Lucca Travel Guide

 26 Reviews  Torre Guinigi rises above the narrow streets below and although its pretty crowded once you reach the top, you can enjoy the beautiful views of the old town and surrounding mountains under the shade of the huge oak trees that make this tower the symbol of Lucca. Admission is only 3 or 4 euros, and... 

 20 Reviews  The oval Piazza Anfiteatro used to be a Roman amphitheater. During medieval times, houses were built on the Roman remains; later from 1830 the area was used as a marketplace. Nowadays it is a nice meeting point with cafes and restaurants for both locals and tourists. Directions: The Piazza... 

 15 Reviews  Palazzo Pfanner turned out to be my favourite museum in Lucca. For 5.50 Euros, you can have access to the palazzo and its beautiful gardens. Dating back to the 1660s, the palazzo is named after Felix Pfanner, an Austrian brewer who was invited to Lucca in 1846 to teach people how to brew beer. At... 

 22 Reviews  The facade of of San Martino Cathedral could be described as "interesting" - a euphemism for many things. Rick Steves' invaluable guidebook describes it as "... an entertaining mix of architectural and artistic styles." It is eye-catching. If you take time to look carefully at the facade, especially... 

 18 Reviews  This famous San Michele in Foro Church was built between the 11th and 14th century. The columns in the facade are all different and the wings of the angel statue on top of the facade are flexible to survive the winds. The church nave is smaller than the facade as during construction there wasn't... 

 16 Reviews  This Romanesque Church of San Fredianoh was consecrated by the pope in the 12th century and many reconstructions took place until the 16th century. The upper part of the facade is decorated with a famous golden mosaic. Directions: The Church of San Frediano is located at the Piazza San Frediano in... 

 7 Reviews  The Piazza Napoleone is one of the biggest squares in Lucca. It was designed by the sister of Napoleon in 1806. The Piazza Napoleone is home to the Palazzo Ducale which used to be part of the fortress of Lucca. Nowadays the building is the political and administrative centre of the town. 

 7 Reviews  Besides the Torre Guinigi, the Torre delle Ore (Clock Tower) is the second tower in Lucca which offers scenic views of the city. Its history dates back to the 14th century. Since the Middle Ages it is equipped with a big clock. The present clockwork is swiss, but surprisingly the clock was about 2... 

 3 Reviews  Lucca is the birthplace of a surprising number of composers, but none are as famous as Giacomo Puccini, the man behind "Madame Butterfly", "La Boheme", "Manon Lescault" and "Tosca", among other well-known operas. Puccini was born at No. 9 Corte San Lorenzo. The house was turned into a small museum... 

 5 Reviews  This smaller church is patroned by Sain John and Saint Reparata. Inside the original thing is that they have excavated the remains of a 1st century BC (!) domus, being a true archaeological site. 

 4 Reviews  Lucca's old city area is full of historic churches that are open to visitors daily, free of charge. Most of these churches date back to the 12th and 13th century, built in the region's popular Pisan Romanesque style, and it's easy to locate them on the city maps published by the tourist office.... 

 3 Reviews  It's the main street in the old town. Its name means "ling wire" because it's very long and "thin" as a wire. It goes form the nearabouts of Piazza San Michele up to Piazza Santa Maria beside the Walls. It has really a lot of shops af all kind: from jewels to underwear (I don't know why but there... 

 2 Reviews  The cattedrale di S. Martino lies in a very nice square and shows an outstanding architecture. Do not miss the statues of S. Martino (both in the facade and in the interior). Interior is very dark and disappointing in comparison to the exterior, but it is still a very fascinating church. When you... 

 1 Review  This palace was built in the latter part of the 16th century for Giovan Battista Bernardino, Bishop of Ajaccio. It was probably built by Bartolomeo Ammannati, who was working on the Palazzo Pubblico at this time. 

 1 Review  Go and take a look at the main square: Piazza del Mercato. Under this square are th rests of an old arena. When the arena was out of use the Italians build on it again and again. When it was dug up again it was in a terrible state and that was why there was a square made on top of it, with houses... 

 1 Review  Entering Lucca from Porta Elisa and going straight along Via Elisa you arrive at a big gate with a tower at each side. This is Porta Santi Gervasio e Protasio and it has just been restored by the city council. The street that cross perpendicularly via Elisa it's Via dei Fossi. Its particular feature...