The Immacolata long weekend in Puglia: four days in Brindisi, 5 to 8 December 2026

Why spend the Immacolata weekend in Puglia?

For Italians, 8 December is the first holiday of Christmas. Families put up the tree, towns switch on their lights and the first markets open. In 2026 it falls on a Tuesday, so the ponte, the bridge, is easy: Saturday to Tuesday with one day off work.

Puglia is a good place to spend it. The weather is mild compared with the north of Europe, the old towns are quiet, accommodation costs far less than in summer, and you see the region as people who live here see it: market stalls, wood smoke, new olive oil and long Sunday lunches.

Brindisi makes the logistics simple. The airport is about 10 minutes from the old town, so you can land on Saturday morning and be walking to the harbour by lunch. Ostuni, Cisternino and Lecce are all within an hour.

A four-day plan from Brindisi

Saturday 5: arrive and walk the old town

Drop your bags and walk down to the waterfront, where the Roman column marks the end of the Via Appia. Take the little harbour boat across to the Monumento al Marinaio if the sea is calm, then come back for an aperitivo as the lights come on. Our guide to evenings in Brindisi has the places to start.

Sunday 6: Ostuni and Cisternino

Drive north into the Valle d'Itria. In the last edition Ostuni had its lights on from the end of November and a Christmas programme in the Villa Comunale, and Cisternino opened its market in the old town on 7 December. Lunch in Cisternino is the classic: a butcher's shop that grills the meat you choose. Back in Brindisi, the Christmas market in Piazza Vittoria opens in the evening.

Monday 7: Lecce or the inland towns

Lecce is 30 to 40 minutes away by train or car, with baroque churches and papier-mâché nativity figures in the workshops. If you prefer something smaller, Mesagne and Oria opened their Christmas markets and lights on 7 December last year. On the evening of 7 December Torre Santa Susanna lights the fanòve, large bonfires for the Immacolata.

Tuesday 8: the Immacolata in Brindisi

It is a public holiday, so take it slowly: a long lunch, a walk through the old town, and in the evening the lights switch-on. In the last edition the tree and the lights went on in Piazza Duomo, Corso Garibaldi, Piazza Vittoria and the port. If your flight is on Tuesday evening, the old town is close enough to see the start and still reach the airport.

What is on in the province that weekend

These are the dates of the last edition (2025/26). The 2026 programmes are usually published in November, so check the town websites before you go.

For a wider view of the year, see our calendar of festivals and events in Brindisi and the guide to the villages of the province.

What to eat in early December

December food in Puglia is about frying and new oil. Pettole, soft balls of fried dough, appear in every town in the weeks before Christmas, plain, with honey or with a piece of anchovy inside. Cartellate, ribbons of fried pastry soaked in vincotto or honey, are on every pastry counter.

It is also the end of the olive harvest, and olio nuovo, green and peppery, is the best souvenir you can carry home. Ask at a market or a bakery where to buy it from a local mill. Our guide to what to eat in Brindisi covers the restaurants and the dishes to order.

Practical tips for the long weekend

• Book early. Italians travel on this weekend, and the best places in the old towns fill up from October.
• 8 December is a public holiday. Offices and banks close, many shops open later or not at all, restaurants are open but busy at lunch, so reserve a table.
• A car helps. Ostuni, Cisternino and the inland towns are easier by car. Read our guide to driving and parking in Brindisi for the ZTL in the old town.
• Pack a windproof jacket. Days are mild, but the north wind can make evenings feel cold. Rain usually comes in short spells.
• Flights. Brindisi airport runs all year. See from the airport to the old town.

The Immacolata weekend at BDS House

BDS House is a whole home in Brindisi's old town, a few minutes' walk from Piazza Duomo, where the tree is lit. It sleeps up to six, which suits two couples or a family, and has a full kitchen for a slow breakfast before a day out. On a sunny December lunchtime the two private terraces still catch the light.

If you book directly with us, an Apulian welcome box is waiting when you arrive. Check your dates here, and read our guide to Brindisi in winter for the rest of the season.