Twelve legends and mysteries in the centre, and one awkward question: how long has this been told? Berta's stone head, the devil who three centuries ago was a satyr, the magpie of Justice, the head that came back from the Arno, the bridge they didn't blow up, the Virgin of the Grain and the boar with the shiny snout.
Florence tells a great many stories, and here you find out how long it's been telling them. A stone head peering out of a bell tower, the "devil" that in the seventeenth century was called a satyr, the blacksmith who wouldn't give credit even to Lorenzo the Magnificent, the magpie from a very recent legend, and the statue that lost its head in 1944 and got it back from the river. On the Ponte Vecchio, the tower that, the story goes, forced the duke to go the long way round, the mystery of why this bridge wasn't blown up, and the Easter murder that split the city in two. You finish with the wheel of the Mercato Nuovo, the boar whose snout, according to Andersen, children polished as they drank, the Virgin of the Grain at Orsanmichele, whose miracles not even the friars believed, and the face carved beside the door of the Palazzo Vecchio. Some legends have a birth certificate; others have none at all.
An outline of the walk. The full stories are in the app.
Open a marker to see its page. Use two fingers to move the map on mobile.
Walking directions are based on mapped pedestrian routes. Check local access and signs; the route is not an accessibility guarantee. Times are approximate.
Florence fits into short walks that grow longer as you keep looking. The centre is compact; crossing the Arno changes the perspective without changing the city.
You start where Dante was baptised and walk round the Baptistery: the carpenter who, according to a novella of the time, was talked into believing he was another man; the elm that, tradition says, flowered in January; and the 1401 contest that every contender told his own way.
You start at the Mercato Centrale, the great iron-and-glass market that Florence began building in the few years when it was the capital of Italy, and walk on to the bare façade of San Lorenzo, the one Michelangelo never clad in marble.
You start in front of David and find out why the original needed a guard on its very first night.
An app for self-guided audio walks. Choose a city and a route, then listen to the stories behind its streets. You decide when to start and when to stop.
Podtour is coming to iOS and Android. There is no confirmed launch date yet. Join the waitlist and we will let you know when it is ready.
No. Street walks and monument audio tours do not include admission tickets, transport or a guide accompanying you.
Download the audio in the app before heading out, then listen offline. Loading the online base map and calculating a new route from your location require a connection.
Every route includes Spanish and British English. The English version is adapted for English-speaking travellers, rather than translated word for word.
Join the waitlist, choose a city and confirm your email address. When the app launches, we will email you with access details. No card is required. You can also try one free route in every city.
Yes. Your own access is included and you can choose 0–5 guests: up to 6 people including you. Each guest saves up to €0.50 on a walk, €1 on a pack or €2 on a whole city compared with buying separately. The counter shows the total before you confirm one payment.
After paying, share your purchase’s invitation link. Each guest opens it in Podtour and accepts their place on their own iPhone or Android phone. They must redeem it within 30 days of purchase. Unclaimed places then expire and cannot be recovered or renewed. Access accepted in time is kept. Opening the link does not use a place; one account takes just one place, and no more people can join once all places are taken.
No. Choose all your guests before confirming the first purchase. Afterwards you can share the places you paid for, but you cannot increase their number or restart the 30-day deadline.
Join the waitlist. When we launch, your chosen city is yours to explore.
Join the waitlist and get one whole city free when Podtour launches. You choose where.
Podtour manages your launch request with your consent. You can withdraw it and exercise your rights as explained in our privacy policy. Privacy details.
One city per person. All its Podtour routes in Spanish and English. Available at launch. Offer details.
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