…in San Cassiano and surroundings
The village has an assorted general store, a butcher and a small post office, all located beside the church (eight minutes walk up the road). There you will also find a bus stop and Santina’s bar and trattoria.
For a larger selection of shops and services, you will have to go to Bagni di Lucca or beyond.
Services in San Cassiano
Alimentari da Elena (Elena’s general store)
The shop is not huge, but it has a fairly good selection of food, and they also sell gas, building materials and this and that. Opening hours are 08:00 -13:00 and 16:30 – 20:00 every day except Sundays and Wedensdays: Sundays it is closed all day, and Wedensdays it is only open in the morning (08:00 – 13:00).
Recommended: Fresh bread, even panini and focaccia, every morning. The deli counter with a selection of delicious cured meats and cheeses. The lovely local olives (you must ask for them, they are kept behind the counter).
Il Macellaio (the butcher’s)
Adolfina in the butcher’s shop has a good selection of fresh and cured meats.
We recommend her own produce of premium quality salsicce (sausages) and several other products. She also produces honey which is sold in the shop.
Opening hours like Elena’s store.
The Mobile Greengrocer
It shall be admitted that the selection of fruit and vegetables at Elena’s is not always the most impressing. Most people here have their own kitchen gardens, growing their own, so the turnover in the shop is limited.
The rescue is the mobile greengrocer, arriving in his van every Friday afternoon (from 16:30 ca). He is parking just across Elena’s, carrying a large selection of quality fruit and vegetables.
The Post Office
is open Mondays and Thursdays 09:00 – 13:30. Usually there is a queue and they handle only basic postal services.
Bar Pizzeria Trattoria da Santina
Santina’s is open from morning until late, every day except Thursdays, when it is closed all day.
They have ordinary bar service all day, and they serve fresh home made food for lunch and dinner, including pizza in the evening. For lunch or dinner, it is advisable to order a table in advance. There is no menu, you will be served the dishes of the day, although some times you may be given a choice of two or three dishes.
If you have a choice for the “primi”, we recommend their home made pasta, called “maccheroni”, with ragu or – when in season – funghi porcini (cep mushrooms).
Services in Bagni di Lucca
Banks
There are several banks in Bagni di Lucca. Opening hours 08:00 – 13:30 (ca) and 14:30 – 15:30 (ca). Several ATMs, all accepting foreign credit cards.
Shops
There is also a selection of shops (food shops, bakery, supermarkets, clothes, shoes, hardware, bookshop, optician and more). It can perhaps not be called a shopping paradise, but if you need anything you can usually find something here.
Market
There is a market in the main square every Wednesday and Saturday, from 09:00 to 14:00 (ca). Fruit and vegetables, cheese, meat, seafood, clothes, kitchen utensils and what’s not…
There is also market in Fornoli every tuesday and friday.
Tourism
Bagni di Lucca hosts a tourist information office (Ufficio Informazioni, APT) and a small travel agency. The tourist information also has internet cafe services. Open only in the morning (closes at 13:00)
Far west in Bagni di Lucca (in Fornoli) there is a railway station, serving trains for Lucca/Pisa in one direction and the Garfagnana valley up to Aulla in the other.
Bagni di Lucca also hosts a good selection of hotels and restaurants in different categories and price ranges.