Arriving 11 pm FCO, need to get to Lecce. What is my plan?

Well, you could see if there is a flight from FCO to Brindisi airport that late at night, then stay in Brindisi and train to Lecce later the next morning. Also kind of ugh, but look into it. We've done Rome to Puglia by train and by flying, and if you are already at the airport it's quicker to fly. Spending a night in Rome is an OK idea, too, and will not cost $300.

Yes, I just looked and there's a RyanAir flight at 7:40 to Brindisi. But that still leaves the question of killing the 8 hours until then.

Not fun to spend 8 hours in an airport, but we've spent more time than that due to an airline's delays, and fairly often 6 hours layover of our own free will to save money. FCO is nicer than any US airport I've ever been in. Take turns sleeping?

OK, one more thought. We've never done this at FCO but we have at MXP (MIlan) --- there are much less expensive hotels a few miles from the airport with free airport shuttles. Whether they operate after midnight, though, I don't know. The hotel we've stayed at near MXP was not even $100 a night.

Just get an inexpensive hotel in Rome not far from the Termini station and get some sleep. Make sure it has a 24-hour reception desk, and let them know you are arriving late. I saw hotels in the Monti neighborhood for under $150 on booking.com, but that may not have been relevant to your actual date.

There is a direct train to Lecce departing at 10 am the next morning. It takes a total of 5 hours 50 minutes to reach Lecce. Buy your tickets in advance on Trenitalia to save some €€.

That departure gives you time to have breakfast, maybe go for a short walk and get to the station. You spend your jet-lag day napping on the train.

We did this last February, arriving at Rome FCO around 6 pm not midnight. We took a flat-rate taxi to our hotel near Villa Borghese, checked in, showered, and went out for a light dinner before hitting the bed. We booked the 13:05 train to Bari the next day so we would have time to walk around in the morning, and that was good. We did nap a bit on the train, and the following day we felt fine.

But if you are in a hurry to get to Lecce the 10 am train might work better for you.

Trying to save money by sleeping in the airport is false economy—-not a good way to start your trip. You could end up fatigued for days.

For sure, I was just offering suggestions for "3) Something else I'm not thinking of?" ---- I absolutely would choose to do what Joe and Lola are recommending myself! I like a straightforward plan with maximum comfort, but not everybody is like me. My best friend and her new husband spent some nights of their honeymoon sleeping in their tiny rental car.

Lola, I think this is probably what we are going to do, and in fact I was wondering if I might be able to get a timed entry to the Borghese Gallery that morning because the one thing I'm really burning to see in Rome is the Rape of Prosperina. Where did you stay? Would you recommend it?

There is a Hilton Garden Inn at the Rome airport. Free 24 hour airport shuttle. More expensive than it should be , but if you have any credit cards/ airline rewards points, it's a part of many programs. See what kind of price you can get. We had Sapphire visa points and used them. The price does increase the closer to your dates.
The regular Hilton at the airport is really expensive for what it is. Good luck!

Last summer I was arriving around 11pm in Rome and getting on a train late the next morning, so I chose the lowest-category room at Hotel Raffaello, on a very pleasant block near Termini (have stayed near there before, but not at this particular hotel). It turned out to be a great hotel, and I would happily stay there again, although I would probably book a better room--one with a view--for a longer stay. I had time for breakfast and a stroll around the beautiful neighborhood before heading to the station. It's not right next to Termini, but maybe a 10-minute easy walk.

https://www.hotelraffaello.it/

Pugliese ( what a great name), we stayed at The Regency, a boutique hotel which which is part of a collection of hotels affiliated with Marriott, but not part of the Marriott chain. Rates there are date -dependent and vary from $200-$500, depending on your date. We paid close to $ 200 last February, without breakfast, and it was well worth it.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g187791-d21171188-Reviews-The_Regency_Rome_A_Tribute_Portfolio_Hotel-Rome_Lazio.html

There are other hotels in the area that may be cheaper. The neighborhood is great if you want to visit Villa Borghese in the morning. We did not, because we had been there before, but we truly enjoyed walking through the park for 2 hours before catching our 13:05 train to Puglia.

This area is just inside the Aurelian walls subject to the flat rate €50 taxi rate from FCO into Rome, direct to your hotel., That is not much for the convenience. And we feel it is always best to find something to like and explore when we land in Europe, rather than treat the arrival day as a “throwaway” to be endured . Since you have an interest in seeing something at Villa Borghese, I will encourage you to make reservations for that and maybe take the later train to Lecce.

And what a wonderful place that is. Do you have lodging there?

Find a hotel near Termini station and spend the night. The next day take a train to Lecce. If you spend a sleepless night at the airport the next day you’ll be a worthless zombie and you will have wasted a perfectly good sightseeing day.

Thanks Lola. We are actually going to start off in Nardo and then move up to Martina Franca after a week, but the rental car pickup is in Lecce and of course it's on our itinerary to visit. Do you have other recommendations?

I’m in the Gargano Peninsula now and I can certainly recommend it. Both Vieste and Peschici are nice. Not sure if it’s too far north for you. Puglia is pretty long from one end to the other.

I live in the Inland Northwest of the US so everything in Puglia seems wonderfully compact to me! From Vieste to Lecce is half an hour less than I'll be driving to visit my friend tomorrow. I'm still finalizing our itinerary and we're not going until September. If you had a month in Puglia, how would you divide it? (Maybe I should start a new topic?)

I've stayed at the Hilton at FCO ... nice, but getting expensive now.

We are going to try this place, between T1 and T2 ... Air Rooms Rome Airport by HelloSky ... still expensive, but good crash pad. On Booking.com.

Yes, if HelloSky had had availability on our dates I definitely would have done that as it looks like it's by far the easiest solution.