Florence · Oltrarno · Italy

Ponte Vecchio

historicwalkculturegoogle verified

easy

9/10

best: morning, evening, sunset

romantic, nostalgic

A local would say...

The only bridge the Nazis spared in Florence has been lined with shops since 1345 — and a hidden royal corridor runs secretly above the jewellers, connecting two palaces.

Dating to 1345, the Ponte Vecchio is the only Florentine bridge to survive WWII intact — the retreating German forces destroyed all the others but spared this one. The bridge is unique in having shops built along its entire length, now occupied by jewellers, and the secret Vasari Corridor runs above them, connecting the Uffizi to Palazzo Pitti. The first documented stone bridge at this narrowest Arno crossing dates to 972.