Start from Florence and head west across Tuscany and on the plains at the foot of the Appenines you will find the quiet town of Lucca, barely changed since the 17th century. Filled with riches from it’s past, it was once an outpost of the early Roman Empire and then grew to a flourishing Renaissance town.

Elegant towers, charming squares, magnificent Tuscan villas and sumptuous gardens create a rich tapestry within the still standing four rings of the city walls, dating back to the 15th through the 17th centuries. The town is rich in art treasures from as far back as the Etruscans; cathedrals, sculpture, paintings and a National Museum.

The most distinctive feature of the town is it’s perfectly oval shaped Piazza Anfiteatro, formed by houses built on the foundations of the Roman amphitheater of the 2nd Century soon after the barbarian invasions; it’s shape and four arched entrances an evocative ghost of past millienia.

Nearby are a dozen well-preserved towns and villages such as Collodi, San Guliano and the delightful Pescia, renowed for its Medieval center and it’s flower market, the largest in Italy. All around are the peaceful fields and the rolling hills of Tuscany, topped by villas large and small.

It’s a short drive to Viareggio, one of the most popular seaside resorts in the region. Also nearby are the thermal baths at Bagni di Lucca, a sleepy village stretched alongside the Lima river; Montaigne, Byron and Shelly all took the waters here.

An hour's drive away is the magnificence of Florence and just 12 miles down the road is Pisa — Lucca native Puccini once walked there to hear the opera and was inspired to make music his life.

Come join us in Tuscany, the cradle of the Renaissance, for the 14th year of ArTravel's summer oil, watercolor, acrylic or mixed media painting program in Europe.