We spent a week in Lucca, Tuscany, this August: myself, my husband Peppe, and our three children aged 6, 3, and 8 months. Our Lucca trip was part of a wider Italy trip to scout for places to live longer-term, as that might be an option for our family in the future. I wanted to brain-dump here in order to share our practical discoveries - I hope they might help other families planning a similar adventure! Here's a comprehensive look at our journey through this enchanting city.

Family holiday to Lucca, Toscana, Italia — Me, Chia, and Bee - of course we didn’t manage to take a single photo of the whole family on our trip!

Our Stay in Lucca

We stayed in an Airbnb apartment on Via Galli Tassi, a location that proved to be incredibly convenient. The apartment itself provided a comfortable base for our week-long stay, allowing us to relax and recharge after our daily excursions. We chose a place with a little balcony for al fresco breakfasts, which I recommend, as it’s lovely to hear the chatter of local residents from their own homes in the mornings.

Navigating the City: Buggy vs Sling

Lucca has a lot of uneven pavements. Historic, cobbled, beautiful, and UNEVEN. I carried our baby in my sling a couple of times, but it was typically 38°C. It reached 41°C one day! The melting heat meant the buggy was more manageable, and luckily we have the Outnabout buggy with fantastic wheels - it’s a three-wheeler and breezes through bumpy terrain. (Disclosure: it was a gift in collaboration with my Instagram page, but no obligation to post here.) We have the Nipper V5 Outnabout model, and it gives great coverage with the hood. I do have the separate UV cover for it, but we didn’t have to use it this trip, as the baby's legs don't stick out far under the regular buggy hood just yet. We used to have a Yoyo Babyzen stroller, and there’s no way I’d take that on a trip to Lucca. I’d rather sweat with a sling than be getting stuck between cobblestones.

Family-Friendly Activities and Attractions

Exploring Lucca’s Walls

One of the highlights of Lucca is its well-preserved Renaissance walls, which encircle the city. These walls, built in the 16th and 17th centuries, are a remarkable feat of engineering and a symbol of Lucca's historical significance. Walking or cycling along the walls offers panoramic views of the city and the surrounding countryside - and it really is so beautiful. The path on top is flat and easy to navigate, making it accessible for families with young children - so long as they can get up the hill and onto the walls in the first place. It’s not incredibly steep, but it does feel that way when lugging everyone up on a caravan bike. Which brings me to…

Cycling with Kids

Renting a caravan bike for €14 per half-hour was a great way to explore the city, but it came with its challenges! I had our baby in the sling for this, since I assumed there’d be nowhere to leave the buggy at the bike hire shop. Cycling up the hill to the walls was particularly difficult, as I couldn’t exert much energy and found the pedals a bit awkward due to my short legs! (I’m 5’3” for reference.) Nevertheless, it was a fun way to see the city, especially since Lucca’s flat wall-tops provided a pleasant cycling experience. The kids adored the scenic cycle and thought it was such an adventure to sit on the front of the bike. We came down and took a break at BioRoom café for refreshing açaí bowls and a chickpea salad, then went back up the hill for another cycle before heading back to return the bike.

Historical and Cultural Sites

Lucca is rich in history and culture, making it a fascinating destination. The city's historic centre is a maze of narrow streets, charming squares, and beautiful architecture. The Duomo di Lucca, or Lucca Cathedral, is a must-visit. Its Romanesque facade and ornate interior are stunning, and they offer a glimpse into the city’s medieval past. Nearby, the Piazza dell’Anfiteatro, a unique oval-shaped square built on the ruins of an ancient Roman amphitheatre, provides a picturesque setting for relaxing and people-watching. Lucca is particularly great for people-watching, I have to say, as a shameless Nosy Nora. There are a few busking spots too, and the range of music was intriguing. You’ll have to check it out and report back!

Playgrounds

We only came across one playground on our travels in Lucca, and it seemed to be full of local Italians rather than tourists - possibly because there wasn’t much shade. It was nothing to write home about, but fun enough that our kids asked to stop there during our bike-caravan adventure! Best enjoyed in the earlier morning or late in the day when it’s not scorching hot. Parco Giochi is marked on the map below.

Food, Food, Food

Groceries

The proximity of our apartment on Via Galli Tassi to a Conad supermarket made grocery runs easy, which was invaluable with young children - it was a 3-minute walk away. We have all sorts of dietary requirements in our family: gluten-free, vegan, No Green Things (hopefully just a phase)... so we ate at home a lot! There’s a second Conad City supermarket in town that offers a range of salads, including aubergine, courgette, and olives. Both Conads have a free-from section offering soya yoghurt, plant milks, vegan Philadelphia spread, gluten-free bread, and biscuits, which made it easier to cater to our dietary needs.

There is a greengrocer, Ortofrutta (Lucca Centro), that offered delicious seasonal fruit and veg. I was sad to only stumble across this place on our last day, otherwise we would have tried much more!

Delicious green figs from Ortofrutta - so jammy inside.

Gelato Delights

The heat made ice cream a daily necessity. Lucca has a fantastic selection of vegan gelato flavors, including pistachio, hazelnut, peanut butter, and various fruit options. We used gelati as bribes daily - that’s all part of the experience, in my opinion. And they’re perfect for cooling down in this sticky city. We must have tried every gelateria within the city walls, and our favourites for vegan flavours were Paniko (excellent frutti di bosco and pistacchio) and Momo Gelati (gelato and delicious fruit ice lollies including peach and lemon flavours).

Restaurants

Focacceria Il Nicchio, located near the square where live music plays, offers gluten-free pizza and focaccia. We were pleased to find a gluten-free focaccia with mushroom and tomato sauce for €9.50, which was delicious and ‘okay’ value considering it’s a touristy area. The gluten-tolerators of our family enjoyed marinaras from a pizzeria around the corner from Il Nicchio, but either they ate them too quickly for me to photograph, or I was busy trying to prevent marinara sauce from sliding down one t-shirt or another.

Pizza with the most juicy mushrooms from Il Nicchio (gluten-free)

The restaurant In Pasta served gluten-free pasta, but the value for money wasn't great, as it’s pre-packaged pasta - you'll pay the same price as for their in-house pasta dishes, which are fresh. We had gluten-free spaghetti and tomato sauce for the kids, and red pesto with gluten-free spaghetti and almonds for me - the sauce was excellent; it was a really enjoyable meal. Apart from the fact all three children had various meltdowns at the table.

We also ate dinner at Soup In Town - one of those Italian places with a comically British name - and the food there was healthy and full of flavour. The salad contained little cubes made from red lentils that I want to recreate at home.

Gluten-Free Bakery

A happy find of ours was a completely gluten-free bakery, Starbene, which had a good few vegan options. The owner told us that the cornetti vuoto - empty croissants - are vegan, and she was able to stuff them with fillings on the spot. The croissants filled with Nocciolata (like Nutella; this spread comes in dairy and non-dairy versions) and apricot jam were a delightful treat and worth trying if you’re in the area. Madame Starbene was extremely generous with the fillings, to the point that we each had to eat our cornetto over two sittings!

Escaping the Heat

Borgo di Mozzano

We made a day trip to Borgo di Mozzano, a charming village located about a 30-minute train ride from Lucca. The train ride, costing around €4 for the whole family, was affordable and scenic, and we were allowed to bring our own food and drink into the swim house, too. There’s a small stand offering cold drinks to purchase if needed. Borgo di Mozzano is in the mountains, so the views are amazing! We reserved our deckchairs at Piscine Bagni alla Verzura via WhatsApp, and we were convinced the booking hadn’t been taken, as the reply to our lengthy enquiry was a simple “Ok”. This isn’t the first time that an abrupt “Ok” has confirmed a reservation of ours in Italy, so bear in mind you might find the same. The pool, with its shallow area for kids, was perfect for our six-year-old and three-year-old children, while the beautiful mountain setting provided a refreshing escape from the city heat. Note that the pool operates on a cash-only basis, and booking in advance is apparently very important! Ok? Ok!

Bookshops and Libraries

For book lovers, Lucca offers a variety of bookshops. The larger bookstore, Mondadori, had a walk-in discount cove, with a substantial section of discounted Italian children's books. There are preschool and school-age educational Italian workbooks, aimed at native speakers but easy to navigate with a basic understanding of the Italian language. If you’re after English-language books, there’s a smaller, charming bookstore called Etta’s English Bookshop. Both stores were fairly accessible with a buggy (there were some steps at Mondadori) and the buildings themselves were beautiful too!

Independent Shops

Lucca is brimming with independent shops. At one point, I came down with some sort of illness (food poisoning maybe!) and I was fuming that I couldn’t get out and have a wander - I felt like there were so many little gems laying undiscovered. There’s a magical gift shop with homeware and toys called Cose Di…, there are ceramics shops like Vissidarte, a “treasures of the East” store, and a shop full of patterned lampshades and textiles that didn’t have a name sign. I could have moseyed around all day.

Exploring Lucca’s Markets

In the evenings, Lucca’s vibrant atmosphere comes alive, with wedding parties sprawling into the streets and a carousel for kids to enjoy. The artisan market set up in the daytime and was open well into the evening. There was handmade jewellery, linen clothing, antique brass hardware, typical local food products, and more. Our kids loved choosing a crystal each from the market stalls - they have a small collection each, because crystals take up less space and are more timeless than random market souvenirs! - and we found a charming backstreet art market where we picked up an original, mounted watercolour painting of Lucca’s tree-topped tower for €40. The backstreet market also featured vintage advertisement posters and secondhand books, providing a unique shopping experience. The lady told me it closes at 6:30pm. I can’t find the backstreet market info online, but it was right next to Feltrinelli Librerie on Via Beccheria.

Bee checking out the prints and vintage advertisement posters

Final Thoughts

Lucca, with its stunning architecture, rich history, and charming atmosphere, proved to be an excellent destination for our family vacation. Despite the sweltering heat, the city offered plenty of engaging activities and some delicious food options. I wouldn’t say it’s a dream for gluten-free vegans, but there aren’t many places that tick that box. I get that it’s a ‘me’ problem! The vegan options, in general, were adequate and (I hear) tasty. I’ll eat focaccia in my next life.

Travelling with young children in the heat does require some extra planning, but Lucca’s historic charm, cultural richness, and family-friendly amenities made it a memorable trip and somewhere we’d like to visit again.
Overall, Lucca was a gorgeous city to visit as a family with young children, and there's plenty to see and do for a week, as long as you have kids who can manage in the heat!

My daughter Chia’s thoughts (age 6):

There were lots of shops that were really nice; it's a good town for pottering, even though there was no beach it was still quite nice.
Top 3 things: going to the swimming pool in the mountains, riding the bike around the walls, and going on the carousel at night.
Cons: no beaches.

The only photo of Peppe and I in Lucca, taken by Chia.

Have you visited Lucca? Is there anything we missed to check out next time? See more photos and videos of our Italy adventures over on Instagram.

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Serena Lee

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Sep 7 Lucca, Tuscany - Travelling in Italy with Young Kids

Our Stay in Lucca

Navigating the City: Buggy vs Sling