Lecce recommendations? Host just canceled our Air BnB for February

Lola - Is Road Scholar using the Risorgimento Resort for your tour? I took that tour last fall - I know we messaged about it:)

That Risorgimento Resort is right at the heart of Lecce - the name of the hotel is misleading.

I would have no qualms about extending your stay there. It’s a lovely hotel, nice rooms, nice breakfast and fabulous location right in the pedestrian area.

We loved Lecce and would like spend more time there. This hotel looks beautiful!

Valerie, thank you so much for responding. I knew I had talked with someone about the RS trip but did not recall who it was, and did not have time to look back through my messages to find out (had to run to my fitness class).

Yes, the Risorgimento Resort is the place we will stay; I never checked the location and just assumed it was outside town! If we add all 3 nights there we would be in the same hotel for a week—-I am not sure we would like that. But I will take a look at the rooms, and the location. Even if we want to stay in an apartment Incould focus my search on the area nearby so we could just walk over on the check-in day for the tour.

Suki—I know I like your taste in dining and lodging. Do you have any restaurant recommendations for Lecce? We prefer small, local places, and do not need an English menu. My husband loves interesting pasta and I generally choose seafood ( no gluten for me).

Here’s a thought—when I booked this trip previously (canceled by covid), I had us spending 2 nights in Monopoli in what looked like a lovely Albergo Diffuso-style apartment. Maybe we should break up the train journey down from Bari with 2 nights in Monopoli and add the third night to the Risorgimento Resort. What do you think?

If you stick with Lecce, this place is fantastic: http://www.roofbaroccosuite.it/en
I've stayed there twice. There is a kitchenette, but the owner provides a gourmet basket for breakfast (you can request more sweet or savory). There is a good restaurant around the corner, Nonna Tetti. We also like Le Zie and Alle Due Corti. It's been a while since my visits though.
Of course I also loved Monopoli! Osteria Perrici was our fave there. We rented an apartment from https://book.helloapulia.com.
I would not rule out Bari, great food town with a bit of recent buzz and lots of day trip options. I only stayed one night each time, but in February I would strongly consider.

Lola, instead of Monopoli, look at Polignano a Mare where we spent ten wonderful days by the Adriatic Sea.
We visited Lecce as a day trip but next time we would stay there for a few nights. I remember a meal in Lecce was “Cucina Povera” poor peoples’ cuisine, and it was so delicious, a wide pasta like papardelle, tossed with chick peas and a very light pasta tomato based sauce. I took a photo and am trying to find the name of the restaurant.

bummer. I'm getting tired of that behaviour at Airbnb. Sorry that happened to you, Lola

We also stayed at the Roof Baroccco apartment. It's lovely. Wonderful host. Very convenient location. Short walk into the centro.

Thank you all. I did find an nice apartment in Lecce, close to the tour hotel, so we can just walk over to check in and meet the group. I decided spending the 3 nights in Lecce,rather than making another stop on the way, was simpler. We can visit the other towns (Polignano Al Mare, etc.) on a day trip if we wish, or explore sights closer to Lecce that are not included on the tour.

I did receive an apologetic message from the owner who canceled after all; I had to go into my Air BnB account to see it. They had some maintenance and renovation projects going that were running way behind schedule, and will not be taking guests until April. I wrote back saying I understood the issue all too well—it is happening here too. One example—our son’s bathroom renovation project ran 6 months late, due to “supply chain issues” with the tile and fixtures. As a result, their guest room is not available, so when we visited for Thanksgiving we took over the kids’ room (thankfully not bunk beds!) and the twins slept in their playroom.

The owner, an American ex-pat, then invited us to join him for a glass of wine while we are there.

That's great, enjoy beautiful Lecce. The Faggiano Museum is a treat.

“The owner, an American ex-pat, then invited us to join him for a glass of wine while we are there.”
Sounds like the cancellation is “an opportunity rather than a disappointment.” I can understand and empathize with renovation projects running way behind schedule! Have been in that situation. How kind of the air BnB owner to send an apology. Enjoy your tour!

We loved staying in Polignano a Mare just south of Bari. We had a fun trip Alberobello. Bari itself is the biggest city along that section of the heel, and kind of a fun vibrant place with good restaurants, good shopping (*), and lot of people. Polignano is small but very cute, very scenic, good restaurants, and a friendly small town vibe. We were not that impressed by Monopoli, Lecce, Ostuni, Cisterinam or Matera

(* I bought an induction moka pot in the store in Bari that is not available in the USA).