8 Best Shopping in Pisa, Lucca, and Northwest Tuscany, Tuscany

Prato's biscotti (literally "twice-cooked" cookies) have an extra-dense texture, lending themselves to submersion in your caffè or vin santo. The best biscotti in town are at Antonio Mattei, which has been around since 1858. Its brutti ma buoni (ugly but good) almond-laced cookies are especially delicious.

On the third weekend of the month, an antiques market happens in and around Piazza San Martino. Vendors unveil their wares around 8:30, and start packing up around dusk. There's something for everyone, including old-fashioned glassware, ancient coins, and furniture—some items are antique, some are just old.

Down the road from the Museo della Ceramica, this shop produces objects in a range of styles.

Just behind the church of San Giusto (off Via Beccheria, which runs for about two blocks between Piazza Napoleone and Piazza San Michele) are bookstalls that open their cupboard doors on clement days (including Sunday), from about 10 am to 7 pm. You may discover anything from hand-tinted prints of orchids to back issues of Uomo Ragno (Spider-Man looks and acts just the same even when he's speaking Italian).

Run by the same family for three generations, this ceramics-making compound is 3 km (2 miles) from Montelupo on the road heading east toward Florence. Here you'll find a sun-drenched spazio aziendale (selling floor), a factory workshop, the family residence, and a yard where terra-cotta planters are displayed. The ceramics, all priced reasonably given the high-quality handcrafted work, include large vases, plates suitable for hanging, and brightly colored serving pieces for the table.

This small shop offers great wine prices and assorted local delicacies. The owner, Ugo Massei, doesn't speak English, but he's friendly and helpful.

Come here for one-stop high-end designer shopping, including Prada, Miu-Miu, Gucci, Dolce e Gabbana, Jil Sander, and Tod's—among others. (Modo Mignon Uomo is at another location in the center.)

For a broad selection of scrumptious pastries, visit this favorite haunt of Lucca's senior citizens, who frequently stop in after Sunday Mass.