It's a cliché, so obviously I hesitate to use the phrase, but Lucca – cultured, peaceful and urbane – really is Tuscany's best-kept secret. Within its majestic walls, its Roman and medieval ...

I've looked for others, but I still consider Rothenburg, in the Franconian heartland, the best-preserved walled ... Lucca is its iconic ramparts, which form a 4-km circle around the entire town.