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00 Stazzema
Stemma di Stazzema

Tuscany · Lucca

Stazzema

A mountain commune of seventeen hamlets in the Apuan Alps, site of the August 1944 Sant'Anna massacre and Italy's National Park of Peace.

Best time
Apr–Oct
By car
1 h 5 min from Pisa
Population
2,856

Known for

  • PARCO NAZIONALE DELLA PACE

    Italy's National Park of Peace, established in 2000 at Sant'Anna di Stazzema, site of the 12 August 1944 SS massacre of 560 civilians.

  • ANTRO DEL CORCHIA

    53 kilometers of mapped tunnels in the Levigliani frazione, the largest karst cave system in Italy.

  • APUAN ALPS

    Seventeen hamlets spread across the western Apuan slopes, the only fully mountainous commune in the Versilia administrative area.

When to visit

Best · Apr–Oct

  • J9°
  • F11°
  • M12°
  • A15°
  • M19°
  • J24°
  • J27°
  • A27°
  • S23°
  • O18°
  • N14°
  • D10°
  • Best
  • Hot or crowded
  • Quiet
  • Mostly closed

Daytime averages, 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.

The festa: Antonio di Padova, 13 June

Why come

Stazzema is the only entirely mountainous commune in Versilia, seventeen hamlets spread across the western slopes of the Apuan Alps, the highest point at Pania della Croce. The main village sits at 440 meters; Sant'Anna di Stazzema, the most-visited frazione, sits between Monte Ornato and Monte Gabberi. On 12 August 1944 the Waffen-SS and the Italian Black Brigades killed around 560 villagers and refugees at Sant'Anna, more than a hundred of them children.

The site became the Parco Nazionale della Pace in 2000, with a museum opened in 1982 by President Sandro Pertini. The Antro del Corchia, accessed from Levigliani, runs 53 kilometers of mapped tunnels and is the largest karst system in Italy. The commune earned its Comuni Virtuosi signal for waste reduction and energy policy and its Città delle Grotte signal for the Corchia.

The Sunday letter

Stazzema 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 Stazzema comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Pietrasanta.

Read on

Stazzema in our articles

How to get there

From Florence / Pisa (PSA), about 1h 14m by car.

Genoa (GOA) is about 2h 13m away.

By car from the centre of Pisa 1 hour or Florence 1h 51m.

Coming by train into Livorno Centrale? Stazzema is about 1 hour away by road.

Every town within reach of Florence / Pisa airport.

Stazzema, photo 1
Stazzema, photo 2

What to see

  • Antro del Corchia

    53 kilometers of mapped tunnels and shafts in the Levigliani frazione, the largest karst system in Italy and one of the largest in Europe.

  • Sant'Anna di Stazzema

    Mountain frazione at 750 meters, site of the 12 August 1944 SS massacre and now the Parco Nazionale della Pace memorial complex.

  • Museo Storico della Resistenza

    Resistance and massacre museum in Sant'Anna's former primary school, inaugurated in 1982 by Sandro Pertini.

  • Pania della Croce

    The 1,858-meter peak that anchors the commune's eastern boundary, with hiking access from the Foce di Mosceta refuge.

  • Pieve di Santa Maria Assunta

    Romanesque parish church in the main village, documented from the twelfth century, with a frescoed apse.

The slow-trip planner

Building a trip? Find where Stazzema 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.

Plan your trip

Living here

  • Population 2,856
  • In-betweeni
  • Pharmacy: none mapped
  • Nearest high school over ~30 minutes away
  • Nearest airport Florence / Pisa, 1 h 14 min drive
  • Regional capital Firenze, 1 h 51 min drive

Common questions

What is Stazzema known for?
Stazzema is a mountain commune of seventeen hamlets in the Apuan Alps, site of the August 1944 Sant'Anna massacre and Italy's National Park of Peace.
Where is Stazzema?
Stazzema is a comune in the province of Lucca, in Tuscany, at 440 meters above sea level.
What is the nearest airport to Stazzema?
Florence / Pisa (PSA), about 1h 14m by car.
How long is the drive from Pisa to Stazzema?
About 1 hour by car.
When is the best time to visit Stazzema?
Best in Apr–Oct. August is the warmest month, averaging 27 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 19 rain days.
Is there a sagra or a festival in Stazzema?
The town keeps its patron saint's day: Antonio di Padova, 13 June.
Which other towns are like Stazzema?
Mulazzo, Murlo and Campo Ligure.
How many people live in Stazzema?
2,856 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources

The numbers

  • Elevation: 440 m
  • Population: 2,856
  • Surface area: 80.08 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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