Lucca Comics and Games: Dates, Tickets & Venue (Lucca)

A convention with ramparts

Most conventions happen in a hall. This one fills a medieval city.

For the 2026 edition, announced for November 13-18, 2026, Lucca Comics and Games spreads through the old centre of Lucca. It is one of the largest comics, games and pop-culture gatherings in the world. Exhibitor pavilions go up in the squares, and Via Fillungo turns into a slow river of capes, armour and foam swords.

The setting is the whole point. Lucca’s brick Renaissance walls run in an unbroken loop around the centre, and the event sits inside that ring. You walk between game publishers and comic artists along streets laid out in Roman times. You pass Romanesque church fronts on the way.

How the pavilions and piazzas work

The festival has two layers, and it pays to understand them before you arrive.

• Ticketed areas: the large temporary pavilions and exhibition spaces in the squares and on the walls. This is where publishers, game studios, artists’ tables and signings are.
• Open streets: the lanes, piazzas and ramparts between them. Anyone can walk these, and this is where most of the cosplay happens.

Plenty of people come only for the open-air side. They stroll, photograph costumes and eat. If you want the stands, demos or the dealers’ areas, you need a ticket for your day. Ticket types, prices and any day-specific rules are posted on the official Lucca Comics and Games site. Check there rather than at the gate.

Getting to Lucca

The train is the sensible choice. Lucca railway station stands just outside the southern walls. From there it is a short walk through Porta San Pietro into the centre.

• From Florence: regional trains run from Firenze Santa Maria Novella. The ride is a little over an hour.
• From Pisa: trains from Pisa Centrale take around half an hour. Pisa’s Galileo Galilei airport is the nearest international airport.
• By car: avoid it if you can. The historic centre is a restricted traffic zone, and parking outside the walls fills up during the festival.

Expect packed regional trains on festival days, especially in the morning and late afternoon. Many people in costume travel this way, so a carriage full of elves is normal.

Walking the walls between halls

The walls are wide, tree-lined and flat on top. That makes them Lucca’s best shortcut during the festival.

The full circuit is roughly four kilometres. You can climb up at almost any of the bastions and drop back down near the piazza you want. Going this way beats pushing down Via Fillungo, which becomes a shuffle at peak times. The ramparts also give you open views over terracotta roofs. Out here, cosplayers have the space to pose properly.

A few landmarks help you find your way through the crowd:

• Piazza dell’Anfiteatro: an oval square whose houses were built into the ring of a Roman amphitheatre.
• Torre Guinigi: the brick tower with holm oaks growing from its top. You can see it over the rooftops.
• San Michele in Foro: the church with the tall, layered white façade, standing on the old Roman forum.
• Duomo di San Martino: Lucca’s cathedral, towards the southeast of the centre.

Moving through the crowds without losing your day

This is a festival where planning matters. The old centre is compact, and its streets are narrow.

• Pick the two or three stands you most want to see before you go. Trying to cover everything means queueing all day.
• Make the pavilions your morning. It usually works better to go there early, then spend the afternoon on the walls and in the streets, when the costume crowd peaks.
• Bring props that pass security. Bag and prop checks are common at large conventions. Read the official rules on replica weapons before you build anything elaborate.
• Meet friends at a fixed point. Phone signal can struggle in very dense crowds, so choose a bastion or a church door as a backup meeting place.
• Ask before photographing a cosplayer. A quick “posso fare una foto?” (“can I take a photo?”) goes a long way. Most will happily pose. Step aside afterwards so you don’t block the lane.

Paying by card is widespread in Lucca. Small food stalls and bars sometimes prefer coins for a quick coffee. Remember that in Italy you usually pay at the till first, then show your receipt at the counter.

Eating in Lucca on a festival day

Restaurants inside the walls fill up quickly at lunchtime. Book a table if a sit-down meal matters to you, or eat early.

Lucca has its own dishes, and they are worth tracking down:

• Tordelli lucchesi: large meat-filled pasta in a meat ragù, the city’s signature first course.
• Buccellato: a sweet, ring-shaped bread with raisins and aniseed, sold by Lucca’s bakeries.
• Torta coi becchi: a pastry tart with a scalloped edge, filled with a sweet vegetable or chocolate filling.

For a fast bite between pavilions, the bakeries and focaccia counters on the side streets off Via Fillungo cost less time than a sit-down trattoria. Late in the afternoon, take an espresso standing at the bar. That is how most Italians drink it, and it costs you only a few minutes.

Where to stay when Lucca is full

Rooms inside the walls go very quickly for the festival dates. If you can’t find one, the rail line is your friend.

• Pisa: close by train and well stocked with hotels. A good base if you are flying into Galileo Galilei.
• Viareggio: a seaside town on the coast line with direct trains to Lucca. It is quieter in the autumn off-season.
• Florence: further away, but practical if you want the festival to be part of a longer Tuscany trip.

Take one day for the open streets, or two to three days if you want the pavilions, signings and gaming areas without rushing. Confirm timing, venue maps and tickets on the official Lucca Comics and Games site before you book travel.