San Giovanni

Florence Baptistery hours: what you can still see

Romanesque octagon, Pisano and Ghiberti doors, 13th–14th-century gold mosaics. The vault is a worksite: go anyway, but do not promise yourself the postcard Last Judgement.

Cathedral & baptistery Visit options

Florence Baptistery of San Giovanni with the cathedral behind it

Visit options

Quick summary
Price from	€15 Ghiberti
Hours	8:30–19:30
Booking	No, except crypt on Ghiberti
Time	25–40 min

Dante remembers the baptistery as “mio bel San Giovanni”. The Cosmatesque floor and three door campaigns (Pisano south, Ghiberti north and east) remain the reason to enter even with the vault covered.

Ticket comparison

Ghiberti if the baptistery is the point. Brunelleschi/Giotto if you pair it with climbs.

Timing is everything

8:30, before tour groups. First Sunday: finish in the morning.

The insider entry

The parvise, facing the façade. Not Mandorla.

How to save

If the doors are enough, ten minutes on the exterior replicas are free. Originals need the museum.

How to get there

The baptistery occupies the octagonal centre of the square.

Official hours and pass prices: Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore, tickets.duomo.firenze.it. Partner (Tiqets) prices as of August 2026; they change.

FAQ

Yes, on a pass. The cathedral opposite is free; the baptistery is not.

8:30–19:30; first Sunday of the month until 13:30.

In the museum. Outside: replicas.

Vault under restoration, not visible for “the next couple of years” (Opera FAQ).

Yes, as in the cathedral: shoulders and knees, no flip-flops.

Residents, first Sunday, ticket office.