Last Updated on July 26, 2024
A mere 80-minute train ride from bustling Florence, the small town of Lucca offered a wonderfully slow-paced respite during my visit to Italy. It was easy to escape back in time and immerse in the history of this city while walking along the top of the 16th-century walls encircling the town, climbing to the top of one of its many towers, or dining in the piazza that was once the Roman amphitheater.
The Ancient Court of Princes
Close to the center of Lucca sits Antica Corte dei Principi, or The Ancient Court of Princes, a five-room inn with a wonderful quirky style. A welcoming email a few days before my arrival gave me a code to enter at the door from the street. I felt like I was entering an ancient secret society as I turned right off Via Santa Croce onto a dim, narrow street, and pushed open a heavy dark wood door.
I climbed the stone and iron steps and a fire-breathing dragon greeted me at the first turn! A vivid cartoon of a princess in flowing pink robes slightly larger than life graced the first landing.
As I turned up the next flight to the reception area and rooms, an attendant greeted me warmly and with a bit of surprise. I had been scheduled to arrive the previous afternoon, but a workers strike on the Italian railway had stranded me in Florence for the night. No worries as she helped me check in quickly so I could race off to a walking tour I had scheduled for 9:00 am.
My room was fit for royalty with an iron four-poster bed encircling a snow-white brocade comforter. Folded white towels wrapped with golden ribbons rested on the bed. Two of the walls sported exposed brick and the ceiling held large mahogany cross beams. On the long brick wall, an elaborate mural featured portraits of knights and princesses cradled in grapevines.
A small bistro table sat in the corner next to the five-foot-tall window with shutters. The opening looked out onto the small street with the hotel entrance. I enjoyed hearing the street sounds and getting a fresh breeze in the room. An iron curtain rod near the ceiling held a lightly patterned muslin curtain that reached the floor. With the shutters open and the curtain closed, a lovely light-orange light filled the room during the day.
A large wardrobe and two nightstands provided plenty of space for unpacking. The bedside lamps resembled helmets with chainmail hanging down. The rust, burgundy, and royal blue tiles in the bathroom made it seem a bit regal even though it was small.
The breakfast room with five small tables felt secluded with exposed-brick walls and a mural of laughing medieval people running over the food counter. I had decided to eat out on the town each morning, but breakfast, while not included, can be arranged at the inn.
Exploring Lucca
Exploring Lucca was an amazing experience with its many facets including art, history, culture, and, of course, food.
The Encircling Walls
Lucca’s inhabitants protected themselves with encircling walls during their Roman rule in the second century BC. The walls expanded to their present size and location in the 16th and 17th centuries. Since this type of warfare no longer existed in modern times, the wall was converted into a greenspace for people to enjoy.
Now walkers, joggers, and cyclists can travel four kilometers around the town on a path lined with trees and benches. On either side await gorgeous views, either of the terra-cotta tiled roofs and soft colors of the buildings in Lucca or the Tuscan countryside and the mountains beyond.
I visited here at various times of day and always found many people enjoying this popular space.
Towers and Churches
Lucca, known as “the city of 100 churches,” once counted more than double that in the number of its towers. Strolling through the narrow streets allows visitors to easily explore the beauty of these churches and climb the steps of the few towers that remain.
After ascending 233 steps, I emerged at the top of the Guignigi Tower into the shade of holm oaks with a 360-degree view of the entire town of Lucca and the landscape beyond. Visitors rotated around the narrow walkway and asked each other to take photos of them.
The Guignigi family built this tower in the 14th century to show off their wealth and to compete with their neighbors.
I also proudly conquered the Torre delle Ore, which is the tallest tower at 50 meters. Climbing to the top offered a close-up look of the bells and a picturesque view of Lucca with the Guignigi Tower and its trees poking above the rooftops.
Saint Michael in the Forum, situated in the center of the town, was built in the 12th century in the Romanesque style. Above the soaring arches on the front of the church, four rows of unique, intricate marble columns support a four-meter-tall statue of the Archangel Michael. The inside of the church is simple but impressive for the time in which it was built.
The columns on the façade of the Cathedral of Saint Martin, though not as numerous, are more delicate and fanciful. The interior is much more elaborate than St. Michael’s, with mosaic domed ceilings, vivid stained-glass windows, and dainty columns lining the naves that were worth straining my neck to see.
Museums of Lucca
Lucca offers several interesting small museums, such as the Puccini Museum, Center of Contemporary Art. and the Museum of Torture.
Palazzo Pfanner, first owned in 1660 by the Marconi family who were local silk merchants, was soon expanded by its second owners, the noble Controni family. They added the grand outer staircase with elaborate railings and ceilings and the trompe l’oeil frescoes on the interior walls. In 1846, an Austrian brewer, Felix Pfanner rented the building to make his beer and eventually bought the property. It is now open to the public and also displays Pfanner’s collection of surgical instruments from the late 19th century.
Shops Along Via Fillungo
Via Fillungo runs from north to south through the center of town with an iconic medieval appearance. I could just imagine myself back in time passing the variably-hued brick buildings with angled shutters on the windows. This strip offers many places to shop for souvenirs, clothes and household items as well as small restaurants to grab a snack.
Restaurants of Lucca
While choices abound for great Italian food throughout Lucca, my favorite spot to dine was at one of the outdoor tables set in front of the restaurants of the Piazza del Anfiteatro. This plaza occupies the space where a Roman amphitheater once stood in the first century. In the 19th century, a market space was created on the ruins with tightly packed buildings around an open oval area.
Only four arched entryways break up the wall of three-to-five-storied structures surrounding the piazza. As I dined here, I was encircled by various shades of yellow reflected in the setting sun. I so enjoyed people-watching and listening to the musicians who entertained in the center of the square.
Lucca provided a welcome break from my travels to Rome and Florence. Its narrow, winding streets forced me to slow down to take in its medieval charms. Antica Corte dei Principi offered an ideal location in the center of town, close to the greenspace of the walls of the city and an easy stroll to many restaurants and sights. I hope to return someday to explore more of the town and bask in its fascinating medieval atmosphere.
