BOUTIQUE HOTELS
Your Puglia experience begins at a wonderful hotel, and Salento is home to many. Urban retreats to countryside bio-farms, here are some places of charm where to really feel at home and immerse into the purest Mediterranean living
PALAZZO GUIDO | Lecce
Experience the Leccese aristocratic living from back in the day at this romantic palazzo, where former journalist turned hotelier Geltrude Guido keeps alive the memory and the style of her grandma Donna Geltrude
Geltrude Jr. obviously had a vision of grandeur here, with her creative mixture of the antique and the contemporary taking you back to another era without sacrificing the comfort of a modern b&b.
It all feels regal here– think detals such as breakfast served in the marvelous nonna’s porcelains and rare silver cutleries. Also a gem is the mini spa set in the palazzo’s former stable
MANTATELURE’ | Lecce
Charming guest house set in a building dating back to 1550.
Besides the convenient location and the charming essential design, this place’s magic lays in their care of details. Guests here feel ultra-pampered, unique and special in an atmosphere of quality hospitality at great value for money.
How not to love their in-house bakery, which delivers every morning the freshest croissants and bread? Or the multichannel dedicated radio that makes the music lovers feel at home? Or the large choice of pillows?
It’s all about details, yes, and beauty, and real sense of hospitality
MINE & YOURS | Lecce
Formally a London style membership club, this classy palazzo in Lecce’s commercial area is home to four superb suites, a super fine restaurant, a rooftop bar and a gentleman barber.
Rooms aren’t overly spacious, true, but if good design and serious comfort do matter to you, well, this place is a winner. And fares very reasonable for the high standards on offer. The super attentive service makes it even more special, with their concierge desk excelling at problem solving and 360 degrees assistance. And the restaurant is from another planet.
Other projects from the M&Y group are in London, Sardinia, Dubai and Florence, where actually their new restaurant has just gained one Michelin star
PALAZZO DE NOAH | Lecce
Their motto “Research into the beautiful” could not be more appropriate for this ancient palazzo from the 1500, half way between the Lecce movida and one of the old town’s few remaining intact areas.
A thrilling mixture of comfort, art & design and good service, guests fall in love with the domestic feel that perfectly blends with this “lifestyle design hotel” luxurious approach. Where every single detail is about art and classy creativity.
The rooftop comes with a smal pool, perfect for a urban sunbath or one of their excellent apertitivo. Very fancy indeed
MASSERIA TRAPANA’ | Surbo
Just a short drive from the centre of Lecce, since its opening a few yers ago this Australian owned relais has raised the standards of local hospitality.
Beautifully set in the magnificent north Salento countryside, it is as elegant as laidback with everything – design to large space to top notch service- just being fantastico.
Without letting you feel the pressure of a 5 star hotel, which in fact this masseria is: they just make it happen, naturally with style. Each and every of the nine among suites and private villas offer a different perspective of Salento living, assuring space for total privacy as well as for socializing with the other guests. Welcome to dreamland
MASSERIA BERNARDINI | Nardò
One of the very first high-end relais in the region, the glamorous Masseria Bernardini still is one of my very favorite.
Set at a breath-taking location with fine interiors, luxuriant vegetation, and a vast collection from some of Italy’s most renowned contemporary artists, the masseria is a fine display of the truest Italian style with a slight Asian feel too. All authentic and unpretentious, it is pure uncompromised quality.
Located in the countryside of Nardo’ just a short drive from the beaches of Porto Selvaggio and Gallipoli, it is also available for rent as a whole villa
NATURALIS | Zollino
A wonderful masseria where to experience authentic country living, for a unique Salento journey in deep, stylish connection with mother nature.
By combining maximum comfort, quality service and a number of mind-blowing experiences, your stay here will be as memorable as regenerant: the spa too is one of a kind, with a variety of treatments based on their home-made cosmetics.
The rooms and suites are spacious and elegant with refined rustic antiques, terracotta artefacts and precious hand-crafted textiles. Add the majestic pool, the decadent breakfast and the good farm-to-table restaurant, then ultimately you will experience a multisensorial state of bliss here
VIGNA CORALLO | Otranto
This is the only vinery by the sea in Salento, a young establishment producing a wine whose unique character is also transported into the lovely resort built among the vineyard
Just a short walk from the marvelous Baia dei Turchi – one of Italy’s most spectacular beaches – Tenute Corallo consists of eleven apartments all with private outside patio overlooking the vineyards, and a vast communal area dominated by an extensive pool, a fine restaurant and a bar.
The large rooms guarantee comfort and privacy, yet they are not any glamurous but still nice and fresh. Of course wine takes the scene here, so expect big wine tastings, glasses a go-go and visits to the vineyards.
The lucky September guests could take part to the harvest. Amazing place, nice and unpretentious, so far highly recommended