Villa Versilia

Versilia is the good 40 km long coastline between Carrara and Viareggio. One doesn't usually visit Tuscany for bathing but particularly in spring and fall it is still great fun to enjoy the empty beaches of the Versilia. Even in summer - with the exception of August - it is never as full here as it is elsewhere. Protected from the wind by the mountains, a wide, fine sandy beach stretches alongside the sea. After those of Maremma, the Versilia beaches - at Marina di Massa, Forte dei Marmi, Marina di Pietrasanta, Lido di Camaiore and Viareggio - are by far the most beautiful along the 330 kilometer Tuscan coastline. They are also very child-friendly: gently sloping down into the sea, their bright shining sand is lovingly cared for.

Forte dei Marmi, an elegant sea resort, was most popular around the turn of the last century. Even today, Forte dei Marmi still has a touch of sophistication. During the summer months, the town is full of the creme de la creme from the Italian world of industry and the aristocracy in their villas. In the shade of the attractively furnished luxury tents at the top bathing locations "Piero" and "Augustus", the rich and famous relax in comfortable chairs or lie back on wide sun loungers. The Baudelairean traveler's ideal of peace, bliss and sensory pleasure is reality here. Perfect atmosphere at appropriately high prices.

Marina di Pietrasanta and Lido di Camaiore are ideal bathing spots for families satisfied with a little less luxury.

Viareggio, once a small fishing village which Maria Luisa von Bourbon had converted to a harbor, experienced its heyday as a seaside resort around the turn of the last century. Art nouveau villas, palms and pines border the impressive promenades. The town is now known mainly for its internationally renowned yachting shipyards and its carnival. In summer, numerous fashion boutiques attract the visitors and revelers can be found enjoying themselves in the many bars, cafes, clubs and discos - an endless chain along the seaside promenade - until the morning hours.

Alpi Apuane is the name of the up to 2000 m high mountains behind Carrara - a paradise for mountain bikers and trekking tours. This is where the marble for which Carrara is so famous is mined.

Carrara's world-wide fame is due to the marble quarries along the flanks of the Alpi Apuane. In addition to the museum of marble and an academy of sculpture, there are also over one hundred marble workshops. For a good idea of the quarrying techniques and processing methods, visit the quarries at Colonnata and Fantiscritti, a few kilometers east of the town. The workers cut huge blocks of white marble out of the mountain with steel-wire saws: each year they mine up to 500000 tons, which is then exported all over the world. Even over 2000 years ago, the Romans supplied themselves with marble from Carrara and Michelangelo personally picked out an exquisite piece for his "David".

Pietrasanta, a charming town between mountains and the sea where many sculptors have come to work.

Bagni di Lucca is a well-know location for thermal baths, in which Heine also stayed in 1828: villas from the 18th and 19th centuries, hot springs and "sauna" grotto.

Montecatini Terme is and elegant thermal bath resort with an international name for itself. In the Parco delle Terme we find the Excelsior - an art nouveau construction from 1915, the Leopoldine baths - classical-style baths from the 18th century and the Tetuccio - an impressive column-decorated structure from 1927.

Collodi hides a Pinocchio park with scenes from the famous children's book - a delight for both young and old.

The Puccini festival is held every summer in July and August at Torre del Lago, the summer residence of Giacomo Puccini.

Lucca, this self-contained but still cosmopolitan art and commercial town is rightly known as the jewel of Tuscany. The town is surrounded by an unusual wall: a more than four kilometer long protective wall crowned by a shady avenue - ideal for lovers, walkers, cyclists and joggers - a romantic location with unparalleled panorama: insight and views of both the town and the picturesque silhouette of the Apennines. Enclosed by this ring wall we see the pretty little town with its many churches. The visitor will find that he can still peacefully wander along the narrow streets arranged like a chessboard - even in the peak season - past cycling students and discretely scurrying nuns and priests, past noble palazzi and elegant shop windows. We particularly recommend the Piazza del Mercato, the oval market place where there used to be a Roman amphitheater. Every third weekend in the month, more than 200 dealers present their antiques along the squares and streets of the old town.

Florence: The city lies on the Arno River and is known for its history and its importance in the Middle Ages and in the Renaissance, especially for its art and architecture. A centre of medieval European trade and finance, the city is often considered the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance; in fact, it has been called the Athens of the Middle Ages. It was long under the de facto rule of the Medici family. From 1865 to 1870 the city was also the capital of the Kingdom of Italy. The historic centre of Florence continues to attract millions of tourists each year and was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1982.