Lucca is a city of some 90,000 people in Tuscany. Its long history goes back to Etruscan and Ancient Roman times, and the city retains pieces of Ancient architecture. Lucca’s great era was in the Gothic era just before the Renaissance, and the city contains much marvelous architecture from that era. Lucca remained an independent city state until the end of the 18th century.

Lucca is  the hometown of Puccini, and operas are held regularly. Be sure to come by during the summer months, as the area is regularly dotted with Puccini festivals, hosting a variety of young opera singers from across Europe and North America.

Lucca is small enough to easily walk to any site. Within the city walls there is very limited motor vehicle use allowed and one can walk or cycle on top of the ancient city walls. The entire perimeter is approximately 4 km.

During the Summer Festival (usually around July) you can expect big name artists to performing on a stage set up in one of the main squares.