Lucca & Garfagnana, Tuscany.

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

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

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.