Booking fee
The booking fee includes the costs of booking your tickets such as charges for payment processing. It also covers the provision of our customer care center for processing your order, and all charges imposed by our suppliers.
* This tour requires at least one of the following per booking: Adult, Senior
The museum is located in a medieval building, which encompasses the remains of a 15th century synagogue, which was right in the centre of the Jewish district in Lecce.
Visitors to the museum can see the pools that were once used for ritual bathing (mikwa'ot), the doorpost groove that housed the sacred parchment with religious verses from the Scriptures (mezuzah), as well as significant remains of the church that partially incorporated the
earlier synagogue.
Visitors are invited to follow the threads linking the Jewish presence in Lecce and Salento from the Middle Ages up to the present day.
Entrance to the Museum
Private guided tour with a professional guide
Departure Point
Via Umberto I, 9, 73100 Lecce LE, Italy
Jewish Museum Lecce, Lecce, Italy Jewish Museum Lecce 45 minutes
Wheelchair accessible
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
Joseph F
03 Mar 2024
Museum is extremely well done, with excellent use of technology to recreate a past which was erased. A great addition to the history tour of Lecce.
624cathalk
22 Feb 2024
In Lecce off-season to see the many churches and enjoy the details of baroque architecture. By accident, I found a Jewish museum right in the heart of the city so I wandered in and booked a tour. I thought the price of €25 was a little on the steep side but it is comparable to other prices in the city and the tour is 60 minutes so it was justified.
The building itself is medieval and is built over and encompasses the remains of a 15th-century synagogue and ritual baths. Fortunately, I was the only one on the tour and had the complete attention of my guide, Martina, who was a Lecce local and had a genuine passion for her city’s culture and history.
The tour started with an explanation of when, how, and why Jewish people came to Lecce in the early 15th century. A short video depicted what life was like back then as they settled in and created businesses and trade to their expulsion when this area was under Spanish rule.
The next stage is personal items donated to the museum such as a tefillin, a mezuzah, and other individual pieces. My favorite part was seeing the ritual baths which are two meters deep and required a constant flow of water. Martina explained the water comes from underground springs that link with the Idume River.
Other parts of the tour included a room for making papier-mâché (something Lecce is famous for) and a focus on art. A second short video featured the return of three sisters to Lecce in 2016, they were born in Lecce in the 1940s and their families had to leave. This video was a nice touch. This room also contained old photos and stories of locals.
We then ventured out into the courtyard to see where the original synagogue stood before embarking on a short stroll to see the Jewish street names. Most notable was Via Abramo Balmes, named after a Jewish physician, born in Lecce and a personal doctor of a cardinal, (Domenico Grimani).
In the end, I was free to go back and read the information in more detail. Definitely worth a visit if you’re in the area.
One big surprise for me as an Irishman was to see my name on one of the panels. “Cathal” is an old Irish name and not very common anymore, so to see my name after the Irish Saint Cathaldus was certainly serendipitous.
Andy K
05 Nov 2023
Fascinating history over hundreds of years explored in an excellent tour. You won’t be disappointed. We were amazed to find out that the entire museum with its exhibits and facilities was all done within the last couple of decades.
This tour in
Lecce
is organized by
Museo Ebraico di Lecce
We always double-check the availability with our local partners for each booking. Even though this is usually a swift process, it can take up to 24 hours. Once this process is completed you will receive your voucher or ticket by email. If our local partner is not able to confirm your booking we will offer you the best possible alternative. If the new date and/or time doesn’t fit your itinerary, we will reimburse the full amount paid.
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