Guida di Lucca:

LA CITTA' DI LUCCA
It enjoys an enviable position a few minutes away from the sea and less than an hour by car from Florence. It borders on the province of Pisa, and is surrounded by the Apennine mountains and the spurs of the Apuan Alps. Hemmed in by its walls, the city reveals itself a little at a time.

Only by walking along the narrow streets of the historic centre and visiting the more than one hundred churches and almost the same number of palaces can one discover the mystery and magic of a past that abounds in the history, culture, and architecture of various centuries. Everything in the city of Lucca is to be seen, because the historical essence of the different styles has given rise to a harmonious building fabric which still today is well preserved and worth seeing.
Every contrast is pleasing to the eye, from the most severe Romanesque to the most sumptuous Renaissance styles: a guiding thread leads those who travel it, an impact that is immediately revealed while walking along the 4 km of Walls that surround the city like an embrace. In fact, Lucca is one of the few Italian cities to have preserved intact its own enclosing walls. Under the Bourbon rulers these were transformed into a public walkway, consisting of tree-lined paths where in previous years – believe it or not – car races actually took place.
On entering the city from the south, we encounter piazza Napoleone, also known as “Piazza Grande”. It has been subjected to a restoration that has given it back its original, early 19th century appearance. The west side of the square is entirely occupied by the facade of the Palazzo Pubblico, or Palazzo Ducale. With its vast inside courtyards and magnificent public rooms. On exiting from the opposite side and turning right, we come out in the square containing the church of S. Romano, which was built in the 13th century over a subsequently-restructured oratory that already existed in 792. The single-nave interior with transept became one of the most important examples of baroque in Lucca, thanks to the transformations brought about by the Dominican father, Giovanni Buonvisi, and the Lucchese architect, Vincenzo Buonamici.

Bearing east, we go past the Teatro del Giglio – a 17th century neo-classical building, the work of the Lucchese architect Giovanni Lazzarini: a testimony to Lucca's musical tradition – and the very ancient Church of S. Giovanni, and arrive at the Saint Martino Cathedral, a masterpiece of Romanesque art, with its 13th century facade that abounds in multiform columns and a portico decorated with very fine bas-reliefs. Inside are two of the monuments dearest to the hearts of the Lucchesi: the Volto Santo, a wooden crucifix, and Jacopo della Quercia's masterpiece: the funeral monument to Ilaria del Carretto, the wife of Paolo Guinigi, Lord of Lucca in the early years of the 15th century. To one side, Piazza Antelminelli opens up with its fountain built by the architect Nottolini (1832-35), as testimony to the termination of the works of the city aqueduct. The Museum of the Cathedral, with its precious historical and artistic patrimony, is also located in the square.
Continuing, we encounter in the middle of the same square the Romanesque Church of Saint Michele in Foro with its magnificent facade of white calcareous stone. It is particularly developed vertically with respect to the other churches in Lucca: a large statue of St. Michael adorns its pinnacle. Situated in the ancient forum of the Roman city, the church rises over a previous construction that dates back to the 8th century. A short distance away is Palazzo Pretorio, a 16th century building under the loggia of which is preserved the monument to Matteo Civitali.
In the immediate vicinity, to the west, is the house where the most famous Lucchese was born: the great composer, Giacomo Puccini. It is now a Museum dedicated to him. Retracing our steps, we encounter the most frequented and animated street in the city: Via Fillungo, the real commercial centre and Lucca's “drawing room”. Via Fillungo leads to piazza Anfiteatro, a square that never ceases to fascinate and amaze. Risen over the original layout of the Roman era, which is still visible on the outside, over the course of the centuries the square has undergone a residential, commercial and artisan stratification that has caused it to assume a unique connotation, with its original elliptical-shaped structure still perfectly intact. 
Continuing in a northerly direction, Via Fillungo opens out into another very lovely square, Saint Frediano Square, where the Basilica dedicated to the saint who was Bishop of Lucca rises. The white marble facade is dominated by a large Byzantine-style mosaic of Christ's Ascension, attributed to the Berlinghieri school that flourished in Lucca during the 13th century. Climbing the walls again on the part opposite to the one from which we descended, we can enjoy a view of the 17th century Palazzo Pfanner and its formal garden decorated with marble statues.
Having crossed the city from south to north, we can now do so from east to west. Barely beyond the neo-classical Porta Elisa, a gate that was opened in 1809 at the request of Elisa Baciocchi, Napoleon's sister, we encounter the Church of Saint Micheletto, rebuilt in the 18th century from a 12th century Romanesque church. The “Licia e Carlo Ragghianti” Study Centre, with its extensive library of modern art, has its seat in the annex of the former Minoresse convent. The Centre adjoins the Orto Botanico that was set up in 1820 for the Royal University of Lucca: the garden contains century-old trees, rare and exotic plants, but also medicinal plants of the Lucchese agricultural and food tradition. Heading to the right, beyond the little square of Saint Ponziano with its church of the same name, we encounter the monumental Villa Buonvisi al Giardino, better known as Villa Bottini. Built in 1566 in the centre of a large park, the two-storey villa has simple lines, large windows on the ground floor, and an open gallery on the back. The gallery and the halls preserve frescoes by Ventura Salimbeni, painted after 1593.
On the western side, the villa overlooks Via del Fosso, one of the most recognisable in Lucca's urban layout. The latter was derived from the Serchio river, upstream from the city, in order to supply water to the hammers and looms of the silk-weavers, dyers and other artisans who settled in the area from the 15th century on, characterising the street with a continuous hoard of buildings of a particular architectural typology. The Porta dei Santi Gervasio e Protasio that opens off Via del Fosso is among the last vestiges of the ancient medieval walls, together with the Porta dei Borghi, situated at the end of Via Fillungo. Huge in size and flanked by stone keeps decorated with sculptures, these give us an idea of how different the walls of the time were from the present ones. Before crossing through the doorway, it is best to turn right towards the north, and reach Villa Guinigi, the Guinigi family's summer home. Obviously Gothic in style, it was built outside the 13th century walls starting in 1413, by Paolo Guinigi during his seigniory. Today, it is the seat of one ot the two National Museums (the other is located in Palazzo Mansi), and houses numerous important Etruscan and Roman works, Gothic and Renaissance sculptures, and noteworthy paintings. The family's residence par excellence, Palazzo Guinigi, rises a short distance away. Over it rises the characteristic “Torre Alberata”, (tower with tree) another of the symbolic monuments of the city. It owes its name to the centuries-old ilex trees that adorn its summit. Built entirely of dark-red bricks, it is 41 m. high; from its top, a suggestive panorama over the city can be enjoyed. Lucca can be enjoyed from on high also from the “Torre delle Ore” (or Torre civica), so called because of the clock and bell tower on top, both documented ever since 1390. Few meters away from the tower we find Piazza Guidiccioni, seat of the National Archive and of Palazzo Sanminiati, that preserves two important paintings attribuited to the german painter Georg Christoph Martini, “il Sassone”. Having gone back up Via Fillungo, we continue along Via S. Giustina and encounter two remarkable buildings: Palazzo Orsetti and Palazzo Mansi. The former, attributed to Nicolao Civitali, is the seat of the municipal administration, which purchased it in 1971.
Inside, among rooms of great worth are the Hall of Mirrors, and precious paintings, such as the Morte del Wallenstein by Pietro Paolini. The latter palace, one of the the national Museums in Lucca, is a magnificent example of a 16th century noble residence. Inside, there are the monumental apartments of the noble floor with their frescoed rooms, reception rooms with tapestries, the well-known 18th century Bridal (or Lucida Mansi) Chamber, and a rich art gallery. Continuing always west, we come out in a large green space included within the enclosing walls: this is Piazzale S. Donato, which until the early 20th century was the ancient Prato del Marchese, used for centuries on the occasion of the September festivities and for other solemn celebrations, for horse races, performances of various types, and military parades. In 1832 there was also a large wooden amphitheatre, the work of the architect Nottolini, which was subsequently destroyed. Once again in sight of the walls, we can take a look at the Vecchia Porta S. Donato, which is so called in order to distinguish it from the new one, a few m. away.



OUTSIDE THE CITY
Visit the gardens of the grand houses of the aristocracy that form a 'golden circle' around Lucca, to the Villa Reale at Marlia, the Villa Torrigiani near Segromigno, and the Villa Mansi in Segromigno. These are best visited in March when the camellias are in bloom.

There are a number of attractions around Lucca including the Museum of Modern Art in Montecatini, the 12th-century Ponte della Maddalena or Ponte del Diavolo (Devil's Bridge) at Borgo a Mozzano, the Grotta del Vento, the wind cave, in Fornovolasco, nine miles from Barga and Barga itself, with its Lombard castle.


If you are traveling with small children, take them to the Parco di Pinocchio in Collodi, the birthplace of Carlo Lorenzini, the author of the famed childrens' book "Pinocchio". This is a 1950s 'theme park' with tableaux depicting scenes from the story of the long-nosed one. Or take them for a ride in the century-old funicular, the cable-driven wooden train that toils up and down between Montecatini and the rather touristy, restaurant in Montecatini Alto.

Drive to the beach resort of Forte dei Marmi, Viareggio, Lido di Camaiore, on the Versilia coastline, or, in an hour to the rugged Cinque Terre, to the Gulf of La Spezia, to Lerici.