How to Leave Tourists Behind in Lucca

Itinerary One

If you’ve already visited Lucca’s center, and biked on the walls (a must-do activity) and if you’d like to bike somewhere flat and easy outside walls and leave the tourists behind, then read on for my suggestions. (Itinerary 1 is in this post and Itinerary 2 in a second post.)

Lucca is a Tuscan town west of Florence and 30 kilometers from the sea. Famous for its 4 kilometers of protective walls, so massive that cars can drive on top. In fact, when I first visited Lucca in the 1980s, cars still did drive on top of the walls. Now, thankfully, the road on the walls is car-free, and occupied by bikes, pedestrians, and green spaces where people picnic and take yoga classes.

If you’re not familiar with Lucca, you would never realize that this picture (of my visiting cousins on rental bikes) is on top of the walls.

Lucca has a rich history, going back to when it became a Roman colony in 180 BC, and earlier when it was probably an Etruscan settlement. It boasts fantastic Romanesque churches, and a charming amphitheater piazza.

Rick Steves once called it “refreshingly untrampled” because it doesn’t have big-ticket items like the David of Florence or the Leaning Tower of Pisa. But, in these recent years of mass-tourism, Lucca has definitely been discovered.

It’s been known for a long time by avid cyclists. Even though Lucca is flat, hills and mountains nearby provide hundreds of twisting roads with beautiful scenery, perfect for experienced cyclists.

I, on the other hand, have no idea how to ride a bike successfully up a hill. However, I enjoy casual biking on the flat, and when I lived in Lucca for a year and a half I sussed out a few destinations (food-focused of course) that are an easy bike ride along the river outside Lucca’s walls.

If you’re not a cycling pro and would rather say no thanks to steep mountain roads, but yes please to a flat trail along a river, with a gelateria or a gastronomia as a destination, then my two suggested routes should appeal.

Rent a bike at one of the many places inside the walls, fill your water bottle, and please do wear a helmet! (Even though I did not when I lived here and biked these trails, I am not advocating it for anyone else.)

Itinerary 1

To Gelateria Sauro in Ponte a Moriano

This is an easy 30-minute (one way) route. Head out the Porta Santa Maria, take Viale Pompeo Batoni to Via Matteo Civitali. Those two roads have bike paths. Then, cross the Via Brenero and get yourself onto Via per Camaiore.

Stay on the right side of the road. You’ll go past the farmer’s market area (open Saturday mornings). Just before the bridge, on the right, you’ll see a path going down to the river. Take that.

These signs that you’ll see periodically will keep you on the right track:

Enjoy a long flat paved path for about 18 to 20 minutes until the trail puts you on Via Nazionale.

You’ll have to bike a short distance on Via Nazionale but you can duck back onto the trail as shown in map above. This is what the turn on the left looks like to get back to the bike path:

Now you just have 5 more minutes of biking. You will pop back onto Via Nazionale for a short bit and then you’ll come to Gelateria Sauro. It’s the white structure on the left.

This is a highly regarded “destination gelateria” with outdoor seating overlooking the river. It’s popular for cocktails too.

If, on the other hand, you want a trattoria meal, just a few feet further is Da Pinzo. A decent no-frills local place with simple but good fare for moderate prices.

Now you’re playin’ ball with the locals. Tourist free.

You might want to walk down to a stone beach, put your feet in the water and observe egrets and ducks before you bike back.