Santa Maria Novella to the Accademia, Florence: free self-guided walking tour
Quick answer. A free self-guided walking tour from Santa Maria Novella to the Accademia in Florence: 3 stops, about 1.2 km, about 15 minutes of walking plus about 19 minutes of listening. Start at Santa Maria Novella, the Dominican church that gives Florence’s main station its name, where Leon Battista Alberti designed the upper facade in green and white marble between 1456 and 1470. Walk to the Medici Chapels at San Lorenzo, where Michelangelo’s New Sacristy, his first work of architecture, holds the figures of Dawn, Dusk, Day and Night. Finish at the Galleria dell’Accademia, home since 1873 to Michelangelo’s David, carved between 1501 and 1504.
- Stops:
- 3
- Distance:
- about 1.2 km
- Walking:
- about 15 min
- Listening:
- about 19 min
Santa Maria Novella to the Accademia, Florence: how long does the walk take?
About 34 minutes in all: about 15 minutes on foot over about 1.2 km, plus about 19 minutes of audio at the 3 stops. Time inside the sites is extra.
Santa Maria Novella to the Accademia, Florence: in what order should you visit the stops?
Follow the stops in this order: Santa Maria Novella, Medici Chapels, and Galleria dell’Accademia. The longest stretch between two stops is about 0.7 km, about 9 min on foot.
Route and map
Navigate with Google Maps, listen with Mappu: the stories keep playing while you follow the route.
Opens Google Maps with walking directions through every stop.
Stop 1
Alberti’s two great S-shaped scrolls on the upper facade have no precedent in ancient architecture: they link the tall nave to the lower aisles.
about 6 min of audio
Next stop: Medici Chapels · about 0.5 km, about 6 min on foot
Stop 2
The stone inlay of the Chapel of the Princes was so demanding that the grand ducal hardstone workshop, the Opificio delle Pietre Dure, was founded to carry it out.
about 6 min of audio
Next stop: Galleria dell’Accademia · about 0.7 km, about 9 min on foot
Stop 3
Moved here from Piazza della Signoria in 1873, the David waited nine years in a wooden box for the Tribune built to display it.
about 6 min of audio
The stop stories are AI-generated audio guides and can contain mistakes. Check opening hours and tickets on the official sites.
How does this self-guided walking tour work?
The audio guides on this page stay free: open any stop to listen in your browser.
Walk Mode uses your location to narrate places as you walk. It opens in the Mappu app at the first stop, Santa Maria Novella. Your first walk is free for three stops with a free Mappu account.
Walk Mode: 2 hours for 50 credits (€4.99 Starter pack)
Self-guided audio walk. No guide accompanies you. Not affiliated with the sites.
Before you go
- Check opening hours, tickets and access on each site’s official page before you go.
- Distances and times are estimates: the walking route between stops, from OpenStreetMap, at 4.5 km/h. Your route on the street may differ.
More walking tours in Florence
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3 stops · about 2.1 km · about 30 min on foot · about 22 min of audioBasilica of Santa Croce → Chiostro dello Scalzo → Cenacolo di Sant’ApolloniaSee the route
Plan more days in Florence
These day-by-day Mappu itineraries include Florence. The day links open the days that visit stops on this walk.
Route checked by Mappu on October 21, 2026. Stop descriptions come from each place’s published Mappu audio guide. Mappu is a Fenutech product.