Accademia Gallery Florence tickets: David, prices, hours, skip the line

Accademia Gallery Florence tickets open the Galleria dell’Accademia di Firenze: official full fare €20 plus €4 booking fee, hours 8:15–18:50 Tuesday to Sunday, and Michelangelo’s David Florence at Via Ricasoli 58/60. This page covers prices, queues, bag rules and the GAMB combined tickets — and helps you avoid confusing this museum (often written “Academia Florence”) with the Bargello or the Accademia di Belle Arti art school.

Accademia Gallery Florence tickets: official and online prices

The GAMB institute (Galleria dell’Accademia di Firenze e Musei del Bargello) sets the Accademia full fare at €20. The official online channel authorised by the Ministry of Culture is B-Ticket; the Firenze Musei call centre is on +39 055 294883. The booking fee stated on the Accademia site is €4 (some Bargello pages still show €3; the exact amount appears at B-Ticket checkout).

On partner platforms you pay for convenience, an audio app and often a more flexible cancellation policy than the museum’s own. The museum itself does not allow refunds or date/time changes, except when it has to close for exceptional reasons.

We are an independent guide. If you book through our Tiqets or GetYourGuide links we may earn a commission; the price you pay does not change.

Why book even if “you can buy at the desk”

The museum says it plainly: without a booking, waits can be long, although the desk keeps selling even when online slots are sold out. In practice, if you are tied to a date (cruise, train, tour), buy a timed slot; if you are flexible and arrive at opening on a weekday, the queue is usually manageable. Groups of more than 8 and school parties book through the call centre only, on +39 055 294883.

Hours, last entry and extraordinary openings

The museum is open Tuesday–Sunday 8:15–18:50, with last entry at 18:10 (40 minutes before closing, in line with GAMB rules). The ticket office closes 30 minutes earlier. From 18:40 there is no further access to the Musical Instruments rooms and the first floor, so if those matter to you, go in by 18:00. Closed every Monday, 1 January and 25 December.

The Ministry of Culture also schedules occasional evening openings: in summer, a few Tuesdays until 23:00, and on Tuscany Day (30 November) 17:15–21:00. Check galleriaaccademiafirenze.it for the current dates before you go.

David Florence: what to see in 60–90 minutes

The centrepiece is Michelangelo’s marble David (over 4 metres tall), standing in the tribune at the end of the Gallery of the Prisoners. Along the way are the Prisoners (or Slaves) and Saint Matthew — “unfinished” sculptures that many visitors hurry past on their way to the giant nude. On the ground floor you will find the Sala del Colosso (plaster casts); on the first floor, the painting rooms and the Museum of Musical Instruments (being reinstalled — check which rooms are open on the day).

Suggested route

1. Check your bag before you queue — if your backpack is larger than 40×30×18 cm, leave it at MyAccademia before your slot: there is no cloakroom and staff will turn you away.
2. David’s tribune — allow 15–20 minutes, and walk all the way round the base rather than staying at the front.
3. Prisoners and Saint Matthew — 10 minutes, a striking contrast with the “finished” David.
4. Side rooms and instruments — only if you have 20–30 minutes left and the rooms are open.
5. On to the Bargello — with the 48-hour combined ticket, see Donatello’s sculpture at the Bargello the same afternoon.

Works in progress: the Ferdinando I and Cosimo II bronzes are being restored (check the end date on galleriaaccademiafirenze.it), and the Gipsoteca (plaster cast gallery) is undergoing structural work, with some sculptures moved. Room availability can change at short notice.

No cloakroom: bag and visit rules

This is the most important practical difference versus the Uffizi:

• No cloakroom or deposit in the museum.
• Only bags and backpacks up to 40×30×18 cm allowed.
• Paid storage at the MyAccademia shop.
• Metal detector; knives, scissors, glass and banned metal objects forbidden.
• Bottled water up to 0.5 l; no food or drinks in the rooms.
• Personal photos without flash or tripod (GAMB rules).
• Groups: max 20 people excluding the guide; headsets mandatory from 6 participants.
• Official audioguides €6 at the bookshop (with ID).

With a wheeled suitcase or a trekking backpack, leave everything at luggage storage near Santa Maria Novella station or at MyAccademia, or you risk losing your slot.

GAMB combined tickets, Uffizi combos and Firenze Card

48-hour Accademia + Bargello ticket (€26): saves €6 compared with €20 + €12. Ideal for a morning at one and an afternoon at the other.

72-hour ticket (€38): covers the group’s open museums (Accademia, Bargello, Medici Chapels, Orsanmichele, Palazzo Davanzati; Casa Martelli is excluded while closed for works). Worth it if you are staying three days and want sculpture and the Medici without separate queues.

Online Uffizi + Accademia combos: always compare with the official prices (€29 Uffizi advance + €24 Accademia ≈ €53) before paying for packages from €69 upwards. More on the combos page.

Firenze Card (€85): includes the Accademia, with free but mandatory booking and priority entry subject to availability. If you only want David plus one other GAMB museum, the combined tickets are cheaper than the card. The Duomo is not included in any GAMB ticket, nor in the card.

Guided tour vs entry + audio app

An entry ticket with an audio app is the economical choice if you already know the background and just want a guaranteed slot. A guided tour is worth it on a first visit, when you want someone to connect David, the Prisoners and the Michelangelo story in 60–90 minutes without reading every label. Small-group tours cost more but make it easier to hear your guide around the crowded tribune. Always check whether the museum ticket is included or has to be added.

Half-day itinerary with David Florence

• 08:15–09:30 — Accademia (morning slot): David and the Prisoners.
• 10:00–11:30 — Bargello on the combined ticket (Donatello’s David, Michelangelo’s Bacchus).
• Afternoon — Medici Chapels, or the free Duomo nave (Monday–Saturday) if you are not climbing the Dome.
• Next day — Uffizi (do not squeeze three big museums into eight hours).

Piazza del Duomo is a few blocks away, so the cathedral exteriors fit easily around your Accademia visit; climbing the Dome needs a separate pass and time slot.

Practical questions before you go

Bring ID for reduced or free entry and for any checks, and remember the museum is closed on Mondays. With children, David makes an impression within minutes, but attention drops after an hour in the secondary rooms — plan an early exit. Tactile maps are available on the ground floor (Sala del Colosso) and the first floor (Room 1); the ground-floor tactile route is being revised. Visitors with reduced mobility should check lifts and current routes on galleriaaccademiafirenze.it or bargellomusei.it. On free Sundays, arrive at opening: without booking, queuing is unavoidable.

Free entry, reductions and who can enter without paying full fare

As a state museum, the Accademia follows the standard Ministry of Culture rules: under 18s free, EU citizens aged 18–25 €2 with ID, free entry for visitors with disabilities and one companion, licensed EU guides, the student and teacher categories listed on the ticket pages, and ICOM members and journalists with a valid press card. The European Disability Card also gives priority access across GAMB museums: show the physical card at the desk. On free-entry Sundays (#domenicalmuseo) and other free openings you cannot book: you queue and go in when there is space. On 8 March entry is free for all women.

The museum does not publish an annual membership comparable to the Uffizi PassePartout; for multiple entries, stick with the GAMB combined tickets (€26/€38) or the Firenze Card.

How to get there, how long, what to leave outside

Via Ricasoli 60 is about 10–12 minutes on foot from Santa Maria Novella station and a few blocks from Piazza del Duomo. The entrance and ticket office are both at Via Ricasoli 60; the museum’s phone number is +39 055 0987100.

Realistic times:

• David and the Prisoners only: 45–60 minutes.
• David plus the first floor and instruments (if open): 75–90 minutes.
• Accademia and Bargello on the same day (combined ticket): half a day, with a short lunch break in between.

Checklist before you join the queue:

1. Measure your backpack: if it is larger than 40×30×18 cm, go to MyAccademia or luggage storage first.
2. Take out picnic knives, nail scissors and glass bottles.
3. Carry no more than 0.5 l of water.
4. Arrive 10–15 minutes before your slot, as there may be a queue for the metal detector.
5. If you have a Firenze Card, book your time by phone: the card does not get you in without a reservation.

Accademia vs Bargello vs Uffizi: pick the right museum

Many visitors confuse Academia Florence with the Accademia di Belle Arti (an art school), or go looking for “David” at the Bargello and find Donatello’s. Both are worth seeing, but the tickets and queues are different. For Michelangelo’s David, this is the museum; if you want sculpture without the crowd around the tribune, start at the Bargello.

Frequent mistakes (and how not to pay twice)

1. Buying a non-refundable online ticket and then finding your backpack is too big: you lose the money and the slot.
2. Doing the Accademia and the Uffizi in the same morning: two security checks, two dense museums and no time for lunch.
3. Ignoring the 18:10 last entry and turning up at 18:20 “because it closes at 18:50”.
4. Buying a commercial city pass just for David: compare it with the €24 official price, or €26 for the combined Bargello ticket.
5. Thinking “Academia” and “Accademia” are two different tickets: it is the same Galleria dell’Accademia.
6. Booking a group of more than 8 through a generic form instead of calling +39 055 294883.

Headsets, groups and school parties

Tour groups are limited to 20 visitors, not counting the guide, and from 6 participants a headset system is mandatory. This is a GAMB rule, not an optional extra from the tour operator. Schools arrange limits and allocations through the call centre. If your guide is not using headsets with a large group, that breaks the museum rules and staff may step in.

MyAccademia, bookshop and on-site services

The MyAccademia shop (Via Ricasoli 105/r, usually open Tuesday–Sunday during the day — check the site) is where you can leave a bag for a fee when the museum will not let you in with it. It is meant for the length of your visit, not as all-day left luggage for a suitcase. Official audioguides cost €6 at the bookshop, with an ID left as a deposit — useful if your ticket did not include an app. If you use a wheelchair, confirm lifts and routes in the week of your visit, as the works in the Gipsoteca and instrument rooms can change the visitor route.

The museum’s visitor relations email is ga-afi-mn-bar.urp@cultura.gov.it. For bookings and combined tickets, use B-Ticket or call +39 055 294883. Tickets are named and cannot be refunded or changed, even if you get the time wrong by an hour — set a reminder on your phone.

In short: Accademia Gallery Florence tickets

€20 + €4 booking, open 8:15–18:50, closed Monday, no cloakroom (bags up to 40×30×18 cm), and GAMB combined tickets at €26 / €38. For Michelangelo’s David this is the right museum, not the Bargello. Check dates and online availability in the booking box above; for questions write to travel@alltours.florence.it.