What to See

 

What to visit in the center city:

 

- The Torre Guinigi (130 ft / 44 meters) with a hanging garden on the top and a splendid view of the city of Lucca and Lucchesi hills.

 

- The Torre delle Ore (the clock tower) which also offers scenic views of the city. Since the Middle Ages, it has been equipped with a large clock which is still manually wound today (one of the more interesting in Europe). The clock works can be viewed on the way to the top. In spring and summer, the tower is opened till midnight so you can have a night sight of the city if you have already been on the other tower during the day.

 

- The stained glass windows of the Cathedral of Lucca (guided visits) - near the Museum of the Cathedral of Lucca, and the Oratorio San Giuseppe, with its rich collections of statues, gold-work and sacred paraments. In the sacristy of the Dome, one can admire the famous funeral monument of Ilaria del Carretto di Jacopo della Quercia and an altar piece of Domenico Ghirlandaio.

 

- The National Museum and Art Gallery of Palazzo Mansi with its opulent rooms furnished with wall hangings and tapestries from 1600 to 1800, paintings of Italian and Flemish art, and works of Pontormo, Tintoretto, Veronese, Bronzino, etc

 

- The National Museum of Villa Guinigi with its important archaeological section containing finds from roman and prehistoric ages, recovered in the Lucchese territory and a medieval collection of sculptural and pictorial works.

 

Other things to see:

 

- The ancient walled village and fortress of Montecarlo (20 minutes by car), famous for its beauty and its wines.

 

- The other Lucchesi Villas. From Grabau Villa, you can walk to the nearby Villa Reale of Marlia and the Villa Olivia. Only 10 minutes away is the Villa Torrigiani di Camigliano and closer to Lucca, the Villa Bernardini.

 

- The ancient villages of the Garfagnana (recommended as a half or full day excursion by car). Not to be missed are the cities of Barga, Castiglione Garfagnana, San Romano in Garfagnana (and the Fortress of the Verrucole), and then Careggine, Minucciano, Castelnuovo (and the Fortress of Montalfonso), Coreglia Antelminelli (one of the beautiful villages of Italy with the Museo delle Figurine di Gesso), Molazzana, or the ancient villages of Ceserana, Perpoli, Cascio with their fortresses, churches and narrow streets that make for beautiful walks, and then still to be visited are the villages of Trassilico and the Castello di Ghivizzano etc.The Theatre of Vetriano (the smallest theatre in the world) in Vetriano di Pescaglia is 15 minutes by car and Celle dei Puccini, a small village in the Roggio Valley where the ancestors of the great composer lived. The house is now a small museum.

 

- The Grotte del Vento in Fornovolasco (some of the most complete caves in Europe)(bring 2 pullovers...inside is very cold...) with spectacular caverns dug in the cliff where one can admire the stalactites, stalagmites, lakes and underground water courses etc (reachable 30 minutes by car)

 

- The dark forests of Pizzorne (10km / altitude 900 meters) that offer splendid panoramas over the valleys.

 

- The Ponte del Diavolo and the Ponte delle Catene (in Bagni di Lucca).

 

- A little further away but reachable in about 40 minutes by car/train/bus is the coastal district of Versilia (well known for its long stretches of sandy beaches and landscape dominated by the Apuan Alps), Pisa, and Torre del Lago Puccini. About 1 hour by car (or bus/train) is Florence, Siena and the ski fields of Abetone.