Salento

Salento, where Maldivian-style beaches and Baroque buildings glow gold under Southern Italy’s sun

From the sophisticated culture and baroque splendour of Lecce to white sand beaches and whitewashed villages that hug the coastline, the Salento Peninsula sits right on the southern tip of Puglia. Experience life in the slower lane here – exploring historic towns, swimming in translucent waters, or enjoying a taste of the region’s vineyards and olive groves.

Things to do

FOOD & DRINK
Salento is celebrated for its rustic Apulian dishes and rich, fruity wines like Primitivo and Negroamaro – as well as its seafood. Classic dishes include spaghetti allo scoglio, a medley of mussels, langoustine, prawns, tomatoes and white wine. And orecchiette, the ‘little ears’ pasta shape and symbol of Puglia is always on the menu. For dessert, treat yourself to pasticciotto – crispy pastry filled with creamy custard, invented in 1745 and served in every Salento bar and restaurant. 

LANDMARKS
With its blend of ancient Roman and intricate 17th century architecture, you can see why Lecce is known as the ‘Florence of the South’. Explore the Basilica di Santa Croce, Cattedrale di Santa Maria Annunziata and Piazza del Duomo. Set among the woods and olive groves of the Valle d'Itria are the centuries-old Trulli Houses, topped with their cone-shaped roofs. And you can’t miss the rocky stacks nicknamed ‘The Two Sisters’ – floating on a piercingly blue sea near the Torre dell’Orso Beach. 

BEACHES
From Porto Cesareo’s wild wetlands and hidden away rocky coves, to the aptly named ‘Maldives of Salento’. Whether you prefer off-the- beaten track nature, or buzzing nightlife hot spots, here is where you’ll find the perfect beach. Sink your toes into powder-soft, white sand and sweeping dunes strewn with white lilies and acacia trees. Gaze across shallow waters dotted with small islets. While fragrant pine forests set the scene for chic beach clubs in Gallipoli’s Baia Verde.

Top Tip from SLH

Torre dell’Orso is the birthplace of Salento reggae music, a hybrid of Jamaican reggae rhythms and lyrics sung in the local Salentino dialect, along with dances like the pizzica and tarantella.