Lecce Holidays

A heel of a place

The region of Puglia’s probably one of the easiest cities to spot on the map. As soon as you’ve clocked Italy’s boot-shaped south coast, look out for the bit that’s shaped like a heel and voila – you’ve landed in Puglia. Lecce’s one of the region’s most-stomped spots, thanks to a string of good-looking landmarks made out of limestone. Everything here’s centred around the Piazza del Duomo – the city’s centre square – with many of the city’s most iconic buildings forming its four walls.

Food, glorious food

Italy’s well known for its love of cooking and the Lecce locals don’t buck the trend. Menus in the restaurants here tend to take ingredients from the surrounding countryside, which means dinner’s served same-day fresh. The city’s streets are stacked with trattorias – pint-sized restaurants with a no-fuss approach to dining. You’re covered on the drinks front, too – this part of Italy’s earnt itself celebrity status on Europe’s red wine scene thanks to a collection of cracking reds.

Scene-stealing settings

Italy’s no stranger to good-looking landscapes, but here in Lecce things are stepped up a notch. The limestone cliffs that lap Puglia’s coastline are what’s behind the magic of the carefully carved buildings in the city. The stone’s super soft, which means that many of its buildings are just as detailed as a Michelangelo masterpiece. Away from the city, the coastline is just as easy on the eye – Torre dell’Orso Beach is one of your closest swathes. Here, the green-blue waters are a match made in heaven for wide-eyed snorkellers.