Pd- and Pt-based catalysts supported on CeO2 and Al2O3 have been prepared by traditional incipient wetness impregnation and by solution combustion synthesis, and their catalytic activities have been compared for propane and DME combustion. Kinetic measurements carried out in a laboratory-scale recycle reactor apparatus indicate that combustion synthesized Pd-based materials are much more active than the corresponding impregnated ones, whereas for Pt-based catalysts no significant difference is observed. On the basis of high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) results, the enhanced catalytic activity is tentatively ascribed to the coexistence of highly active palladium centers (Pd-II species) that form upon solution combustion synthesis and nanosized metallic Pd particles.