57 Best Sights in Pisa, Lucca, and Northwest Tuscany, Tuscany

During the 19th and 20th centuries, Carrara became a hotbed for anarchism, and, during World War II, it fiercely resisted the Nazis. The town is still lively thanks to its art institute: the Accademia di Belle Arti, founded by Maria Teresa Cybo Malaspina d'Este in 1769, draws studio art students from all over Italy. This may explain why there's a good number of bars and cafés in many of the town's squares.

Pontormo's Visitation is in this small village a short drive from Poggio a Caiano. The Franciscan church of San Michele, dedicated in 1211, houses the work. The painting dates 1527–30, and it may well be Pontormo's masterpiece. The luminous colors, flowing drapery, and steady gaze shared between the Virgin and St. Elizabeth are breathtaking. The church's small cloister, shaded by olive trees, is always open, and offers a quiet place to sit.

Lucca's most famous musical son was born in this house. It includes the piano on which Puccini composed Turandot, as well as scores of important early compositions, letters, costumes and costume sketches, and family portraits.

No one knows the precise location of Leonardo da Vinci's birthplace, but this typical 15th-century Tuscan house is in the general vicinity and probably shares much in common with the house where he was born. It's in Anchiano, 3 km (2 miles) from Vinci, and can be reached easily on foot or by car. It has a primitive interior—it hasn't been gussied up for tourists. Note the printed inventory of Leonardo's library. His tastes in literature were wide-ranging, from the ancients to contemporary (15th-century) authors.

This formidable structure, near Santa Maria delle Carceri, is an impressive sight. The (Sicilian) Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II (1194–1250) built the seat of his authority in Tuscany in this somewhat unlikely spot. Frederick's castles were designed to echo imperial Rome, and the many columns, lions, and porticoes testify to his ambition. This is the only castle he built outside southern Italy (other examples may be found in Sicily and Puglia).

Prato's Center for Contemporary Art Luigi Pecci contains works of artists from around the world completed after 1965. The exhibitions constantly change, and often feature debut presentations.

Here you'll find two natural steam-room caves, as well as spa services such as mud baths, massage, hydrotherapy, and facials.

The Collegiata di Sant'Andrea is a jewel of a museum, filled with terra-cotta sculptures from the della Robbia school, including one by Andrea della Robbia. There's also a magnificent 15th-century fresco pietà by Masolino (circa 1383–1440), as well as a small work by Fra Filippo Lippi (1406–69) and a wonderful tabernacle attributed to Francesco Botticini (circa 1446–97) and Antonio Rossellino (1427–79). On Sunday afternoon, entrance to the museum is free.

In 1211 St. Francis founded the Convento di San Francesco, which contains two cloisters and an ornate wooden choir. For a dose of monastic living, you can stay overnight.

The Convento e Chiesa di Santi Jacopo e Lucia is also oddly known as the church of San Domenico, which refers to the fact that the Dominicans took over the church in the 14th century. Most of the interior suffers from too much baroque, but there is a lovely sculpted tomb by Bernardo Rossellino for Giovanni Chellini, a doctor who died in 1461. You'll find it on the right-hand nave close to the high altar.

The Romanesque Duomo, the Cattedrale di San Zeno, dates from as early as the 5th century. It houses a magnificent silver altar dedicated to St. James. The two half-figures on the left are by Filippo Brunelleschi (1377–1446), the first Renaissance architect and the designer of Florence's magnificent Duomo cupola.

Dedicated to St. Christopher, the Romanesque cathedral is made from elegant limestone (quarried from nearby caves) and saw four separate periods of construction. The first began in the 9th century; the last was finished in the 15th. Inside, the intricately carved pulpit, one of the finest examples of mid-12th-century Tuscan sculpture, commands center stage. The view from the littte piazza outside the Duomo is incredible: Tuscan mountains have never looked so good.

Dedicated to St. Peter, the Duomo was begun in the 11th century and was reconstructed in the early 1500s. Inside is a crucifix dating from the 14th to 15th century. There's also an early-16th-century terra-cotta attributed to the school of the della Robbia.

Work began on the Duomo in the 11th century and continued into the 14th. The cathedral, dedicated to St. Andrew, is the first church of the Middle Ages constructed entirely of marble. Most of it comes from the area (the white, light blue-gray, black, and red). The tremendous facade is a fascinating blend of Pisan Romanesque and Gothic influences. Note the human figures and animals on Corinthian capitals.

San Miniato's Duomo, set in a lovely piazza, has a simple yet pretty 13th-century facade, which has been restored. It also has a lovely pulpit designed by Giovanni Duprè, which was executed by his daughter Amalia (1845–1928). The interior is largely uninteresting, though there's a poignant plaque commemorating the 55 citizens who were killed in this church in July 1944 by German occupying forces.

Prato's Romanesque Duomo, reconstructed from 1211, is famous for its Pergamo del Sacro Cingolo (Chapel of the Holy Girdle), which is to the left of its entrance and which enshrines the sash of the Virgin Mary. It is said that the girdle was given to the apostle Thomas by the Virgin Mary when she miraculously appeared after her Assumption into heaven. The Duomo also contains 15th-century frescoes by Prato's most famous son, Fra Filippo Lippi. His scenes from the life of St. Stephen are on the left wall of the Cappella Maggiore (Main Chapel); those from the life of John the Baptist are on the right.

Lest you think that Tuscany produced only Renaissance artists, the Fondazione Marino Marini presents many works from its namesake modern native Pistoian (1901–80). Sculpture, etchings, paintings, engravings, and mixed media have all been installed in the elegantly renovated 14th-century Convento del Tau. Note that this museum has experienced temporary closures, so check on its status before visiting.

A 20-minute drive out of town brings you to the Giardino Zoologico, a small zoo laid out to accommodate the wiles of both animals and children.

About 14 km (9 miles) southwest of Barga, after following a winding road flanked by both sheer cliffs and fantastic views, you come to Tuscany's Cave of the Wind. As the result of a steady internal temperature of 10.7°C (about 51°F), the wind is sucked into the cave in the winter and blown out in the summer. It has a long cavern with stalactites, stalagmites, "bottomless" pits, and subterranean streams. One-, two-, and three-hour guided tours of the cave are given. (The one-hour tour is offered only from November through March.)

Il Ponte della Maddalena is, oddly, also known as the Devil's Bridge. Commissioned in all likelihood by Matilde di Canossa (1046–1115), it was restructured by the petty despot Castruccio Castracani in the early 14th century. It's worth the climb to the middle—the bridge is narrow, steep, and pedestrians-only—to check out the view. Despite 1836 flood damage and early-20th-century alterations, it seems little changed from the Middle Ages. If you're heading north along the Serchio from Lucca to Bagni di Lucca, you will see the bridge on your left.

A certosa is a monastery whose monks belong to the strict Carthusian order. This vast and sprawling complex, begun in 1366, was suppressed by Napoléon in the early 1800s and then again in 1866. Most of the art and architecture you see dates from the 17th and 18th centuries. The Carthusians returned here only to leave it permanently in 1969. Also within it is the Museo di Storia Naturale e del Territorio. This museum of natural history contains fossils, 24 whale skeletons that serve to trace the mammal's development over the millennia, and some exhibits of local minerals. Guided tours are given every hour and a half: unfortunately, there are given only in Italian.

Dating from the 13th century, La Rocca (The Fortress) has a plaque commemorating writer Ludovico Ariosto's brief tenure here as commissar general for the Este. Ariosto (1474–1533) wrote the epic poem Orlando Furioso (1516), among other works. You can only see the impressive walls and great entryway of the fort from the outside.

The area around Carrara has a lot of still-active quarries—well over 100 at last count. Most of them are not open to the public for safety reasons. However, it is possible to tour specific marble caves. The Carrara tourism office, 7 km (4½ miles) away in Marina di Massa, has details about which areas you can visit.

The older town, Montecatini Alto, sits atop a hill nearby, and is reached by a funicular from Viale Diaz. Though there isn't much to do once you get up there, the medieval square is lined with restaurants and bars, the air is crisp, and the views of the Nievole, the valley below, are gorgeous.

The Palazzo del Comune, begun around 1295, houses the Museo Civico, containing works by local artists from the 13th to 19th century. The courtyard (which is free) houses an equestrian sculpture by native son Marino Marini: it takes awhile to figure it out, and it's worth taking the time to do so.

Carrara's history as a marble-producing center is well documented in the Museo del Marmo, beginning with early works from the 2nd century. Exhibits detail the working of marble, from quarrying and transporting it to sculpting it.

Preserved in the Museo del Tessuto is what made this city a Renaissance economic powerhouse. The collection includes clothing, fabric fragments, and the machines used to make them—all dating from the 14th to the 20th century. Check out the 15th-century fabrics with pomegranate prints, a virtuoso display of Renaissance textile wizardry. The well-designed museum (objects are clearly labeled in English) is within the medieval walls of the city in the old Cimatoria, a 19th-century factory that finished raw fabrics.

At the end of the 11th century, the bishop of Pistoia began construction on this palace. One thousand years later, it houses several collections. The Museo della Cattedrale di San Zeno contains spectacular items from Pistoia's cathedral, including ornate pieces in gold, rings with jewels the size of small eggs, and solemn, powerful statuary. The Museo Tattile lets you touch various local buildings built to scale. The Percorso Archeologico contains Roman, medieval, and Etruscan archaeological finds uncovered during a 1970s renovation. Its treasures are showcased with simple elegance in a warren of corridors and caves below and austere rooms above. Note that a guide accompanies you while you wander the complex, and wandering days and times are limited.

At the southeast corner of the sprawling Piazza dei Miracoli, this museum holds a wealth of medieval sculptures and the ancient Roman sarcophagi that inspired Nicola Pisano's figures.

A sculpture by Donatello (circa 1386–1466) that originally adorned the Duomo's exterior pulpit is now on display in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo. The museum also includes such 15th-century gems as Fra Filippo Lippi's Madonna and Child, Giovanni Bellini's (circa 1432–1516) Christ on the Cross, and Caravaggio's (1571–1610) Christ Crowned with Thorns.