Jennifer’s Tuscan Guidebook

Jennifer
Jennifer’s Tuscan Guidebook

Food scene

Pizzerias, restaurants and cafes
Good, local, casual cuisine. Mainly a pizzeria but has nice pasta dishes and meat dishes. Very kind family that run it. It is 5 minutes from the house! Usually open Thursday to midnight Sunday. During holidays can be one all week. Check google maps for more info and changing opening hours.
Ristorante Barbagianni
Monsagrati Alto
Good, local, casual cuisine. Mainly a pizzeria but has nice pasta dishes and meat dishes. Very kind family that run it. It is 5 minutes from the house! Usually open Thursday to midnight Sunday. During holidays can be one all week. Check google maps for more info and changing opening hours.
Lovely local restaurant ten minutes drive from the house, up a few windy paths! This has lovely local cuisine and run by another very lovely family. The restaurant is hidden away from the quiet street and inside opens up with a lovely big and elegant space. It is less casual then Barbagianni, but still very relaxed. They have created a nice ambiance and there is good food too.
12 現地メンバーのおすすめ
La Collina Trattoria e Birrificio Artigianale Di Sorbi Paola
18 Frazione Loppeglia
12 現地メンバーのおすすめ
Lovely local restaurant ten minutes drive from the house, up a few windy paths! This has lovely local cuisine and run by another very lovely family. The restaurant is hidden away from the quiet street and inside opens up with a lovely big and elegant space. It is less casual then Barbagianni, but still very relaxed. They have created a nice ambiance and there is good food too.
Very nice for evening apertivi if you can get a table outside that is best, they have fabulous cocktails and wines and they come with lovely antipasti. You can also order small, elegant dishes to accompany. It has a casual atmosphere, nice and relaxed and also a bit trendy. Popular with locals! In the morning I recommend their breakfast of bread and jam and fresh juice and coffee. We love it there and can also take our dog!
7 現地メンバーのおすすめ
Bread & Jam
7 現地メンバーのおすすめ
Very nice for evening apertivi if you can get a table outside that is best, they have fabulous cocktails and wines and they come with lovely antipasti. You can also order small, elegant dishes to accompany. It has a casual atmosphere, nice and relaxed and also a bit trendy. Popular with locals! In the morning I recommend their breakfast of bread and jam and fresh juice and coffee. We love it there and can also take our dog!
This is home cooked style local food in Lucca City central, absolutely great staff, entertaining, great atmosphere, great prices and relaxed environment in a great location by the cathedral.
7 現地メンバーのおすすめ
La Bottega di Anna e Leo
18 Via S. Frediano
7 現地メンバーのおすすめ
This is home cooked style local food in Lucca City central, absolutely great staff, entertaining, great atmosphere, great prices and relaxed environment in a great location by the cathedral.
Utterly fabulous restaurant! The view here alone is worth the trek up the stairs, the staff and food make it even better! Reservations are a must, especially if you want to watch the sunset from your table! Great view of the church and the ocean.
32 現地メンバーのおすすめ
Belforte
42 Viale Alessandro Guidoni
32 現地メンバーのおすすめ
Utterly fabulous restaurant! The view here alone is worth the trek up the stairs, the staff and food make it even better! Reservations are a must, especially if you want to watch the sunset from your table! Great view of the church and the ocean.
Absolutely wonderful refugio. Great for hikers. Fabulous location, stunning views. Well run. casual, friendly, family run business. Good food. Great atmosphere! Hikers paradise at the end of a steep, challenging hike!
8 現地メンバーのおすすめ
Rifugio Orto di Donna
8 現地メンバーのおすすめ
Absolutely wonderful refugio. Great for hikers. Fabulous location, stunning views. Well run. casual, friendly, family run business. Good food. Great atmosphere! Hikers paradise at the end of a steep, challenging hike!

Sightseeing

Vernazza I especially recommend as I have sung in their operatic evenings myself so I have to recommend those!!! There is an opera festival run there from April to October on Wednesday and Friday evenings in the church there on the water front. The Vernazza Opera Festival, look it up online for ticket info and changing dates etc. I highly recommend taking the train to Vernazza, do not attempt to drive. The roads are quite frightening even for experienced drivers. Extreme drops and very narrow. We drive to La Spezia and leave the car there or leave it in Riomaggiore and take the train from either of those places. It is quick and easy to get tickets.
323 現地メンバーのおすすめ
cinque terre
323 現地メンバーのおすすめ
Vernazza I especially recommend as I have sung in their operatic evenings myself so I have to recommend those!!! There is an opera festival run there from April to October on Wednesday and Friday evenings in the church there on the water front. The Vernazza Opera Festival, look it up online for ticket info and changing dates etc. I highly recommend taking the train to Vernazza, do not attempt to drive. The roads are quite frightening even for experienced drivers. Extreme drops and very narrow. We drive to La Spezia and leave the car there or leave it in Riomaggiore and take the train from either of those places. It is quick and easy to get tickets.
A visit to Lucca city is essential! I highly recommend a walk of the city walls as a first, to get your bearings. And try to visit each of the city gates. Once you are orientated take many of the meandering streets, find the city's canal and test all the various gelaterias! The historic buildings are numerous and overwhelming in number. There is opera almost every night and classical concerts. The programmes are constantly changing so look online for the up to date events! I recommend everything!!! Especially, however, you must find the Anfiteatro, the famous circular centre of the city. The architecture and atmosphere are breathtaking.
1279 現地メンバーのおすすめ
Lucca
1279 現地メンバーのおすすめ
A visit to Lucca city is essential! I highly recommend a walk of the city walls as a first, to get your bearings. And try to visit each of the city gates. Once you are orientated take many of the meandering streets, find the city's canal and test all the various gelaterias! The historic buildings are numerous and overwhelming in number. There is opera almost every night and classical concerts. The programmes are constantly changing so look online for the up to date events! I recommend everything!!! Especially, however, you must find the Anfiteatro, the famous circular centre of the city. The architecture and atmosphere are breathtaking.
The obvious leaning tower is fun for the children. Pisa's old historic centre is beautiful, so please add that to your to do list whilst there and on the way home, try and find the Marina di vechiano.
1135 現地メンバーのおすすめ
Pisa
1135 現地メンバーのおすすめ
The obvious leaning tower is fun for the children. Pisa's old historic centre is beautiful, so please add that to your to do list whilst there and on the way home, try and find the Marina di vechiano.
This is a nice beach, I adore it in the cooler months when it is a dog friendly beach and it is also a wild beach within a nature reserve. In the summer unfortunately it is a typical Italian beach where you rent deck chairs but if you like beaches, this is the one, due to the nature reserve and the local bars and restaurants. A lot of other beaches are a bit ugly i find so if you want a backdrop of mountains and nature and love beaches, try this!
37 現地メンバーのおすすめ
Marina Di Vecchiano
37 現地メンバーのおすすめ
This is a nice beach, I adore it in the cooler months when it is a dog friendly beach and it is also a wild beach within a nature reserve. In the summer unfortunately it is a typical Italian beach where you rent deck chairs but if you like beaches, this is the one, due to the nature reserve and the local bars and restaurants. A lot of other beaches are a bit ugly i find so if you want a backdrop of mountains and nature and love beaches, try this!
If you like hiking, we have plenty of trails around our house (download pocket earth and download our area for gps hiking trails) however, serious hikers who like heights, must visit the majestic Alpi Apuani. They are said to have mystical and magical powers and energy! My partner proposed to me there at Orto della Donna, a lovely rifugio, a type of hikers' hostel, which I highly recommend. The hike was quite steep there but the views are breath taking.
55 現地メンバーのおすすめ
Apuan Alps
55 現地メンバーのおすすめ
If you like hiking, we have plenty of trails around our house (download pocket earth and download our area for gps hiking trails) however, serious hikers who like heights, must visit the majestic Alpi Apuani. They are said to have mystical and magical powers and energy! My partner proposed to me there at Orto della Donna, a lovely rifugio, a type of hikers' hostel, which I highly recommend. The hike was quite steep there but the views are breath taking.

Neighborhoods

San Gimignano is a small walled medieval hill town in the province of Siena, Tuscany, north-central Italy. Known as the Town of Fine Towers, San Gimignano is famous for its medieval architecture, which, with its hilltop setting and encircling walls, form "an unforgettable skyline". Within the walls, the well-preserved buildings include notable examples of both Romanesque and Gothic architecture, with outstanding examples of secular buildings as well as churches. The Palazzo Comunale, the Collegiate Church and Church of Sant' Agostino contain frescos, including cycles dating from the 14th and 15th centuries. The "Historic Centre of San Gimignano" is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The town also is known for saffron, the Golden Ham, and its white wine, Vernaccia di San Gimignano, produced from the ancient variety of Vernaccia grape which is grown on the sandstone hillsides of the area. Check out online for latest news about festivals as they have an unforgettable wine and truffle festival, highly recommend!!
583 現地メンバーのおすすめ
サン・ジミニャーノ
Piazza Sant'Agostino
583 現地メンバーのおすすめ
San Gimignano is a small walled medieval hill town in the province of Siena, Tuscany, north-central Italy. Known as the Town of Fine Towers, San Gimignano is famous for its medieval architecture, which, with its hilltop setting and encircling walls, form "an unforgettable skyline". Within the walls, the well-preserved buildings include notable examples of both Romanesque and Gothic architecture, with outstanding examples of secular buildings as well as churches. The Palazzo Comunale, the Collegiate Church and Church of Sant' Agostino contain frescos, including cycles dating from the 14th and 15th centuries. The "Historic Centre of San Gimignano" is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The town also is known for saffron, the Golden Ham, and its white wine, Vernaccia di San Gimignano, produced from the ancient variety of Vernaccia grape which is grown on the sandstone hillsides of the area. Check out online for latest news about festivals as they have an unforgettable wine and truffle festival, highly recommend!!