Via Francigena in Tuscany from Lucca to Siena in 1 week

Rate:
Price: 7 nights from €715
  • Activity Walking or Easy Walking or Cycling or Easy Cycling
  • Distance 133 km
  • Duration 7 Nights
  • Difficulty Moderate
  • Tour Type Self-Guided Caminos
  • Time To Go April to October
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Via Francigena in Tuscany from Lucca to Siena

This section of the Via Francigena, the Camino to Rome, runs from Lucca to Siena in Tuscany. It is one of the Via Francigena’s most popular and spectacular stretches.

The trail starts in the walled city of Lucca with its amazing Renaissance wall and citadel and finishes in Siena‘s UNESCO World Heritage historic centre.

You will walk in the heart of Tuscany, across beautiful rolling hills and woodland, stopping in gorgeous villages where you will enjoy a well-deserved rest.

This section of the Via Francigena in Tuscany offers many wonderful sights, including the tiny walled hilltop town of Monteriggioni and two impressive UNESCO World Heritage Sites: the breathtaking town of San Gimignano with its medieval towers and magnificent Siena, a historical, artistic, cultural, and gastronomic gem.

If you travel in July or August, you might be able to witness one of Italy’s most traditional horse races: the Palio di Siena. If you travel in Autumn, this part of Tuscany is world-famous for its white truffles, so foodies are in for a treat! All along the way, you will also taste delicious Italian cuisine.

We recommend undertaking this route from Spring to Fall, as this is when the weather is good, and the route is a lot more sociable.

With many 5-star reviews, this is a fantastic route for anyone interested in a walking holiday in Italy.

If you have walked or cycled the Camino de Santiago before, this is a fantastic alternative holiday in the stunning landscape of Tuscany, Italy.

If you would like to join a group, this trip is also available as a guided tour; see details here: Via Francigena Guided.

Via Francigena in Tuscany from Lucca to Siena

Via Francigena in Tuscany from Lucca to Siena

Lucca

Stage: Lucca

You arrive in Lucca.

18 km

Altopascio

Stage: Altopascio

This first part of the Via Francigena trail from Lucca to Altopascio is flat all the way. You will pass the towns of Capannori and Porcari and their lovely little churches. Your destination for the day is Altopascio which is know as the ‘town of bread’ for its tradition of bread making. There is an interesting church and bell tower in the centre of the town.

29 km

San Miniato

Stage: San Miniato

Today, the Via Francigena trail gets more interesting as you leave Lucca and its suburbs behind. This section follows a lovely trail through woodland and farmlands. There is a short climb and descent before you reach a fortified 16th century Medicean bridge over the canal. You will then pass the lovely town of Fucecchio and over the Arno river, before the final climb up to the breathtaking town of San Miniato (Alto). There are plenty of artistic, cultural and historical sights to see here. The town and region are also renowned for its white truffles.

24 km

Gambassi Terme

Stage: Gambassi Terme

Today’s walking section on the Via Francigena follows a lovely trail through oak woods, chestnut woods, olive groves and vineyards. The trail is predominantly on off-road tracks over small rolling hills, the classic Tuscan landscape. On the way you will pass Chianni where you should visit the lovely little church. There is a 300m climb to Gambassi Terme, a hilltop town best known for its spa and hot springs, as well as glass manufacturing.

14 km

San Gimignano

Stage: San Gimignano

From Gambassi Terme you will descend for a couple of kilometres before you begin another climb. The day is quite up and down but the scenery as you pass through the world famous Chianti vineyards will make the effort worthwhile. San Gimignano is a wonderful, walled, hilltop, medieval town, where you can stop for the night. The towers of the town can be seen for miles around. The museum of San Gimignano 1300 has a wonderful reconstruction of how the town once looked and is well worth a visit.

27 km

Monteriggioni

Stage: Monteriggioni

From the Piazza in Colle di Val d’Elsa, you will continue your walk along tree-lined roads, starting with a long descent to Castel Petraia and then up to the densely forested hill of Montagnole. Your walking day on the Via Francigena takes you to the unique hilltop village of Monteriggioni with its circular wall.

21 km

Siena

Stage: Siena

After Monteriggioni, the Via Francigena takes pilgrims towards the village of Funghaia and its church with frescoed interior. Make sure you experience real Tuscan food in one of the region’s best osterias, as you reach stunning Siena. Siena is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most visited places in Italy. It is world famous for its art, medieval architecture, museums, cuisine and the ‘Palio‘, the spectacular annual horse race held in the city’s piazza.

Accommodation

Standard Hotels

We have hand-picked hotels and guesthouses along the Camino for their character and warm hospitality. Up to 3-stars, you will be staying in the centre of town and close to your Camino trail. All rooms are en-suite with bathroom. For our family packages, we have hand-picked establishments with outdoor space and swimming pools where possible. Where accommodation with private outdoor space is not available, we have selected comfortable hotels with spacious common areas as well as a convenient location close to recreational areas and sights. As your comfort is our priority, we try to book hotels located within walking distance of the Camino. Despite our effort, on rare occasions your accommodation can be located a few kilometers away from the trail, so we organise transportation to/from your accommodation.

Standard Hotel & Guesthouse

Superior Collection

Stay in very special hotels and unique properties along the Camino.  We have selected luxurious 4 and 5-star hotels, boutique guesthouses, relaxing country homes and stunning heritage ‘Parador’ hotels so you can feel pampered. Rest assured when you select Superior Collection, you will enjoy the full experience of our best hotels and top guesthouses when and where this option is available, however, bear in mind, that sometimes due to location factors, only our choice of standard collection hotels and guesthouses may be available. All rooms are en-suite.

Superior Collection

Access

How to Get There

Live information on Rome2Rio. We can also arrange private transfers if you prefer, just ask us.

Lucca

Pisa International Airport 35km: Firstly you need to reach Pisa central train station (Station Ferroviara Pisa Centrale). The airport is only located 1km from Pisa central train station and PisaMover Bus Service provides the transfer. To get to Lucca from Pisa central train station you can take a regional trains (approx. 30 minutes travel time). You can check the timetable at www.trenitalia.com.

NOTE: Depending on the connection schedules, sometimes it’s better to make the connection at Viareggio instead of at Pisa Centrale. The Trenitalia website will indicate when this is the case. The unreserved regionale train from Viareggio to Lucca also costs 3 Euros and takes just under 30 minutes travel time.

Florence International Airport 70km: To reach Santa Maria Novella train station (S.M.N) from the airport the easiest way is to take the city line. There is a local bus “Volainbus” that is run by the SITA bus company next to the Santa Maria Novella train station. It goes to and from the station every half hour from 5:30am to 11pm (25 minutes approx travel time from airport arrivals to the station). Find the general information of departure points and timetable at www.fsbusitalia.it
When you are in S.M.N train station you can choose:
– Train Option: With the Italian regional line www.trenitalia.com, Florence to Lucca takes roughly 1.30 hours and costs around €7.
– Bus Option: From Florence to Lucca, you also have the option to take the intercity bus (Monday to Saturday only), which departs hourly from the intersection of Via Nazionale and Via Fiume, 250 meters from the S.M.N. train station. The bus takes 80 minutes and costs about the same as the regionale train, but has reclining seats. Be aware departure location may change in the future.

Bologna Airport 151km:  Shuttle bus from Bologna Airport to Bologna Central Station (every 11 mins, €6 one-way).  For more information see: http://aerobus.bo.it/en.  Train to Florence (34mins), change to regional train to Lucca (1h20).  Fares from €24.  For more information see: www.lefrecce.it/.

Rome Leonardo da Vinci Airport 349km: You have to get to Roma Termini Central Station to take an intercity trains either going to Pisa Central or Firenze Santa Maria Novella. There are many options to get from Leonardo da Vinci airport to Roma Termini. See www.rome-airport:

  • The Leonardo Express train costs €11 and takes 30 minutes.
  • Terravision Shuttle Bus. Ticket is €9 for 70 minutes of travel.
  • City bus: The bus stop is located outdoors at ground level, 100 meters left from arrivals (teminals B&C). You can buy tickets at all tobacco shops – they have blue signs (Tabacheria). Fares is 4 Euros; 45-80 minutes travel time.
  • Taxis outside the passenger stations. The trip cost usually €40 to get to the city centre plus €1 fee for each suitcase.

From Roma Termini you can decide to go to Pisa or Florence.

  • Pisa: Take a Frecciabianca OR, an Intercity train from Roma Termini to Pisa Centrale. The Frecciabianca is a faster, more modern and nicer train, so give it priority over the Intercity unless the latter’s schedules are more convenient. The fastest Frecciabianca train takes 2 hours and 30 minutes travel time for €44.50
  • Via Florence: Travelling via Firenze SMN will cost €43, and will take about the same amount of time (since the Freccia train from Rome to Florence is one hour faster than the Freccia train from Rome to Pisa).  For timetables and itineraries see www.trenitalia.com

Siena

Florence International Airport 86km: You can either take the bus or the train. However they don’t stop at the same finishing point. The bus will drop you off in the heart of the historic city centre of Siena whereas Siena train station is located further away from the city centre and you might need to take a city bus (5 min travel time approx).
By bus:
– Autostradale bus express, coming from Pisa, stops in Florence and reaches Siena in less than 2 hours. See: www.airportbusexpress.it.
– SITA bus, www.sienamobilita.it. The bus station is just around the corner from the train station in Florence. SITA buses to Siena take just under an hour, run frequently and takes you to Siena historic city center. Make sure you take the rapide (express) and not the ordinarie, which stops in Poggibonsi and Colle Val d’Elsa. Ticket costs €12. To reach the Santa Maria Novella train station in Florence from the airport, just take the city line Vola in bus from the airport. The service connects the city centre in just 20 minutes and the fare is €6 one way.
By train:
Trains from Florence to Siena leave Santa Maria Novella station roughly once an hour on most days, and a direct train takes about 1.5 hours. The ticket is in the €6-10 range (if you’re on the direct train). See www.fsitaliane.it for more information.

Pisa International Airport 130km: You can take two different buses outside the airport going directly to Siena (under 2hr approximate travel time), for more information, see: http://www.pisa-airport.com.
– Train S.p.a, see: www.trainspa.it. Leaving directly from the airport to Piazza Gramsci in Siena. It takes you around two hours travel time and costs €14 one way.
– Autostradale, see: www.airportbusexpress.it. It follows similar itinerary than Train S.p.a but with a change in Florence. One way ticket costs €15. All informations, timetable and route with Siena Mobilita.

Bologna International Airport 167km: There are bus and train connections available to Siena.  Shuttle bus from Bologna Airport to Bologna Central Station (every 11 mins, €6 one-way).  For more information see: http://aerobus.bo.it/en.  From here you will take the train to Siena with a change in Florence.  Train to Siena (2hr 30, from €24 one-way). For more information see: http://www.trenitalia.com/.

Bus from Bologna Airport to Siena Train Station. (4 times daily, from €18, Duration 2h40 – 3h40).  For more information see: Rome2Rio.

Whats Included

  • Included: Selected accommodation with private bathrooms, Holiday Pack on your mobile phone (Route ebook and Google Maps) and a 24/7 support number providing assistance during your trip, for instance organising a support vehicle if needed.
  • Not included: Flights, drinks, city tax, Travel Insurance (Recommended)
  • Optional: Luggage transfers (On by default. One bag up to 20kg per person), dinners (On by default, where available), bike rental (On by default) and airport transfers, etc…

Note on Accommodation: We aim to book you into each of the towns listed on the itinerary, however in case of low availability we may book you 2 nights in the same town with provided transfers. If you are booking Superior collection or Country cottages, please note it is subject to availability and therefore cannot be guaranteed. Superior/Country cottage accommodation may be away from the route with included transfers. More details.

Specialist:Ruben

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Ruben

Specialist:Ruben

Ruben is from Barcelona. He likes going hiking with his wife to enjoy nature. They call him the 'the King of Cheesecake', for obvious reasons and he is at his happiest sharing a nice bottle of wine...

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