Antica Farmacia Massagli

Lucca


Few tourists realise quite what the historic pharmacy across the square from Chiesa di San Michele in Foro bottles. Follow locals inside to indulge in a shot of China elixir, a heady liqueur of aromatic spices and herbs. Buy a bottle to take home (€12.30 per 200ml or €23.60 per litre).

The liqueur was first concocted in 1855 as a preventive measure against the plague. Today Lucchese typically drink the natural alcoholic drink (no colouring or preservatives) after a meal to aid digestion


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Lucca attractions

1. Chiesa di San Michele in Foro

0.03 MILES

One of Lucca's many architecturally significant churches, this glittering Romanesque edifice marks the spot where the city's Roman forum was. The present…

2. Torre del'Ore

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Legend has it that Lucca's 13th-century clock tower – at 50m tall, the highest of the city's 130 medieval towers – is inhabited by the ghost of Lucida…

3. Puccini Museum

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The great Giacomo Puccini, who came from a long line of Lucchesi musicians, was born in Lucca and grew up in an apartment at Corte San Lorenzo 9, today a…

5. Museo della Cattedrale

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The cathedral museum safeguards elaborate gold and silver decorations made for the cathedral's Volto Santo, including a 17th-century crown and a 19th…

6. Cattedrale di San Martino

0.18 MILES

Lucca's predominantly Romanesque cathedral dates from the 11th century. Its stunning facade was constructed in the prevailing Lucca-Pisan style and…

7. Palazzo Pfanner

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Fire the romantic in you with a stroll around this beautiful 17th-century palace where parts of Portrait of a Lady (1996), starring Nicole Kidman and John…

8. Torre Guinigi

0.2 MILES

The bird's-eye view from the top of this medieval, 45m-tall red-brick tower adjoining 14th-century Palazzo Guinigi is predictably magnificent. But what…