LUCCA FOR FAMILIES

This itinerary lets you discover the city at a pace adapted to the family, sparking children’s curiosity while engaging adults too. On the map, using different colors, we trace the various construction periods of the city from Roman times to today; then we explore the inlays on the Church of San Michele and the Cathedral of San Martino. We spot inlaid images of fantastic, real, domestic, and wild animals and learn the legends connected to them. We look for medieval towers among the narrow streets and find out why the Guinigi Tower has trees on its top. Between streets, richly decorated palaces, and enchanting squares, we read the story of Lucca together.

The city walls are truly unique: about 4 km long, around 12 meters high, and an impressive 30 meters wide. What we see today are the Renaissance walls, begun in 1513 and completed a hundred years later, built on the basis of the medieval fortifications. Along the way we can still identify remains of the ancient walls, the ramps, bastions, and curtains. We admire some of the entrance gates with their beautiful decorations, such as Porta Santa Maria, Porta San Pietro, and Porta San Donato—both the old and the new one.

The illustrious citizen Giacomo Puccini was born in Lucca in 1858 and, after studying in Milan, conquered the world stage with his immortal operas such as "Madama Butterfly", "La Bohème", and "Turandot". The Maestro was born just a few steps from Piazza San Michele, originally the Roman Forum—the center of Lucca. The square is dominated by the magnificent Church of San Michele with its Romanesque-Gothic façade, richly decorated with inlays of animals, motifs, angels, and saints.

Lucca’s cathedral is unique in its kind: an asymmetrical 13th-century façade leans against its 11th-century bell tower—a one-of-a-kind case in the Middle Ages. Under the portico are splendid reliefs depicting religious scenes, such as a 1260 Nativity by Nicola Pisano, and pagan themes like the cycle of the months, zodiac signs, a Cretan labyrinth, and much more. Inside are works of high artistic value, and above all the oldest wooden crucifix in Western Christendom: the Volto Santo from the 8th century.

Via Fillungo was the commercial street in the Middle Ages—and it still is today. Running north to south, it is lined with elegant shop windows of historic stores and medieval towers. Rising above the street is the Torre delle Ore, named after its Swiss clock from the mid-18th century. Also unmissable is the Guinigi Tower, built by Paolo Guinigi, lord of Lucca from 1400 to 1430. With its splendid rooftop garden, which you can visit after climbing 230 steps, the view from the top stretches a full 360 degrees.

This is one of the most beautiful squares in Italy: built as a Roman amphitheater in the 2nd century AD, the center of the square corresponds to the former arena. All around, where the stands once rose, there are now houses that give the square its unique appearance. Close to Piazza dell’Anfiteatro stands the Church of San Frediano, the only church in the city with a Byzantine mosaic on its façade. Built in the 6th century, it was improved and enlarged between the 13th and 17th centuries. Inside it houses the naturally mummified body of Saint Zita, along with other works of art.