Welcome to Lecce
If Puglia were a movie, Lecce would be cast in the starring role. Bequeathed with a generous stash of baroque buildings by its 17th-century architects, the city has a completeness and homogeneity that other southern Italian metropolises lack. Indeed, so distinctive is Lecce’s architecture that it has acquired its own moniker, barocco leccese (Lecce baroque), an expressive and hugely decorative incarnation of the genre replete with gargoyles, asparagus columns and cavorting gremlins. Swooning 18th-century traveller Thomas Ashe thought it 'the most beautiful city in Italy', but the less-impressed Marchese Grimaldi said the facade of Basilica di Santa Croce made him think a lunatic was having a nightmare.
Top experiences in Lecce
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Lecce activities
Traditional Home Cooking Experience in Lecce with Dinner
Live an authentic culinary experience in Lecce, the baroque capital of Apulia. Enter the home of Giovanni, and enjoy an amazing hands-on cooking followed by a convivial dinner with his family. Giovanni' home is in a typical farmhouse located just outside Lecce´s historic center. With his wife, he welcomes curious travellers into his great hall, complete with fireplace, as if it is your own home. Both of them are passionate for cooking, fine wine and art. They also organize cooking courses and guided tours of wine cellars, if you wish. Giovanni adores cooking and hosting guests, together with the help of his wife, who is originally from the southern region of Puglia. Together they have refined a menu of Pugliese specialties, using products and raw materials from the region, like fish and vegetables from the local market, and olive oil from Salento. Get ready to learn some of the secrets of our cuisine and enjoy the meal with your friends and family. This is a typical menu you will prepare and taste: A Puglia speciality as an appetizer Cream of broccoli with burrata cheese and anchovies Cavalieri spaghetti with ‘hung’ tomatoes Negroamaro pot roast with creamed Galatina potatoes Salento pasticiotto flan. Don't miss the chance to live this unique culinary experience.
Lecce Walking Tour with Papier-Mâché Workshop
Explore lecce and discover picturesque and hidden corners with an expert guide and join a private and customizable tour, back to ancient times and far from stereotypes. Meet a local artisan and join a papier mâché workshop in a typical atelier and aafter that taste delicious local products like cheese, salami, primitivo wine, home-made gelato. Live a unique experience among culture, arts, tradition and folklore.Tour begins visiting the main attractions of the old town such as Porta Napoli, the city monumental entrance; the charming SantaCroce Basilica with its Baroque style and Saint Oronzo square.Tour goes on along the authentic narrow streets to discover the roman vestiges of the amphitheater and theater as well as theother minor squares and churches to find out the original artistic development of the Baroque style in the city.Tour ends meeting Mr. Claudio, a local artisan, who will teach us the papier maché tecniques and unveil the secrets of his famousatelier. During the workshop and together with him we will create a real small statue to take back home.
Lecce Bike Tour
Visit Lecce's most important tourist attractions like piazza Sant' Oronzo, piazza del Duomo and Basilica of Santa Croce. Admire the amazing remains of the Roman Theater and Amphitheater and the wonderful Baroque churches. Follow your guide and reach the monumental doors, the sumptuous palaces with their courts full of thousand-year history and the most hidden corners, rich in legends and anecdotes. During the tour it will be possible to visit the local handcraft boutiques and taste delicious local wine and food. You will venture into the real Lecce and immerse yourself in the lively local life and traditions of this enchanting city. This tour is suitable to everybody with no cycling difficulties. Lecce is a flat and sunny city and is, therefore, perfect to be visited by bike during the whole year.
Lecce Sightseeing Bike Tour and Papier-Mâché Workshop
Explore lecce and discover picturesque and hidden corners with an expert guide and join a private and customizable tour, back to ancient times and far from stereotypes. Meet a local artisan and join a papier mâché workshop in a typical atelier and aafter that taste delicious local products like cheese, salami, primitivo wine, home-made gelato. Live a unique experience among culture, arts, tradition and folklore.Tour begins visiting the main attractions of the old town such as Porta Napoli, the city monumental entrance; the charming SantaCroce Basilica with its Baroque style and Saint Oronzo square.Tour goes on along the authentic narrow streets to discover the roman vestiges of the amphitheater and theater as well as theother minor squares and churches to find out the original artistic development of the Baroque style in the city.Tour ends meeting Mr. Claudio, a local artisan, who will teach us the papier maché tecniques and unveil the secrets of his famousatelier. During the workshop and together with him we will create a real small statue to take back home.
Lecce Cooking with locals, farm to table and market tour experience
Meet your local host in Lecce and stroll the local market for some food shopping. Start to learn how to recognize the local ingredient, how to choose them and use in the local recipes. Your shopping continue with a transfer to nearby village overlooked by the tourist crowd, to visit the local stone oven and get local specialities, stop over to our friend to get some fresh eggs and continue (subject to season) with more harvesting of organically grown vegetable at our garden , for a complete fam to table experience. During the class you will focus on the preparation of a typical traditional lunch, including a hands on "fresh pasta" workshop, to learn how to make the orecchiette "ear shaped" pasta and maccheroni (Italian for macaroni). The class is held in a private house immersed in the an acre of olive groves, veg garden and typical salentine landscape, not in a cooking school for tourist. The menu can also be arranged based on the client needs, taste, and food diet. The cooking class includes a lunch with selected local wines, dessert, and coffee. Pick up and drop off included.
Private Tour: Lecce Guided Walking Tour
The discovery of Lecce starts from the beginning pre-Roman and Roman, to the great period of the Baroque, a walk to the historic center that will take you to discover the wonders of Lecce, one of the most beautiful cities of southern Italy. The route starts from Porta Napoli to Piazza Duomo (Cathedral, Bell Tower, Bishop's Seminar), the baroque heart of Lecce. Continue walking to the Church of St. Irene, Sant'Oronzo square, where you can see the ruins of the Roman amphitheater, the church of San Marco and the Sedile. Walking through the streets of the old town, we will visit the Church of Santa Chiara and Roman Theatre, other important particulars of the story of Lecce. The tour ends at the Basilica of Santa Croce, a jewel of Lecce Baroque and Celestine Convent.