A leisurely return day trip to Lecce October 2025

On Saturday morning first thing during breakfast I watch the maneuvers to get up a small boat which had been left almost underwater by the storm of the previous day. After that, a little late, we decide to go to Lecce. It’s an easy 40 minute drive but we have the usual difference of opinion about parking, more difficult than usual because we want to park not too far from Museo Sigismondo but that is also the area near the station. We retreat a little from both, until we find a lucky space in a residential area. From there, the historical centre is nearer than it seems on the map. The first stop, because we happen upon it, is the courtyard of the Università del Salento. 

From there we wander on, stopping to look at the exhibition La figura tra realtà e magia of the Fondazione Palmieri in an ex-church, still with one or two nice frescoes, just behind the Duomo. The paintings are by local artists in the sense they were born, lived or died in the Salento area. A pleasant stop.

We have visited Lecce several times. In detail, several years ago and then more recently on a day trip during a longer stay in Brindisi in 2017 so this time we don’t buy the Biglietto LeccEcclesiae to visit the  Duomo, Basilica di Santa Croce, Chiesa di Santa Chiara, Chiesa di San Matteo, Antico Seminario e Museo di Arte Sacra (MuDAS) since we have seen them all, except for the Museo di Arte Sacra but unfortunately there isn’t a separate ticket just for that.

We look around the square in front of the Museum and the Duomo and wander along the main street in front which is busy with tourists as far as the Church of San Giovanni Battista. We go in. Some baroque, but not over the top. Nice. We then walk along via Giuseppe Palmieri, stopping at Piazzetta Ignazio Falconieri to admire the facade of palazzo Palmeri and Palazzo Marrese and other pleasant corners of plants and flowers and on towards Porta Napoli. There we turn right and right again, past the Greek church, which is closed and end up near Martinucci and the Roman theatre in the very heart of the historical centre. Our stroll around Lecce today isn't about ticcking off destinations, but just looking: Lecce is baroque, over the top, and that is it's splendour, even on this rather damp and gloomy day.

We are undecided about lunch but in the end go downstairs at Martinucci where it is quiet in the sense there is nobody sitting down there but the music rather too loud. The food is always good at Martinucci and we have fritti misti a ‘rustico’ Leccese , a calzone al forno, beer, water, cappuccino and coffee for a total of 26 euros. It was warmer than sitting outside. Our last stop is at Museo Sigismondo, where we see the archeological museum which has some fine pieces but unfortunately the Pinacoteca, the main reason for our visit, is closed because there was some water damage during the storms of the previous days. A pity. Walking back towards the car we admire the splendid private villas in the same street as the museum.

We walk back to the car, stop to do some shopping and, back in Porto Cesareo, finally, the sun is on the balcony and there’s a splendid sunset with views of the Sila mountains of Calabria in the distance.