Arthotel & Park Lecce

The dinner was the biggest surprise of my one night business stay at Arthotel. I’ve had plenty of great meals, from Michelin food to homemade, grandma-style cooking, but the anglerfish risotto with acidic butter topped them all. Each bite was better than the last, and the restaurant’s ambience was fantastic. I could eat that dish for the rest of my life. Breakfast was also much more varied than I expected from the other reviews: cheeses and meats, grilled vegetables, bread, eggs, bacon, homemade focaccia, at least five cakes, three kinds of croissants, fresh fruit, and cereal. My room was clean and looked nice, and the outdoor pool is amazing and big. I gave the location four stars because you definitely need a car. Otherwise, it was a great stay.

The massage was the standout for me: €28 for 25 minutes, with Luana and Lina giving a full body treatment and working on specific areas of tension. They were fantastic, and their excellent English and German made it easy to communicate. The outdoor pool was a pleasant surprise despite the negative reviews, and the attendant was extremely kind. He gave us free sunbeds on both days and put them under the trees for natural shade since we hadn’t booked an umbrella. The location is outside town, so a car is essential for getting there and around comfortably. Breakfast needs work: the choice was limited, and the focaccia was dry and low quality. One more thing to know, the indoor pool is currently closed.

Luana and Lina made the stay memorable with a 25-minute full body massage for €28. They were amazing, professional, and easy to talk to in English, German, and Italian. Both were incredibly kind, helped relieve my back pain a lot, and even showed me around the place. The outdoor pool also exceeded my expectations, especially given the mixed reviews. The attendant was so friendly, giving us free sunbeds both days and finding natural shade under the trees since we hadn’t reserved an umbrella. The estate is huge, impressive, modern, and artsy, and it’s pet-friendly. It’s outside town, so I’d recommend having a car to get around easily. Breakfast was bland and underwhelming, with basic options, dry, squishy focaccia, and not much fruit or veg. They did offer soy milk, which is rare in Italy, but I would have liked more vegan choices. The indoor pool was closed until October, if I remember what I was told correctly.

The property itself is clean throughout, with good water pressure, lifts, lots of parking, and a large building that mixes old and new. But we had a number of problems. The central air conditioning couldn’t keep up when the hotel was full. Our room, which was big enough for three, kept getting hot. We woke around 2 a.m. covered in sweat, and it also got hot during the day when guests were resting in their rooms. I complained repeatedly, and maintenance came to check, but it wasn’t fixed at first. We wondered if the air was being switched off because sometimes it didn’t work. In the end they gave us an electric fan. I’ve stayed in worse hotels without having this kind of air conditioning issue. Breakfast was supposed to start at 7:30. We arrived around 7:40-7:45, and most of the food was gone. We ate what was left and waited 30-40 minutes, hoping they’d refill the buffet, but nobody did. We asked the only man working there to refill the juice. He was handling everything: clearing tables, seating guests, setting tables, taking coffee orders, making the coffee, and bringing it over. There’s a group of around 60-70 people for breakfast every day, so we felt sorry for him and complained again. The next day he had help, possibly the manager, making coffee, plus a woman who seemed to be new to the job. When we saw another big group and the buffet running low at about the same time, we delayed our plans to leave early and came back around 8:30. By then they had finally refilled it. Check-in was also poor. About 20 minutes before the official time, I asked if our room was ready. The receptionist called to check and started checking us in, took our IDs, and handed me a key and card without explaining them. He didn’t mention checkout time, or breakfast hours and location, so I had to ask what the key and card were for. He was cold and didn’t smile or welcome us. The night shift receptionist tried to solve problems right away, and the female receptionist was good. The others were warm and smiled. At the pool, you have to pay for an umbrella. As hotel guests, you get sunbeds, but otherwise have to find shade by the plants. The pool is around two meters deep, though I’m not sure, and only half or less is suitable for kids. Even adults who can’t swim should be careful in the deeper part. My husband also disliked the TV. It wasn’t a smart TV and often showed no signal. I didn’t try the Wi-Fi, so I can’t comment on it.