The Perfect Itinerary for a Day Trip to Lucca, Italy!

A street in the historic centre of Lucca, Tuscany

We made our second trip to Lucca in September, having first visited in 2015. While we stayed for two days on both visits, many visitors spend only 1 day, or even a half-day, visiting from Florence and other parts of Tuscany. I still recommend staying at least a night to get the full Lucca experience, but if you only have a few hours (or 1 day) to see Lucca, this is what you should see and do!

In Lucca's old town, Tuscany, where walking shoes are recommended for the day

In Lucca!  Walking shoes are recommended.

ARRIVAL IN LUCCA

Most people will arrive in Lucca via its only train station. The train station is small and located a short 5-minute walk from Lucca’s old town, which is the heart of the city and where you want to be!  Once you get off the train, follow signs for the exit and leave the train station (there is a ramp to the right side of the station if you need it). Walk to the left side of the train station (with your back to the station) and you can literally walk a straight line to Lucca’s town walls. If you make this straight walk, there is an entry into the old town here. I do not think most people need a taxi, as the walk is short and easy.

Arriving at Lucca train station, with the main station building straight ahead

Arriving in Lucca. The main station building is straight ahead. It’s safe and there is assistance inside the main building if you need help.  To access the main station building, there is an underground walkway.

Lucca's old town walls, with the walkway from the train station to the right

Lucca’s incredible old town walls. The little walkway to the right is the walkway I mentioned to the train station.

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2 Days Exploring Lucca, Tuscany!

Dan and his wife in Lucca, Tuscany, on their 2024 visit

This post reviews Dan and my two-day visit to Lucca in September 2024. This was our second visit to Lucca  (read about the first here) and as expected, we had a wonderful time.

Lucca's medieval towers, built by wealthy families to display their status

Lucca’s famous towers, which were formerly owned by wealthy families showing off.

LUCCA, TUSCANY

Lucca is a small city in Tuscany – about an hour inland from the Ligurian Sea and about an hour west of Florence. Lucca is a popular day trip from Florence, and its known for its well-preserved historic center that is surrounded by amazing town walls that you can walk or bike along. Lucca is also the birthplace of several famous composers, including Puccini (the most famous), Catalani and Boccherini.

The old town of Lucca, Tuscany, inside its historic walls

Lucca, Italy.

Aside from being generally popular with tourists, Lucca is also the hometown of Dan’s great-grandmother, Ida Poli. We first visited back in 2015 and returned in 2024 with Dan’s uncle and aunt. We really like Lucca. While it can be touristy, it is still a real Italian town and it’s not nearly as touristy or crowded as Florence or Cinque Terre. We stayed overnight both visits, which I recommended over a day trip to fully enjoy the city.

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Restaurant Review: Forneria 38, Pizza Napoletana (Bolzano, Italy)

Forneria 38, Bolzano, Italy.

If you read this blog on the regular, you may recall that Dan and I visited Bolzano, Italy last September before continuing to Oktoberfest in Munich and Innsbruck, Austria. Bolzano, or “Bozen” in German, is the capital of the Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige and the third largest city in the Alps. Due to its location and changing of hands at the end of World War I, Bolzano is half-Italian and half-German, making for a very interesting Italian food scene where the “Italian classics,” such as pizza, are not common. In any case, we were in Italy and we wanted Italian pizza. We walked by one restaurant our first night that was busy and claimed to serve Napoletana pizza and we decided to try it. A very good choice!

Bolzano, Italy, the Alpine city in the Trentino-Alto Adige region

Bolzano, Italy.

Forneria 38 is the name of said restaurant and its located right off Piazza delle Erbe in the center of Bolzano. While small, Forneria 38 has indoor and outdoor seating, both of which were full on our visit. We sat very close to Forneria 38’s kitchen.

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Eating Our Way Through Izmir, Türkiye!

Trays of rosewater lokma doughnuts from Öztat Kardesler set out for delivery in Izmir

As many of you know, Dan and I love a food tour, so we gladly joined a day long one in Izmir, Türkiye last July. This tour ended up being wildly long (6+ hours!) but super interesting as we learned loads about Izmir, Turkish culture, and food, in addition to trying so many local dishes that we never would have found on our own. Whether you take this tour or not, definitely visit Izmir and try some of these foods!

Izmir, Türkiye, early in the morning on the city's seafront

Izmir, Türkiye early in the morning. Yes, fishing and seafood are huge here, but, as you will see – keep reading, there is plenty of other things to eat in this seaside town!

Our food tour began around 10:00 AM, and luckily we only drank coffee pre-tour at our hotel (the Izmir Marriott).  We met our tour guide and the participants, another couple from the NYC area, near the train station. We then walked through a clam, picturesque Izmir neighborhood to pick up bread for later (more on that below) and eventually stopped at the bottom of a rickety staircase, which we carefully climbed to find a man hand frying doughnuts! Great start to the tour.

Flowers on a quiet residential street in Izmir, Türkiye

These flowers are all over Izmir. I love them. This tour really showed us some quiet streets that we would not have seen otherwise.

FOOD STOP 1: STICKY ROSEWATER DOUGHNUTS

The man hand frying donuts was an employee of Öztat Kardesler, a well known bakery in Izmir that has been operating since 1930. When had unknowingly walked by the storefront before climbing those rickety stairs. While Öztat Kardesler makes a host of treats, we were here for the doughnuts, or lokma in Turkish. The doughnut kitchen was tiny (and felt even tinier with our group inside it,) and hot, as it lacked any air conditioning. Despite these circumstances, the expert doughnut chef was not bothered.  He made batch after batch of doughnuts, which were then slathered in a rosewater-sugar glaze and packaged in sets of three. Two other men were also working in this tiny kitchen, ensuring that each doughnut received a proper amount of glaze and were perfectly packaged. We left with a pack of three rosewater doughnuts to eat later. We had ours the following morning, and they were fabulous. I understand you can find these around Izmir if you are not taking this tour.

The Öztat Kardesler storefront in Izmir, with the doughnut kitchen under a blue umbrella above

Öztat Kardesler from the front. The donut kitchen is located under that blue umbrella atop the storefront.

The doughnut chef hand-frying lokma in the tiny kitchen above Öztat Kardesler, Izmir

The doughnut chef! This gentleman definitely knows how to make a doughnut.

Lokma doughnuts frying in batches in the kitchen at Öztat Kardesler, Izmir

Well on their way.

A pack of three rosewater-glazed lokma doughnuts from Öztat Kardesler, Izmir

Our rosewater doughnuts.  The cover photo shows all of them out for delivery.

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4 Days in Bolzano: An Alpine City in Northern Italy (2026 Guide)

Loacker.

Updated July 2026
Dan and I kicked off a Oktoberfest Eurotrip with a four day stay in Bolzano, Italy. Bolzano, or “Bozen” in German, is the capital of the Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige and the third largest city in the Alps.   I had been wanting to visit this area forever, and it’s only a four hour train ride from Munich, so we made it our first stop on the trip! This article details what we did with our limited time in Bolzano.

Historic tunnel entrance welcoming visitors to Bolzano's old town

A lovely welcome to Bolzano – our hotel was right next to this little tunnel.

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