Day trip in Lucca and Pisa and off to Florence

Hi,
Florence's (or Firenze) Santa Maria Novella Stazione is the best place to leave luggage. They have an attended check in area for left luggage.
It was 7 years ago that I was in Lucca, so unfortunately, I can't comment about leaving luggage there. I thought the station was really small. I would just say that you will be cutting down the time you spend in Lucca by stopping in Pisa. Lucca is a "gem" of a town. The restaurants are wonderful, the walls are massive and fun to walk or bicycle around. There are also cute artisan shops and it feels very lived in. It is not very difficult to make a daytrip to either Lucca or Pisa from Firenze if you decide to by-pass one town and visit it later.

If you have the time for a daytrip out of Florence, you can visit Pisa and Lucca in one day wothout worrying about leaving and retrieving luggage. Lucca has much more to offer than only a bike trip, although that's great fun. I would get to Pisa early, see the Piazza dei Miracoli (there are trains that get you to the small station closer to the Piazza), then go to Lucca in time for lunch, walk around, take the bike ride, maybe stay for dinner, then take the train back to Florence. I was in Lucca for two nights last year, I'm planning to go back for more.

Skip Lucca. There is 0 there worth your time.

I quite enjoyed the day we spent in Lucca. If I had to choose either Pisa or Lucca, my choice would be Lucca. We spent a night there so I don't know about baggage storage at the train station. There is a left luggage room at the main station in Pisa. If the train station in Lucca doesn't have baggage storage you might consider contacting Hotel Rex, located next to the train station. Perhaps they would store it for you.

I found Lucca charming and enjoyed spending half a day there. I would visit again. I drove so don,t know about train. I have a great memory of Pisa as it was something my grandson wanted to see the tower.....he really loved it, so both locations were worth the time for me:))

I have been trying to plan the same type of trip myself and I found that to be able to enjoy both Pisa AND Lucca to the extent that I would be hoping to, I would be getting to my final destination WAY late, past 8pm, which would possibly be inconvenient for checking into my accommodations.....it would be best for my travelling style to just do the 2 of them on a day trip, so I would know where I was going and wouldn't be rushed or inconveniencing anybody...

Skip Lucca. It's like a boring suburb of Florence.

I've always found Lucca to be very pretty, primarily because of the well preserved fortified city walls and the medieval character it has retained. It really throws you back a few centuries when you walk through the city gates. Unfortunately that's something you can't say about Florence since the stupid Architect, Giuseppe Poggi, in the late XIX century, decided to tear down all the city walls on the northern bank of the Arno, when Florence became capital of the newly unified Italy (1865-1870).
I'd certainly devote more time to Lucca than to Pisa, which doesn't have much more than the Piazza dei Miracoli.

maybe 1smithee went to a different Lucca than I did. Its pretty far from Florence to be considered a suburb. Maybe Pisa, but even then....

Perhaps the birthplace and associated statue of world famous composer is worth zero. Hmmm. Or spectacularly good gelato. Or medieval towers, one with a roof garden. Or wide, strollable, intact defensive city walls. Or a Roman road plan. Or a Roman arena plan. or... or.... or.....

not zero to me.

((shrugs shoulders))

dunno - it must be a different Lucca or somebody had a bad experience or generally has a bad attitude.

And Nigel's analysis is right on.

I loved Lucca, I am going there again,and staying, as I will fly out of Pisa. This time I will spend more time there.