Italy : Liguria / Tuscany with kids

Like (almost) every year we’ve spend our summer holiday in Italy.
A perfect getaway in the woods and mountains, not too far to the beach and about an hour away from Parma and Pisa.
I drove there from Germany (around 1000km) and decided to drive during the night to avoid the holiday traffic jams. Driving at night is tiring, but the kids were asleep which means less stops and less asking ”how long do we still have to go??” 🙂

I brought some window-stickers and audio stories along for the kids (+ enough snacks and water).
All in all the drive wasn’t too bad. We arrived in the morning, which ment I had a very, very long day.

There are a couple of places we visit every year, which I can highly recommend for those who’d love to explore Tuscany/Lunigiana.

Medieval market in Filetto:
Perfect evening out. Great shows, good food, a nice market and enough to see and do for kids too! Allthough it starts early in the afternoon, I’d recommend to arrive a bit late… Not too early in the evening, as it will get more lively once the sun is down which makes a big difference.
If you’d like to visit Filetto/Villafranca on another date, have dinner at Il Tempo Ritrovato. Pizza with fries ? Heaven on earth 😉 Great atmosphere and even better food!

Lucca
Beautiful city, nice shops and lots of sightseeing to do. We had to stop by Gelatorium, an icecream shop with indoor swings!
Emile had a toddler tantrum on the street, the terrible twos are real…

Sarzana

The best place to have breakfast or lunch is Pasticceria Gemmi, an old pastry shop with the most stunning ceilings and a nice place to buy some gifts for friend and family.
The cathedral is already impressive from the outside and worth a visit too.
If you like to shop antique , during the month of August there are evening antique markets on the streets.
Most shops are open until midnight during those weeks.
Stop by the l’Altro Store for Ultràchic (my favorite italian clothing brand) clothing.
For some home/furniture shopping, check out Maisons du Monde. Usually I shop their stuff online, but the store is a great place to see their products before buying.

Il piscio de Pracchiola
Close to Pontremoli there’s a stunning waterfall which can only be reached after a 30min+ hike. The hike is quite adventurous, I wouldn’t recommend hiking alone with multiple kids… You’d need a second adult around to pass some of the narrow and sometimes slippery spots safely. The path used to be better, but has gotten worse over the years.

Clear water but also pretty cold so only daredevils take a swim there 🙂
Pack some food for a picknick !

At the start of the path there’s a place to fill your bottles with mountain spring water.

Pietrasanta
A city filled with art. Nice little shops, this summer the shopping street was decorated with floating umbrellas.

Prati di Logarghena
Explore the mountains with a great view over Lunigiana. You’ll hear cow bells, see goats and beautiful flowers. The road is a bit rocky, but even my Chevy (spark) managed it….