21st - 28th March - Lucca, Tuscany

Location
Lucca is 23km from Pisa and 75km from Florence: http://tinyurl.com/lucca-tuscany

Lucca itself is described as 'a beautiful little Tuscan town protected by thick 16th-century walls, featuring some of Italy's finest medieval and Renaissance architecture, superb dining, antique markets, easy access to stunning nearby villas in the surrounding hills and with endless beaches less than half an hour away. Lucca is one of Tuscany's best-kept secrets.'

There are plenty of 'proper' mountains to climb, flat rides through the forests, wineries and olive groves and access to the tuscan coast and beaches. There also looks like there is some cracking mountain biking in the region so it should be possible for people to hire bikes for the odd day and head off road. There is even a traffic free way in and out of the city on the Serchio cycle path.

Accomodation
Villa Mori is a complex of 5 newly restored apartments sleeping up to 23 people. In each apartment there is a living room, dining area, fully equipped kitchen, bedrooms, bathrooms and a bed settee. There is a shaded terrace, a BBQ area, a 16x9 m pool and 800 sq m of grounds. It is located in a rural area called Vicopelago within the city boundaries of Lucca. There are 2 restaurants within a short walk, and other restaurants and pizzerias, shops and bars in the suburban street which takes you to the centre of Lucca Old Town, around 3 kms in total. In March the cost for the week is £3600 so around £160 each depending on final numbers.

For more info go to http://www.holiday-rentals.co.uk/p72160#unitamenities

Transport
As this is such a big group people will need to arrange and book their own transport. There is some information below to get started.

By train: You can travel from London to Paris by Eurostar (13:37-17:08) then get an overnight train to Florence (18:59 - 07:16). This means leaving Manchester Saturday morning and arriving in Florence on Sunday morning (or leave earlier for some time in Paris on the way). Eurostar to Paris is from £59 return, train onto Florence from 80 euros.

By air: There are a number of airlines flying into Pisa and Florence. The best deal I found was with Ryanair flying from Liverpool to Pisa. Current price is £79 return. Otherwise there are lots of flight options from London to both Pisa and Florence. Easyjet is currently around £70, ryanair £80 and BA £100. The cheap airlines will charge you to take your bikes.

Transfers: We will look into options for hiring a van or minibus to transport luggage from Pisa/Florence and also to give us transport to go shopping or for a day trip off the bikes. If you would be willing to drive please let me know. Otherwise there are local trains from Pisa/Florence to Lucca or we can get an organised transfer.

Who is going?
There are a mixture of wheelers and other friends going and a range of abilities...
Wheelers: Viv Slack; Jerry Cross; Martin Harney; Becks Ward; Mick Style; Tijl Verhoelst; Miles Wilkinson;
Man Tri: Paul Sav; Brian Mullen; Mike Ogden; Dan Ling; Harsharn Gill; Alistair Cairns; Charlie Baker;
Others: Tony Parks; Anita (FP Mailing); Si (Leigh Premier); Dan Hayes (Friend of Micks) ,Mike (friend of Becks) ,Bobby (friend of Becks)