The features that go towards making this an - almost ! - perfect holiday choice are often not mentioned at all in other brochures or pamphlets.

The breath-taking visual element, the Apuan Alps - the range of mountains 6km back from the beach - rise to some 6,000 ft in less than a15-minute drive, contributing to the mild climate, but also producing that most famous of all marbles - Carrara marble. They offer, too, superb walks and trekking of all kinds with quite incredibly spectacular views from both above and below.

It is also a real delight to find a corner of the world where the bulk of tourists are the natives themselves. This leads to a further bonus in the form of excellent, reasonably priced, wholly Italian food in the many trattorias and restaurants.

An extremely important feature is proximity to so many beautiful, must-be-visited places, to mention just a few: Florence, Siena, Lucca, Pisa, Volterra, without, however, foregoing the pleasures of a seaside holiday.