The Uffizi Gallery in Florence is open Tuesday through Sunday, 8:15am to 6:30pm (last entry 5:30pm), and closed Mondays, January 1, and December 25. Timed-entry tickets can be booked online at tickets.uffizi.it or by phone in advance.
The gallery holds one of the world’s greatest collections of Renaissance art, including Botticelli’s Birth of Venus and Primavera, works by Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, and Caravaggio, housed in a 16th-century building originally designed as government offices.
Most visitors spend 2-3 hours inside; arriving right at the 8:15am opening avoids the worst crowds, and entry is free on the first Sunday of each month (though that day draws two to three times the usual footfall).