When I visited Lecce for the first time more than twenty years ago, I said to myself “this is the Italy I imagined”. Wherever you go, you are surrounded by history, good food, and passionately gesticulating locals. Every other Italian city probably has that, but in Apulia the pace is particularly casual.
Lecce embraces you with its narrow streets, small squares, and never lets go.
Compared to Bari, it is compact, ideal for walking and exploring the city at your own pace. It also means a minimum of traffic, as you will be moving mainly in pedestrian zones.
It’s also cleaner than Bari, and in repeated visits to both cities since 2003, I’ve found Lecce safer and more welcoming. After all, Bari is the largest port of Puglia, and with that comes the negatives associated with busier cities.
Monuments
When Apulia was under the rule of the Kingdom of Sicily between the 16th and 18th centuries, baroque buildings appeared in Lecce like mushrooms after the rain. They were built from the popular local limestone, the so-called pietra leccesewhich is unmissable in Lecce. They also built three entrance gates to the old town from ocher limestone, the Temple of St. The cross, the dome in the center, the Palazzo dei Celestini, and many other buildings.
Attractions in Lecce:
- The Roman amphitheater, which was discovered only in the 20th century
- Jewish museum in the old synagogue
- Museo Faggiano with archaeological collections of artifacts dating back over 2000 years
- Basilica of St. Cross
- Piazza Sant’Oronzo – the square where it comes alive mainly in the summer at festivals and after sunset.
Attractions in Bari
- Basilica of St. Nicholas
- Bari Vecchia – the old town where most of the sights are concentrated
- Strada dell’Arco Basso – street also known as orecchiette street, where local women prepare typical pasta in front of you
- Norman fortress and Svevo castle (Swabian castle from the 12th century), from where you will have a great view of the sea and the old town
- Lungomare Nazario Saur – promenade by the sea, most beautiful after sunset
- Teatro Petruzzelli – one of the largest opera houses in Italy.
Prices
I won’t lie, Bari has the upper hand in this, because it has better prices for accommodation and food. Although, even here you can get “burnt” on the prices in the tourist zones, where for one course of pasta you will pay what you would pay for lunch for two with dessert in a smaller town in Puglia.
On the other hand, Lecce is a university town, and that means a lot of small businesses and tavernas where you can eat at a reasonable price. You will pay a little more for accommodation alone than in Bari, since most of them are in the historic center.
Food
In Lecce, Bari, or any other city in Puglia, you will quickly forget about pizza. Although you may feel that this is a rich region for the magnificent historical buildings, the gastronomy of the region is known as cucina supervera (kitchen of the poor). This is because the simplest ingredients were used in the recipes, and it is still the case today. The best dishes on restaurant menus or on local tables are composed of “ordinary” chickpeas, pasta, vegetables, bread, and exceptionally meat.
For a bite to eat in Lecce, I recommend a good old classic rustico Leccesepastry stuffed with mozzarella and béchamel with tomato sauce. Don’t miss the desserts pasticciottowhich is a dessert similar to the Portuguese delicacy pastel de nataonly with a denser dough for the body and also a denser vanilla filling.
Bari, on the other hand, is famous for its focaccia, and especially fresh sea urchins, which you just need to sprinkle with lemon and have a local beer with.
If you have a week or more in Puglia, do not hesitate to move south to Lecce, or to one of the smaller towns, especially if you plan to rent a car.
Bari is for those who need more fun than relaxation on vacation. Lecce, on the other hand, is for romantic souls, families with children and introspective travelers who need time and space to think and discover slowly, which may not be possible in Bari.
Lecce is also a better choice if you are going to the beaches of Salento. You will not find very clean and sandy beaches in the vicinity of Bari. Both cities are for different types of travelers, and the advantage is that they are only an hour and a half apart by train, so you can see both and decide where to spend more time.
About the author
Ivana Grešlíková has been traveling since 2006. She lived in Asia for a long time, her current base is Bulgaria. He blogs at ivanagreslikova.com. Author of travel books I will eat everything at your placewhere he addresses the less discussed topics of popular destinations. You can follow her travels on Instagram or Facebook.
