I will be travelling through Lucca next week. Any ideas of hotels, restaurants, or things to do in the area. I would be interested in a agroturismo but I need to be in the city center at 9 am without a car, so there needs to be an easy bus ride or way to get into the city so early.

I really like Palazzo Alexander. It's a lovely hotel in the center.

Rent a bike and ride atop the wall that circles the city.

We stayed last year at Hotel La Luna, Corte Campagni 12, Lucca 55100 Telephone – 0583 493634 Fax – 0583 490021
Web: www.hotellaluna.com

The hotel is right in the center of town, very convenient and was clean and well priced.

Here is article about places to visit in Lucca:
http://www.tuscanweb.com/news/?ID=189

Have you already been to Pisa? In December we took a day trip to Lucca (from Florence) and then on to Pisa, the first train stop, not Pisa Centrale. The tower, etc. are a short walk from the station and beautiful at night. If the weather is clear, it's a fantastic sight.

I am a HUGE fan of Albergo San Martino. I don't know what your budget it, but this charming, clean and centrally located hotel also offers very good rates. It is within the walls. I'm not sure where "city center" is considered to be. Any help with that? http://www.albergosanmartino.it/

More to like about this small and very friendly and helpful hotel: an easy walk to the train station. They have a sort of "hidden" parking lot if you are driving. I don't think bus transport is available within the walls, but I could be wrong. Ooops, that was an aside. Breakfast was a little weak, but the rest of what they offered out weighed the breakfast situation. I would rates this, for rooms, and personal service, the best little budget conscious hotel that I'm aware of.

I would allocate a LOT of time for circling atop the wall early in your stay. Maybe best on foot, because you will see irresistable excursions back into the town as you go like botanical gardens, villas open for tours, towers, etc. Those can be kind of dreary to track down from within the city, but from the wall you can see and evaluate how much they strike your fancy.

Also a hit-and-run to the Pisa tower area. BE SURE that you are taking a train that stops there rather than going accross town. You may find online that every other train bypasses it. Know the name of the stop, and the side of the window where you can see the tower. Be prepared for the exit to start by walking away from the tower, then doubling back.

tflit, we stayed at the Albergo San Martino in October this year, based partly on the reviews I'd read in TripAdvisor. It was the one place in our trip that I did not much care for -- and to which I would hesitate to return! Our room was kind of creepy, actually, old & moth-eaten, greasy rugs; I found the location to be a bit depressing; and the young woman at the reception was a bit morose (albeit professional and polite). To top it off, in the middle of the night, we were treated to a screaming-and-yelling domestic brawl in a house across the way, the likes of which I hadn't heard in a coon's age!

WHAT went wrong for us??! Seriously, I'm baffled, bc I'm not a particularly fussy traveller, but I just didn't "get" the SM (to be fair: my dh & I also did not fall in love with Lucca, contrary to our expectations!)