Lucca Tuscany — Renaissance city walls with tree-lined promenade and cycling path above the old town

Tuscany

Lucca & Versilia Coast

Unsplash / Unsplash

Trade-off

Intact Renaissance city walls, cycling, and aperitivo — combined with Forte dei Marmi beach access 30 minutes away.

The intact Renaissance walls of Lucca (for cycling and aperitivo) plus the Versilia coast towns of Forte dei Marmi and Viareggio for beach access. The most accessible gateway to the Garfagnana mountains and Carrara marble caves. A strong base for those wanting Tuscan city life with beach access — 30 minutes between the two.

Scores

8/10

Walkability

7/10

Transit

4/10

Price

8/10

Local feel

6/10

Nightlife

9/10

Family-friendly

6/10

Centrality

What you gain

  • ↑Lucca's 4km Renaissance city wall (built 1513–1650) is the finest intact city fortification in Italy: the wide flat top has been converted into a tree-lined promenade and cycling path, and cycling the entire perimeter in the evening is one of the most pleasant urban experiences in Tuscany
  • ↑Forte dei Marmi is the most elegant beach town in Tuscany: the Liberty-style villas, the pine forest behind the beach, and the quality of the seafood restaurants make it the Côte d'Azur equivalent of the Versilian Riviera — accessible from Lucca in 30 minutes by car
  • ↑The Garfagnana valley north of Lucca offers the finest Tuscan mountain scenery outside the Apuan Alps: chestnut forest, Castelnuovo Garfagnana medieval town, and the lardo di Colonnata (marble-cured lard, a local delicacy) from Carrara combine for a half-day entirely unlike the rolling hill Tuscany of the south

What you sacrifice

  • ↓Lucca is significantly less visited than Florence and Siena but this is now changing: July and August bring day-trippers from the coast and the city centre becomes uncomfortably full on weekend afternoons
  • ↓The beach at Forte dei Marmi is the most expensive on the Italian coast: private beach clubs (stabilimenti balneari) with assigned sunbeds and changing rooms charge premium daily rates and dominate most of the best coastline

Best for

those wanting a Tuscan base combining city and beachcyclists who want to ride the city walls and the flat Arno plainfamilies with children who need beach access alongside cultural sightseeing

Avoid if

those whose Tuscany priority is Renaissance art or wine country — Florence, Chianti, and Val d'Orcia deliver these betterbudget beach travellers — Forte dei Marmi beach clubs are among the most expensive in Italy

Other Tuscany neighbourhoods

Florence (Firenze)

The cultural capital — the Uffizi, Michelangelo's David, the Duomo, and the most concentrated Renaissance art in the world.

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Siena

The medieval rival to Florence — Piazza del Campo, Il Palio horse race, and a Gothic city more manageable than its neighbour.

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Chianti Wine Country

Rolling hills between Florence and Siena — Sangiovese vineyards, castle estates, and the quintessential Tuscan landscape.

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Know where to stay — now find when to go.

Best time to visit Tuscany →