Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni, better known as simply Michelangelo, was one of the most influential artists of the Italian Renaissance. Most of his masterpieces as a painter, sculptor and architect are to be found in Italy, and Florence is home to many of them, since this was the hometown of the Medici family, Michelangelo’s patrons. If you are planning to visit the Tuscan capital, make sure you discover as many of his works as possible. Here is one possible route around the city.

Florence is itself a small artists’ gem: the catedral, the Ponte Vecchio, its melancholy streets, the rosary of Gothic and Renaissance churches… Some of its palatial buildings hold museums capable of intoxicating the senses with fantastic masterpieces in the history of art.

This annual opera festival founded in 1933 comprises one of the oldest musical events in Italy and one of the most prestigious in the European Union. It takes place in the “Teatro Comunale“, the centre of musical life in the Tuscan capital, and will be celebrating its 74th edition from the 1st of May to the 30th of June this summer.

From the 10th to the 13th of March this year visitors to Florence will be able to participate in ARTOUR-O, an unusual art tour in Florence featuring conventions and exhibitions that highlight the relationship between territory and contemporary art, endorsing Italy’s artistic production. Through this event, participants will also get the opportunity to discover this charming Italian city and discover some of its many beautiful landmarks and monuments.

Do you want to see an unusual exhibition? Is looking at anatomical reconstructions of bodies, plague victims and other unsavoury objects right up your street? Excellent. Then welcome to the La Specola, the Museum of Zoology and Natural History which comprises an educational but highly entertaining display of zoological and anatomical specimen reconstructions in wax.