Skip to content
ENITSign in

Pitti Palace

The Medici's grand-ducal palace in Florence, now a cluster of museums from the Palatine Gallery to the Royal Apartments.

  • Florence
  • Palace
Plan your visitSee tours
Where
Florence
Best for
The Palatine Gallery's Raphaels
Allow
2 hr 30 min
Tickets
From €22
Checked September 2026

Pitti Palace began around 1458 as the private residence of the banker Luca Pitti, a display of wealth so large that Florentines joked its windows alone could swallow the facade of a rival family's house. The Medici bought it in 1549 and expanded it into the seat of the grand-ducal court, later passed through Habsburg-Lorraine and Savoy hands before becoming a museum complex under state ownership. Today its facade of rusticated stone contains several distinct collections run by the Uffizi Galleries: the Palatine Gallery's Raphaels and Titians hung salon style in gilded rooms, the Royal Apartments furnished as the Savoy kings left them, and separate museums of silver, costume, porcelain and modern art. The scale is deliberately overwhelming; the palace was built to make visitors feel small; the trick still works.

Pitti Palace records Medici, Habsburg-Lorraine and Savoy phases and today contains several Uffizi museum institutions. Its qualified early attribution and specific heritage relationships remain governed by source evidence.

The long rusticated stone facade of Palazzo Pitti on its gravel piazza
Rough-hewn stone and row upon row of arched windows: a banker’s show of wealth, built to dwarf his rivals.
Sources and citations (2)
  1. Gallerie degli UffiziPitti PalaceRead source
  2. Gallerie degli UffiziHistory, Pitti PalaceLuca Pitti and unfinished residenceRead source

Look closer

The rusticated walls and arcade of the Ammannati courtyard at Palazzo Pitti
The Ammannati courtyardAmmannati’s court wraps banded, rusticated columns and arches around a paved yard.
Soft window light falls beside pale curtains and rust-red drapery in the Palatine Gallery.
Window light in the gallerySoft window light falls beside pale curtains and rust-red drapery in the Palatine Gallery.
A green damask reception room in the Royal Apartments with a gilded chandelier
The Royal ApartmentsGreen silk, gilded mirrors and chandeliers, in rooms left furnished as the Savoy household used them.

Five works worth finding

If you see nothing else, see these.

  1. Madonna della SeggiolaRaffaello Sanzio, c. 1514-1516

    A round painting of the Madonna and Child so tender and compact it became one of Raphael’s most copied images.Palatine Gallery, Room of Saturn

  2. La VelataRaffaello Sanzio, c. 1516

    A portrait of a woman in a shimmering satin sleeve and white veil, said by Vasari to show the painter’s lover.Palatine Gallery, Room of Jupiter

  3. Planetary roomsPietro da Cortona

    Rooms named for Venus, Apollo, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn, with Baroque ceilings glorifying the Medici, hung salon style with paintings up to the gilt frames.Palatine Gallery, first floor

  4. Royal Apartments

    The rooms of the Savoy kings, left furnished as the royal household used them, from the Throne Room to the bedrooms.Piano nobile, Pitti Palace

  5. Treasury of the Grand Dukes

    Also called the Silver Museum: Medici ivories, cameos, rock crystal, gemstone vases and jewels in rooms frescoed for the grand ducal court.Ground floor and mezzanine, Pitti Palace

Plan your visit

Everything you need before you go.

Tickets
From €22
Booking
No booking needed
Time needed
2 hr 30 min
Best time
Late morning for the galleries, moving into Boboli in the afternoon as the light softens.
Getting there
A short walk south across the Ponte Vecchio from the Duomo, on the Oltrarno side of the river; no dedicated visitor parking, use the Oltrarno's metered street parking or a nearby garage.
Accessibility
Large distances between galleries, security checks and uneven historic floors make pacing important; ask staff about the accessible route, since not all rooms have step-free access.

The combined Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens ticket costs €22 on the day or €25 booked ahead; a 5-day pass adding the Uffizi is €40. Free on the first Sunday of the month. Last updated September 2026. Prices change, so check the official site before you go.

Buy the combined Pitti-Boboli-Uffizi pass if you are spending more than a day in Florence; it spreads three exhausting museums across five days instead of forcing them into one.

See toursOfficial website
Get directionsGoogle MapsApple Maps

Tours worth booking

A few we would book ourselves, to get more from your visit.

Booking through these links may earn Italia Magnifica a commission, at no cost to you.

  1. 2-Hour Private Evening Walking Guided Tour of Florence Culture

    • Viator
    • 2h
    • 5.0★ · 54 reviews
    from €160Book this tour

  2. Small Group Medici and Michelangelo Tour in Florence

    • Viator
    • 2h 30m
    • 5.0★ · 35 reviews
    from €56Book this tour

  3. 2-Hour Private Walking Tour with Local Guides in Florence

    • Viator
    • 2h
    • 5.0★ · 21 reviews
    from €109Book this tour

  4. Private Photographic Experience in Florence minimum 2 people

    • Viator
    • 1h 30m
    • 5.0★ · 19 reviews
    from €120Book this tour

  5. Palazzo Vecchio, Palazzo Pitti and Boboli gardens private tour

    • Viator
    • 4h
    • 5.0★ · 19 reviews
    from €195Book this tour

  6. Medici Treasures: Pitti Palace & Boboli Gardens Small Group Tour

    • Viator
    • 2h
    • 5.0★ · 16 reviews
    from €72Book this tour

Good to know

How long should you spend at the Pitti Palace?

Plan on two and a half hours for the Palatine Gallery and Royal Apartments, which is the core of the visit. The palace holds several separate museums, so choose one or two rather than trying them all, then save energy for Boboli.

Do you need to book the Pitti Palace?

It is rarely as crowded as the Uffizi, so booking is optional, but a timed ticket is sensible in high season. A combined ticket with Boboli Gardens works well if you want both in one visit.

Is the Pitti Palace worth visiting if you have seen the Uffizi?

Yes, it gives you a different experience: Raphael’s and Titian’s paintings hung the way a court would show them, plus a tour of how rulers lived. It is also much quieter, and the Boboli Gardens sit right behind it.

More to see nearby

Same city first, then the nearest across the region.

A letter from Italy, once a month.

The places, tables and makers we found worth your time. One email, no noise.

One letter a month. Unsubscribe at any time. We never share your address.

Help us get it right

What is it about?