Lucca or Siena

You can probably decide on this at the last minute. IF your legs and feet are tired, I'd go with Lucca as it's flat in the City Center with just a short slope up to the wall to walk around the old core. Sienna is quite hilly.

I love the Duomo in Siena which has several levels and gorgeous mosaic floors. The Palio square is interesting and surprising (sloped and not actually square). The last time I was there I went into the museum next to the duomo which was smallish yet interesting.

In Lucca, I love walking around the wall (or you can rent a bike but it's a pretty short distance) and the outline of the Roman Amphitheater was a surprise.

If you can't decide, I'd honestly flip a coin. Both are interesting and you can't go wrong with either one.

I love both cities but if I had to choose one it would be Siena. Lucca is on the far west side of Tuscany while Siena is more centrally located. Try to make time for both of them. If the Chianti villages are planned , then add Siena. If Volterra is on your radar then combine it with Lucca.

If you're going to be staying in the countryside south of Florence, I would suggest Siena. But let me warn you that parking can be difficult to find there. It's a very congested city--especially downhill from the center city.

Don't forget to visit Volterra on your day trips.

We stayed in both this past fall - several nights in Lucca and just one in Siena. Lucca’s smaller and with only a daytrip, you’ll see more of Lucca, even at a slower pace. Riding bikes on the pathway atop the walls for a couple of hours, including stops at parks among the battlements and at viewpoints was interesting, but you may have to dodge oncoming bikes and other contraptions, and there could be spread-out groups of pedestrians, with no marked lanes or apparent rules of the road. Getting to, and from Lucca, though, was simple and easy.

Our schedule didn’t allow more time in Siena, and we barely scratched the surface of things to see and do. With a just a daytrip (and even staying for dinner?), Siena will likely leave you wishing for a lot more. What you would see, however, would be a full day. Arriving by train was a pain - no taxis for a long line of people at the stand, and then locating the bus stop near the train station was unusually difficult. Getting to the historic center took longer, and more effort, than expected.

A Lucca daytrip might be more fulfilling, having seen more of what there was to see. A Puccini highlights performance, even if you’re not a huge opera fan, might be interesting in his birthplace town, too, if you stayed late enough for the nightly evening event.

I think I remember the Siena city guide saying they cover the mosaics during the Palio because they bring the horses in there!!!

Thanks for the suggestions and guidance. This will be toward the end of our 10-day trip. We have another day planned pairing Volterra and San Gimignano for about a 1/2 day each as well. Perhaps this ends up being a game time decision based. Any restaurant recommendations in either?

In Lucca, Osteria San Giorgio. It’s on the northern end of town, on Via San Giorgio. So good, we went back a second night over our stay.

In Volterra: Osteria Fornelli which is also called Fornelli con Vista. On Piazzetta dei Fornelli, 3. Hopefully you will be able to eat outside if you choose to go.

We’ll add those to the list. Thanks again!

I stayed in Siena for two nights this past August before moving on to Florence. I took a day trip to Lucca (and combined it with a quick stop in Pisa). Lucca was nice but Siena captured my heart. Of course, that might be because I was in Siena after the day-trippers left and was only in Lucca for a few hours. But my vote is for Siena.