Tuscany · Massa-Carrara
Carrara
The marble town at the foot of the Apuan Alps, with over 650 quarry sites in the valleys above and the stone that built the Pantheon, the Pietà and Michelangelo's David.
- Best time
- May–Sep
- By car
- 55 min from Pisa
- By train
- Station in the comune
- Population
- 59,905
Known for
MARBLE QUARRIES
650+ quarry sites in Torano, Fantiscritti and Colonnata, the source of more marble than anywhere on earth since Roman times.
MICHELANGELO
Personally selected the stone for the Pietà and the David from the Polvaccio quarry above Torano starting in 1497.
ACCADEMIA DI BELLE ARTI
Founded 1769 by Maria Teresa Cybo-Malaspina, still training sculptors who work the surrounding marble studios.
TOSCANO
The commune also lies inside the Toscano IGP production zone.
When to visit
Best · May–Sep
- J11°
- F13°
- M14°
- A17°
- M21°
- J25°
- J28°
- A29°
- S25°
- O20°
- N16°
- D12°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime averages, 2020–2024. The sea is warmest in August at 28° and coldest in February at 13°. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
The festa: Ceccardo di Luni, 16 June
Why come
Carrara sits in the narrow plain where the Apuan Alps drop to the Tyrrhenian. The 650-plus marble quarries in the three valleys above the town, Torano, Fantiscritti and Colonnata, have produced more marble than any other place on earth, worked since Roman times. The white and blue-grey stone went into the Pantheon and Trajan's Column.
Michelangelo first came in 1497 to find marble for his Pietà and kept returning until he opened his own quarry in the Polvaccio above Torano, still called Cava di Michelangelo. The Duomo di Sant'Andrea, begun in the eleventh century, was the first medieval church built entirely of the local stone, with a bichrome marble façade. The city's Accademia di Belle Arti has trained sculptors since 1769 and the surrounding studi still work commissions for sculptors who never set foot in Italy.
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How to get there
From Florence / Pisa (PSA), about 1 hour by car.
Genoa (GOA) is about 1h 49m away.
By car from the centre of Pisa 55 minutes or Florence 1h 41m.
There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.
Coming from Pisa, Genoa or Florence?
Coming by train into Livorno Centrale? Carrara is about 56 minutes away by road.
What to see
Duomo di Sant'Andrea
Eleventh-century cathedral, the first medieval church built entirely of Apuan marble, with a Romanesque-Gothic bichrome façade finished in the fourteenth century.
Cave di Marmo
Over 650 quarry sites in the Torano, Fantiscritti and Colonnata valleys, worked since Roman times and visible on cave tours from the town.
Piazza Alberica
Sixteenth-century square built by Alberico I Cybo Malaspina inside the expanded city walls, ringed by marble façades and a central statue of Maria Beatrice d'Este.
Castello Malaspina
Medieval-into-Renaissance Malaspina seat, later the home of the Accademia di Belle Arti since 1805.
Museo Civico del Marmo
Civic museum documenting two thousand years of quarrying, with Roman tools, geological samples and modern sculpture.
Cava di Michelangelo (Polvaccio)
The Torano-valley quarry where Michelangelo personally selected marble for the Pietà and David, still in operation.
The slow-trip planner
Building a trip? Find where Carrara fits in a slow Italy circuit.
Answer five questions. We will shape a geographically coherent slow trip from the 1,000 Italian towns most travelers skip. Yours to save and share.
We’ve tried
What we got up to
Restaurants, walks, swims — the things we actually did in Carrara, each with the piece we wrote about it.
Lardo di Colonnata, the pork fat aged in marble that needs nothing but bread.
We recommend
Where to eat
Not our picks, but places the guides put their name to: a Michelin star, a Gambero Rosso fork, a Slow Food snail, a Michelin Key for the hotels. Worth a table, a counter, or a night when you pass through.
ExtraRistorante
A Gambero Rosso listing for Extra, and a spot in the Michelin Guide.
Enoteca VeliaWine Bar
Enoteca Velia holds two Gambero Rosso bottles.
Il NarcisoRistorante
Il Narciso has a spot in the Michelin Guide to its name.
The Sunday letter
Carrara got its letter. One town every Sunday, free. The photo, the food, the festa.
Living here
- Population 59,905
- Commuter belti
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Train station in the comune
- Nearest airport Florence / Pisa, 1 h 4 min drive
- Regional capital Firenze, 1 h 41 min drive
Common questions
- What is Carrara known for?
- Carrara is the marble town at the foot of the Apuan Alps, with over 650 quarry sites in the valleys above and the stone that built the Pantheon, the Pietà and Michelangelo's David.
- Where is Carrara?
- Carrara is a comune in the province of Massa-Carrara, in Tuscany, at 80 meters above sea level.
- What is the nearest airport to Carrara?
- Florence / Pisa (PSA), about 1 hour by car.
- Can you get to Carrara without a car?
- Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
- How long is the drive from Pisa to Carrara?
- About 55 minutes by car.
- When is the best time to visit Carrara?
- Best in May–Sep. August is the warmest month, averaging 29 degrees, and December the wettest, with about 15 rain days.
- Is there a sagra or a festival in Carrara?
- The town keeps its patron saint's day: Ceccardo di Luni, 16 June.
- Which other towns are like Carrara?
- Pietrasanta, Seravezza and Montignoso.
- How many people live in Carrara?
- 59,905 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
Recognised as
The numbers
- Elevation: 80 m
- Population: 59,905
- Surface area: 71.01 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
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