Planning a short trip to Lucca this spring with a couple of mates to do some bike riding. Anyone been in the area that can recommend some routes/link to rides? Looking for 120-200 km routes with some climbs.
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Hi there, don’t miss the opportunity to do the Epic Eroica permanent route which is really not far off Lucca. Also, from Lucca, you can head south to Pomarance (home to Bettini) and traverse the geothermal valleys and cut back to Bolgheri and back up to Lucca (some 200km roundtrip).
Best if you opt for a fast gravel bike or a roadie with some 30mm rubber. The terrain will be “hilly”, bring easy gears. Komoot is pretty good for planning but not always precise on road/ track conditions.
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Try and take in the ride from Lucca to Pisa too. We did it on rentals bank in 2023. Magic.
I was just there for a week of riding in September. It is outstanding! Highly recommend contacting Alison Testroete via https://luccacyclingclub.com for routes, concierge bike rental service etc…
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Can you please kindly share the route?
Thank you, looks great! Have saved it for our next trip and already looking forward to it!
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Seconding this, Alison is great and if you buy her guidebook you get access to dozens of Ride with GPS routes, definitely worth it. (It’s is also one of the better guidebooks for Lucca itself).
I stayed in Matraia (number 7 on this list: Cycling in Lucca: 10 Must-See Climbs | Lucca Cycling Club ) just outside Lucca last Summer: I can recommend the Pizzorne climb from Villa Reale, as well as exploring around Matraia. There tend to be random roadworks/road closures though.
I had also planned routes over the Passo Sella and Trebbio (see also the above list, numbers 7 and 4).
Didn’t get round to it, but the route past the TV antennas to Pisa looked nice (but it’s just the one climb - I would stick north of Lucca), as well as the ride to San Pellegrino in Alpe (with 200km, you can build some nice rides North out of Lucca into the Apuan Alps!).
Pizzorne and Trebbio:
https://strava.app.link/Zw8z7wQkFZb
Pizzorne with off-road descent (a bit too much for my gravel bike and skills…)
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I was there for a week this past August with some friends and have a ton of routes. If you’re up for an epic challenge, from Lucca old town, you can ride up the valley to the north to do the San Pellegrino climb from last year’s Giro, loop around the west to descend back down to the valley road. It’s a long day, and the last 2km of the climb are BRUTAL, but it’s worth it.
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My wife and I rode there in April 2024. If you’ve not ridden in Italy before, just be aware that drivers use their horns as a communication device. A little tap to let you know they’re coming through. Hold your lane. Having ridden in Spain and France a lot, we found the Lucca area to be a bit stressful, but once we got out of the city, it was delightful.
Here are two rides we did. One easy to Pisa (wicked crowded, but bike is best way to see it, and cool photo op of you bike leaning on something with the tower as a backdrop).
A lumpy one: Lucca Cycling · Ride with GPS
An easy one: Lucca Cycling · Ride with GPS
The lumpy one is pretty remote, take food with you. The easy one passes by many restaurants. We had a huge seafood feed on that one.
Have fun!
Monte Serra from Buti is such an amazing climb, the ramp into Buti is a bit stiff, but the rest of it is lovely.
Yep, you got to be a bit committed in junctions etc!
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