
You will have an electric bike and an expert guide who knows the best itineraries. Your guide will take you around the cycling routes of Chianti, where you will stop in two different wineries to taste local wines, cheese, salami, olive oil and more. A full lunch also is included. Talking about winey things, discover all the different wine tours in Florence.
I have personally done this tour on a beautiful ,sunny, late-spring day. The experience was fantastic, but it was pretty hot and I sweated a lot! So be sure to bring an extra t-shirt and to stay hydrated.
2 days Chianti e-bike adventure from Florence
If you love cycling long distances this is the tour for you. This two-day e-bike tour departs from Florence and travels through the Chianti countryside, with several stops along the way to visit traditional villages and to taste local wines and food.
The electric bike is great and minimizes fatigue, even uphill. So even if you are not an experienced athlete you can do it!
The tour includes all the meals (two lunches, one breakfast and one dinner) and accommodation in a pool villa.
