Locanda San Lorenzo(Locanda San Giovanni) in Florence

📍 Basilica di San Lorenzo – Florence, Italy 🇮🇹
We didn’t go inside, but the square outside is lively and full of atmosphere 🚶‍♂️🚶‍♀️. People stroll through, browse the market stalls 🛍️, and enjoy cafés ☕ around the basilica. The unfinished façade looks plain compared to other Florentine churches, but it’s still an interesting landmark to see while walking the area. A vibrant spot for soaking in local life, even without entering. 🙌

May 2025. We were not able to explore much but were able to attend Sunday Mass. It was also the first Church we entered in Italy so it was a nice intro to the beauty that awaited us.

The Basilica di San Lorenzo (Basilica of St. Lawrence) is one of the largest churches of Florence, Italy, situated at the centre of the main market district of the city, and it is the burial place of all the principal members of the Medici family from Cosimo il Vecchio to Cosimo III. It is one of several churches that claim to be the oldest in Florence, having been consecrated in 393 AD,[1] at which time it stood outside the city walls. For three hundred years it was the city's cathedral, before the official seat of the bishop was transferred to Santa Reparata.

San Lorenzo was the parish church of the Medici family. In 1419, Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici offered to finance a new church to replace an eleventh-century Romanesque rebuilding. Filippo Brunelleschi, the leading Renaissance architect of the first half of the fifteenth century, was commissioned to design it, but the building, with alterations, was not completed until after his death. The church is part of a larger monastic complex that contains other important architectural and artistic works: the Old Sacristy (Sagresta Vecchia) by Brunelleschi and having interior decoration and sculpture by Donatello; the Laurentian Library by Michelangelo; the Medici Chapels, two structures that include the New Sacristy (Sagrestia Nuova) based on Michelangelo's designs; and the larger Cappella dei Principi ("Chapel of the Princes") being a collaboration between the family and architects.

A very beautiful basilica, both the main building and the crypt which hosts a small museum of sorts. Some stunning murals and sculptures. Not too crowded.

I loved my visit to San Lorenzo Church. It is older than the main Duomo so it was nice to see what preceded the construction of the Duomo.
The visit took me 1 hour because I was listening to an audio guide i found online on youtube that some history behind the church and different elements in the interior.

Wow, just WOW! Jaw dropping magical feelings.

Such a beautiful basilica! So much history and beautiful paintings within. Definitely worth the visit. I suggest the skip the line tickets to save time and be able to see the rest of Venice.