Lucca and cinque terre rooms
 

We are planning a trip in early April to northern Italy. Has anyone stayed at Centro Storico (on Corte Portici)b&b in Lucca. Has anyone stayed at Francamaria rooms in Vernazza or ca d'andrean hotel in Manarola? Any advice for Lucca, Cinque Terre or Venice in April is appreciated.

Are you driving? That is early for the CT--may be chilly.

We are landing in Pisa and going directly to Lucca for 2 days. We then plan to train to Cinque terre for 2 nights. Then train to Venice for 3 nights. Our flight out of Venice is at 9 am on a saturday, so we are considering staying at an airport hotel to be there early. We are not sure how easy it would be to get from the accademia bridge area to the airport at that time. Transportation is our major concern (after housing). We were in Italy once before and took a train from Rome to Florence and that went well. BUT I am not sure what trains or busses will be like on shorter routes. Any advice in this department would be greatly appreciated.
We know the weather will not be ideal but April is the only time a vacation fits my work schedule at present.

Bob, We will also be in Lucca, CT and other Riviera towns in early April. How chilly is "chilly"? Living in Florida, I think anything below 70 is too cold (ha), but I know we will be lucky to have weather in the 60's. I guess layering is the way to go. I love Italy so much that I will be happy no matter what the weather, but I was just curious about your thoughts on the April weather in this area. We've never traveled to Italy in April before.

In early July last year my family toured Italy and stayed in Lucca for 3 days. We loved Villa Romantica which is outside the walls. There is a pool which we liked in the summer. We stayed in the suite and it was delightful. The proprieter was very helpful and we enjoyed walking each morning onto the city ramparts for an early morning stroll. We found it very convienient. www.villaromantica.it

We very easily drove from Lucca to the CT for only a long day. We were able to visit all villages by hiking, taking a short boat trip and using the train. It was beautiful.

We stayed at Francamaria last year and found it to be clean with comfortable large bed--private bath. We did not have a view but it had the advantage of not having too many stairs and an easy walk from train sta. It is not fancy but we would stay there again. Quiet at night with the exception of cats growling in the alley behind our room. Happy travels!

I don't know about the trains in and out of Lucca, but when I visited Vernazza last year I took the train from Pisa. It can be tricky making connections but I'd say the train service is relatively easy -- and the trains between the Cinque Terre are a snap (you can buy a pass and ride as much as you like). The station in Vernazza was a short (one to two block) walk to the harbor where my Francamaria room (with a view!) was located.

We have liked both the Piccolo Puccini and Villa Romantica in Lucca--the Palazzo Alexander is the best in town.
Here is weather for Genoa:

Genoa, Italy
Elevation: 10 feet Latitude: 44 25N Longitude: 008 51E

Average Temperature Years on Record: 21

YEAR Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.
°F 60 48 48 53 56 63 69 75 76 71 63 54 49


Average High Temperature Years on Record: 21

YEAR Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.
°F 65 52 53 57 61 68 74 80 81 76 67 58 54


Average Low Temperature Years on Record: 21

YEAR Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.
°F 55 42 43 47 51 58 64 70 70 65 57 49 44


Highest Recorded Temperature Years on Record: 21

YEAR Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.
°F 95 68 72 73 84 90 93 95 95 90 81 77 68


Lowest Recorded Temperature Years on Record: 21

YEAR Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.
°F 21 21 25 27 39 41 50 55 55 48 34 32 27


Average Number of Days With Precipitation Years on Record: 19

YEAR Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.
Days 138 13 10 12 13 14 10 8 9 10 14 13 12

Thanks...all information is helpful. The Piccolo Puccini was my first choice but has no rooms available. I think I would like to be inside the walls. Any other possiblities for a central location in a reasonable price range?