Hotel Redi

The hotel is close to the railway (about 5 minutes) but as they are electric railways in Italy you don't hear the trains at all. It's a quiet street with hardly any activity, though you do see the occasional traffic warden. We stayed here for four nights and I have to say it was one of the best stays we have had. The breakfast is a help yourself Continental Breakfast with fruit juice, croissants, ham, jam, bread rolls etc. You certainly wont go out of the hotel hungry. The service was superb, the landlady only too willing to fill your coffee cup if you need an extra cuppa, or if you needed extra towels or shampoo she would serve you immediately. The maid bakes croissants on the premises so they arrive warm and fresh to your plate. The rooms are pleasant and comfortable, my shower took a while to warm up to be fair but was pleasant enough once it got going. Rooms are very clean and were cleaned everyday. There's free wifi and the rooms are air conditioned if you know how to use the equipment. Also don't forget to use the shutters while you're out as these help to keep the room cool. The maid/ hotel keeper is lovely lady who has a small English vocabulary but communication wasn't a problem and we found her very friendly and only too willing to help. Montecatini has plenty of restaurants in the centre of town, which is just up the road from the railway station. Beers were 5 Euros and Pizza's, Spaghetts, 7 euros. If you are looking at meat and 2 veg then expect 15 Euro. The trains at Montecatini take a bit of getting use to. Don't leave the hotel too late as from 11:30 to 14:00 it's siesta time and there are few if any trains and certainly not too Lucca. Get out early and there are a number of trains, so in this case the early bird catches the worm (so to speak). All in all a fantastic place to stay, both the hotel and the town.