Historic Estate01
Villa LenkaLucca & Garfagnana · 14 guests · 7 bedrooms
From €15,000 / week
Fully staffed · Private chef
A genuine 17th-century aristocratic villa, built in 1624 for Count Cosimo Bernardini…
TuscanyArea guide
Villas in Lucca & Garfagnana, Tuscany
Stay near the walled city of Lucca or explore the mountain villages and walking routes of the Garfagnana.
7 villas in Lucca & Garfagnana in our collection, sleeping 8 to 24 guests; every one has a private pool. The largest, Borgo Bernardini, sleeps 24. A private chef can be arranged at every villa.
7 villas in the collection3 articles in the journal
Villas near Lucca
The whole collection7 villas
Restored Borgo02
Borgo BernardiniLucca & Garfagnana · 24 guests · 12 bedrooms
From €23,200 / week
Fully staffed · Private chef
A whole private hamlet, twelve en-suite bedrooms for up to twenty-four, made for a large gathering…
Countryside Classic03
Villa MatteucciLucca & Garfagnana · 14 guests · 7 bedrooms
From €12,000 / week
Fully staffed · Private chef
A characterful Tuscan farmhouse with genuine history, the home of Felice Matteucci, father of the combustion engine.
Historic Estate04
Villa ControniLucca & Garfagnana · 24 guests · 12 bedrooms
From €22,000 / week
Fully staffed · Private chef
A 19th-century Lucchese villa of real history, the Controni family's summer residence…
Countryside Classic05
Villa del FattoreLucca & Garfagnana · 15 guests · 8 bedrooms
From €15,000 / week
Private chef · Frescoed interiors
A classic restored Tuscan country home, terracotta, beams and frescoes, with rose-covered patios and a winter-garden conservatory.
Countryside Classic06
Il FrantoioLucca & Garfagnana · 8 guests · 4 bedrooms
From €7,500 / week
Private chef · Olive grove
An atmospheric conversion of a 16th-century olive mill, working until 1997, with original features and ancient oil jars in the…
Contemporary Masterwork07
Villa FarfallaLucca & Garfagnana · 14 guests · 6 bedrooms
From €19,000 / week
Private chef · Panoramic view
An award-winning contemporary masterwork, designed by its owner-architects and named by National Geographic among Italy's most…
On Lucca & Garfagnana
Lucca & Garfagnana,
from Smaranda.
The Lucca and Garfagnana sub-region is northwest Tuscany, the walled Renaissance city of Lucca itself at the foot of the Apuan Alps, and the deep-forested Serchio river valley climbing north into mountain country toward Emilia-Romagna. It is the coolest part of Tuscany in summer, the wettest part in winter and the most consistently green year-round. We send people here when July and August inland are too much.
Lucca is the small Italian city that puts most others to shame. Four kilometres of intact Renaissance walls form a public park at rooftop level, you walk or cycle the whole circuit in an hour and the streets inside are dense with palaces, churches and the kind of slow restaurant culture the rest of Tuscany sometimes pretends to. The Puccini opera festival in nearby Torre del Lago runs summer evenings on the lake, the Piazza dell'Anfiteatro is built into a Roman amphitheatre's foundation, and the Lucca Comics & Games festival in late October genuinely fills the city.
Why Lucca in High Summer
Lucca and the Garfagnana are the answer when July and August inland are simply too much. This is the coolest, greenest, wettest corner of Tuscany: Lucca itself is rarely above 30 degrees, and the Garfagnana valleys run eight to ten degrees cooler than the Tuscan plain. Guests who have done Chianti and the Val d'Orcia in the heat and want the next visit in comfort come here, and pair it with the Versilia coast twenty minutes away.
The Garfagnana Valley
North of Lucca, the Garfagnana climbs through chestnut forest and small villages along the Serchio. Barga is the Scottish-Italian town, a cathedral above and a working glacial stream below; Castelnuovo is the valley's centre, with a Friday market that brings the high villages down; Bagni di Lucca is the nineteenth-century spa town of British-Italian villas. The Apennine ridge marks the border with Emilia-Romagna, and the high lakes here are for walking rather than driving.
The Food of the North
The table shifts northward too: more chestnut, in flour, in cake, in the local crepe called necci; more game; the strong sheep's-milk pecorino of the Garfagnana; and the white spelt, farro della Garfagnana, protected by IGP. The wine is local rather than international, with the small Colline Lucchesi DOC worth seeking out at the producer level. It is a quieter, earthier Tuscan kitchen than the one further south.
When to come
April through October. July and August are markedly cooler than inland Chianti. Lucca itself is rarely above 30°C and the Garfagnana valleys are eight to ten degrees cooler than the Tuscan plain. The shoulder seasons are wet but green.
Towns worth knowing
- Lucca
- The walled city; opera, slow lunches, the cycle on the walls at dusk.
- Barga
- Hilltop Garfagnana town with a Scottish-Italian community and a Romanesque duomo.
- Castelnuovo di Garfagnana
- The valley's centre; Friday market, the Rocca Ariostesca.
- Pietrasanta
- Twenty minutes from the coast; sculptors' town with a long Saturday-evening passeggiata.
- Bagni di Lucca
- Spa town; the thermal baths, the gorge walk, the British-Italian villas of the nineteenth century.
Best for
- High-summer escapes from inland heat
- Walking and hiking weeks in the Apuan Alps
- Pairing with a coastal half-week (Versilia is twenty minutes from Lucca)
- Travellers who want a proper Italian city as base
Plan your stay
If the city is your main focus, start with villas near Lucca. For days inside the walls, read what to do in Lucca; for mountain outings, check the route and weather separately from conditions on the plain.
Practicalities
Pisa Galileo Galilei (PSA) is the natural airport. Lucca is thirty minutes north of Pisa by car or train. Florence is ninety minutes east; Genoa two hours north.
Frequently asked
- How many villas do you have in Lucca & Garfagnana?
- 7: Villa Lenka (sleeps 14), Borgo Bernardini (sleeps 24), Villa Matteucci (sleeps 14), Villa Controni (sleeps 24), Villa del Fattore (sleeps 15), Il Frantoio (sleeps 8) and Villa Farfalla (sleeps 14).
- Which villas in Lucca & Garfagnana have a private pool?
- 7 of 7: Villa Lenka (private floodlit pool (20m × 10m)); Borgo Bernardini (private floodlit pool (18m × 8m)); Villa Matteucci (private floodlit pool (12m × 6m); private lake); Villa Controni (private floodlit pool (18m × 8m), walled garden); Villa del Fattore (private floodlit pool (16m × 8m)); Il Frantoio (private floodlit pool (8m × 4m, heatable on request)); Villa Farfalla (panoramic pool (26m × 5m) with hydromassage). Tell us your dates and we will confirm which are free.
- When are the pools open in Lucca & Garfagnana?
- Most villa pools in Tuscany open from May to late September; heated pools usually extend the season from April into October. Opening dates are set by each villa. In high season villas rent Saturday to Saturday.
- Which villas in Lucca & Garfagnana suit large groups?
- 6 sleep 12 or more: Borgo Bernardini (sleeps 24, 12 bedrooms), Villa Controni (sleeps 24, 12 bedrooms), Villa del Fattore (sleeps 15, 8 bedrooms), Villa Lenka (sleeps 14, 7 bedrooms), Villa Matteucci (sleeps 14, 7 bedrooms) and Villa Farfalla (sleeps 14, 6 bedrooms). For a celebration, ask about seated dining for the whole group and whether outside guests are allowed.
- How much does a villa in Lucca & Garfagnana cost?
- Starting rates run from about €7,500 a week (Il Frantoio, sleeps 8) to about €23,000 a week (Borgo Bernardini, sleeps 24). Rates rise in July and August and fall in spring and autumn; each villa page shows its rates by season, and we confirm the exact price for your dates.
- Where is the Lucca and Garfagnana sub-region?
- Northwest Tuscany: the walled Renaissance city of Lucca at the foot of the Apuan Alps, and the deep-forested Serchio valley, the Garfagnana, climbing north toward Emilia-Romagna. It is the coolest, greenest part of Tuscany.
- Is Lucca a good base for a villa holiday?
- Yes, especially for guests who want a proper Italian city within reach, a cooler summer, and the Versilia coast twenty minutes away. It suits a fourth or fifth Tuscan trip as much as a first.
- Why choose Lucca over Chianti?
- For the cooler summers, the walled city, the mountains and the coast nearby, and for a quieter, less-photographed Tuscany. Chianti is the more classic wine-country choice; Lucca is the contrarian, green one.
- Which airport is best for Lucca?
- Pisa Galileo Galilei is the natural airport, thirty minutes south of Lucca by car or train. Florence is ninety minutes east; Genoa two hours north.
- When is the best time to visit Lucca and the Garfagnana?
- April through October. July and August are markedly cooler than inland Chianti. The autumn chestnut season in October and November is the local highlight.
- Is it good for walking and hiking?
- Yes. The Apuan Alps and the Garfagnana's high lakes and ridges make this the best base in the collection for a walking-led week.
Field notes on Lucca & Garfagnana
The whole journal
Lucca & Garfagnana
Pisa in Half a Day: The Tower and What Else to See
Pisa is most guests' first hour in Tuscany and almost nobody's destination. How to use the city properly: the Field of Miracles early, lunch by the river, and the villa by mid-afternoon.
Lucca & Garfagnana
Lucca, Tuscany: What to See in the Walled City
Lucca, the only Italian Renaissance city you can walk around on its own walls. The Puccini birthplace, the rooftop terraces, the *vie* on a Saturday morning, and how to use the city as part of a Tuscan week.
Lucca & Garfagnana
The restored borgo: a short, opinionated history
What a borgo is, what it isn't, and why a properly restored one is among the rarer things you can rent in Tuscany.
Compare nearby areas and alternative bases
Planning the week