Staying in Lucca

Hi Bob. Will you have a rental car to park in Lucca? If so, I can recommend the Hotel Melechi. It's a short distance from the city walls & includes parking which we needed when we were there in 2009. It's a basic clean hotel but the service was great & the owner & his son were very friendly. It fit the bill for what we needed. Have a great trip.

thanks I will check it out...how long were you in Lucca?

We stayed at a BB Antifeatro (http://www.anfiteatrolucca.it/en/index.php) in March, in the heart of downtown. We arrived by bus from Pisa but it was not a long walk. The place was on the second floor, clean, they were very friendly and helpful and had free WI FI in our room. It was the largest shower I had in three weeks of Italy. In the morning they offered us the standard buffet but also had cook to order eggs. I was so thrilled to have some protein at breakfast. We paid cash and had a rate of 60 euros for double with bath. Highly recommend it.

stayed there for three days last month. No car, came by train. Stayed at Ostella San Frediano (a converted convent). Not luxurious by any means but very clean and a great location to everything nearby in Lucca...it backs up to the wall around Lucca, a TI is around the corner, the best pizza we had in Italy is across the street and it is steps away from the main shopping street, via Fullingo. Also has an internet point in the lobby...one hour of internet access for 1E.

I was there last September for one night. Arrived by train and stayed next to the train station at the Hotel Rex. There was no train noise. It is just outside the walls and a short walk into town. The Hotel Rex has free bikes for their customers use.

thanks to you all great info

Bob, we were only in Lucca for 1 day & night on our way from Siena to the Cinque Terre. We happened to be there on the same day as a big festival so the town was packed but it was really interesting to see all the commotion in Lucca for the festival. We chose the Hotel Melechi because of the need for parking but if you won't have a rental car, I'd suggest staying inside the city walls.

We were there three years ago and stayed at La Romea B&B and really enjoyed it. Outstanding breakfasts. They even cook eggs to order! Here's a photo of the two charming women who are in charge of the breakfasts.

I also can recommend the Hotel Melecchi - especially if you have a car. It's just outside the city walls with its own gated parking lot. The rooms are large, airy and spotless. It's been run by four generations of the same family. Giovanni, the son and manager, speaks fluent English and has a wealth of information about what to see and do. It's disadvantage is that it is a block outside the walls. It's about a 10 minute walk into the historic center. The advantage, of course, is if you need to park a car. The rooms cost less than the hotels in the center and you can't beat the hospitality.