Fodor's Travel Talk Forums

The Palazzo Alexander has a dedicated lot in a courtyard, so we parked there. Driving isn't allowed in the old town, so you need to make sure you enter the wall at the right point, and drive directly to the hotel lot or you might get a ticket. Then exit the town in the right way as well, but it wasn't hard. Just contact or call the hotel ahead of time, and they will direct you.

We just loved experiencing the "real" feel of Lucca. We got up early and went jogging on the wall surrounding the town. We climbed the Guinigi Tower, which provided a really pretty view and had trees growing on top of the tower! But most of what we did was just walking around and enjoying the town. We saw almost no Americans there! The tourists there were mainly European.

We dined at Buca d'Sant Antonio in Lucca, because everyone recommended that we go there, but it was really disappointing and very expensive. The service was pretty condescending... I ordered a glass of wine, and there was something floating in it. When we inspected it, we realized it was a gnat or some type of flying thing... So I sent it back, and the waiter gave me another glass. Guess what? Now I had 5 floating dead gnats in my glass. You think he would have checked that the wine was clear after the first glass... I sent it back again, and he barely apologized. It really kind of put me off, and the food wasn't so fantastic that it was worth it... Just my experience!

However, our first meal in Lucca was at Osteria Baralla, and we enjoyed that! For lunch, we grabbed a quick slice of pizza at Pizzeria Felice, which seemed very popular! Very thin, but delicious pizza! Hope you have a great time there!