Tuscany · Massa-Carrara
Licciana Nardi
A Lunigiana Malaspina village in the Apennine Tosco-Emiliano park, named in 1933 for the Risorgimento patriot Anacarsi Nardi.
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 1 h 19 min from Pisa
- Population
- 4,709
Known for
ANACARSI NARDI
Risorgimento conspirator shot at Cosenza in 1844, his surname added to the comune in 1933.
MALASPINA CASTLES
Two surviving Malaspina holdings in the comune, at Licciana and at Bastia, both visitable.
PANIGACCI
Unleavened disks cooked between terracotta plates, the Lunigiana flatbread eaten with stracchino or salume.
TOSCANO
The commune also lies inside the Toscano IGP production zone.
When to visit
Best · Apr–Oct
- J11°
- F13°
- M14°
- A17°
- M21°
- J25°
- J29°
- A29°
- S25°
- O20°
- N15°
- D11°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime averages, 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
The festa: Giacomo il Maggiore, 25 July
Why come
Licciana Nardi sits in the eastern Lunigiana, on the slopes of the Apennino Tosco-Emiliano National Park. The town is one of several Malaspina holdings in the valley, with a castle in the centro storico and another above Bastia, three kilometers up the ridge. In 1933 the commune added the surname Nardi to its name in honor of Anacarsi Nardi, one of the Bandiera brothers' co-conspirators, shot by Bourbon firing squad in 1844 after the failed insurrection at Cosenza.
The Apennine ridge above the town is part of the national park, with chestnut and beech forests, the Lagastrello pass, and trails connecting Lunigiana to the Garfagnana on the other side. The local plate is panigacci, thin disks of unleavened dough cooked between terracotta plates and eaten with stracchino, salume, or pesto, a Lunigiana tradition shared with Pontremoli and the upper Magra villages.
The Sunday letter
Licciana Nardi is on our list. Its letter is still to come.
We are writing about all 1,000 of these towns, one at a time, in a free letter every Sunday: the photo, the food, the festa. That is our mission. Sign up and you will be there when Licciana Nardi comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Pietrasanta.
Read on
Licciana Nardi in our articles
The best olive oil towns within 90 minutes of Pisa6 towns, Licciana Nardi among them.
The best towns known for what they grow within two hours of Pisa7 towns, Licciana Nardi among them.
The best towns inside a national park in Toscana8 towns, Licciana Nardi among them.
The best olive oil towns within two hours of Parma9 towns, Licciana Nardi among them.
How to get there
From Florence / Pisa (PSA), about 1h 28m by car.
Genoa (GOA) is about 1h 47m away.
By car from the centre of Pisa 1h 19m or Parma 1h 35m.
Coming by train into Livorno Centrale? Licciana Nardi is about 1h 21m away by road.
What to see
Castello Malaspina di Licciana
Medieval Malaspina fortress in the centro storico, partly inhabited and partly visitable on request.
Castello di Bastia
Smaller Malaspina castle in the frazione of Bastia, three kilometers up the ridge, with a fourteenth-century keep.
Parco Nazionale dell'Appennino Tosco-Emiliano
Chestnut and beech forests on the ridge above the town, with the Lagastrello pass and trails into the Garfagnana.
Pieve di Venelia
Romanesque parish church on the ridge between Licciana and Bastia, one of the oldest in the eastern Lunigiana.
Frazione di Apella
Mountain hamlet on the park boundary, the trailhead for the higher Apennine ridges and the Lagastrello.
The slow-trip planner
Building a trip? Find where Licciana Nardi 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.
Living here
- Population 4,709
- In-betweeni
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Nearest airport Florence / Pisa, 1 h 28 min drive
- Regional capital Firenze, 2 h 5 min drive
Common questions
- What is Licciana Nardi known for?
- Licciana Nardi is a Lunigiana Malaspina village at 215 meters in the Apennine Tosco-Emiliano park, named in 1933 for the Risorgimento patriot Anacarsi Nardi.
- Where is Licciana Nardi?
- Licciana Nardi is a comune in the province of Massa-Carrara, in Tuscany.
- What is the nearest airport to Licciana Nardi?
- Florence / Pisa (PSA), about 1h 28m by car.
- How long is the drive from Pisa to Licciana Nardi?
- About 1h 19m by car.
- When is the best time to visit Licciana Nardi?
- Best in Apr–Oct. August is the warmest month, averaging 29 degrees, and December the wettest, with about 16 rain days.
- Is there a sagra or a festival in Licciana Nardi?
- The town keeps its patron saint's day: Giacomo il Maggiore, 25 July.
- Which other towns are like Licciana Nardi?
- Pontremoli, Montaione and San Gimignano.
- How many people live in Licciana Nardi?
- 4,709 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
Recognised as
The numbers
- Elevation: 215 m
- Population: 4,709
- Surface area: 55.68 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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