Puglia Itinerary: 7 Days Through Italy's Heel

Puglia (Apulia) — the heel of Italy’s boot — is one of the country’s most distinctive regions: trulli houses, Baroque cities, Adriatic coastline, and a food culture built on olive oil, orecchiette, and burrata. Seven days allows a complete loop from Bari through the Valle d’Itria, into Basilicata (Matera), and south to the Salento peninsula.

Overview

• Days 1–2: Bari and the coast
• Day 3: Alberobello and the Valle d’Itria
• Day 4: Matera (Basilicata — technically a day trip into a neighbouring region)
• Days 5–6: Lecce and the Salento
• Day 7: Ostuni and departure from Brindisi

Days 1–2: Bari

Fly into Bari airport (Karol Wojtyla Airport, connected to the city centre by train). Base in or near the historic centre.

Day 1: Bari Vecchia — the old city’s labyrinthine alleyways, the Basilica di San Nicola (one of the finest Romanesque churches in Italy), the fish market on the seafront (buy sea urchins directly from vendors), and the Castle Svevo. Evening: aperitivo in the new city and dinner in the old.

Day 2: Day trip to Polignano a Mare (30 minutes by train) — a whitewashed village on limestone cliffs above the Adriatic. Swimming from the sea caves below the town in summer. Back to Bari for focaccia barese for lunch.

Day 3: Alberobello and the Valle d’Itria

Drive or take the train from Bari to Alberobello (1.5 hours by train or 50 minutes by car).

The trulli — the conical limestone houses — are unique to this area. Alberobello has the largest concentration, with two UNESCO-listed districts (Rione Monti and Aia Piccola). Heavily visited in summer; go early.

From Alberobello, drive through the Valle d’Itria: Locorotondo (a circular white city on a hill with an excellent DOC white wine), Martina Franca (Baroque city, best prosciutto in Puglia), Cisternino (less visited, the best butchers in the region). Sleep in the Valle d’Itria (Alberobello or Locorotondo) or continue to Ostuni.

Day 4: Matera

Drive from the Valle d’Itria to Matera (1.5 hours by car; public transport requires a bus from Taranto, allow 2.5–3 hours).

Matera (technically in Basilicata, not Puglia) is within day-trip range. The sassi — cave dwellings carved into a ravine, inhabited for 9,000 years — are one of Italy’s most extraordinary places. The view from the Belvedere across the Gravina ravine is unlike anything else in Italy.

The Museo Nazionale di Matera, the cave churches (rupestrian churches carved into the rock), and the streets of the Sasso Barisano and Sasso Caveoso. Sleep in Matera to experience the city in the evening (the tourist day-trippers leave around 5–6pm).

Days 5–6: Lecce

Drive from Matera to Lecce (2.5 hours by car; 3.5 hours by bus via Taranto).

Day 5: Lecce’s Baroque historic centre — the Cathedral, the Basilica di Santa Croce (the most exuberant Baroque facade in southern Italy), the Roman amphitheatre below the Piazza Sant’Oronzo. Morning: pasticciotto for breakfast from a historic pasticceria.

Day 6: Day trips from Lecce into the Salento: Otranto (the easternmost city in Italy, a Byzantine mosaic floor in the cathedral showing the whole of medieval cosmology), the Adriatic beaches at Torre dell’Orso or Torre San Giovanni, or the Ionian coast at Santa Maria di Leuca (the southernmost point, where the Adriatic and Ionian meet).

Day 7: Ostuni and Departure from Brindisi

Drive from Lecce to Ostuni (50 minutes by car), then to Brindisi airport (30 minutes from Ostuni).

Ostuni — the “white city” on a hill above the olive groves, the most photographed city in Puglia after Alberobello. The medieval centre, the cathedral, and the view over the Adriatic. Allow 2–3 hours before driving to Brindisi for departure.

Getting Around

A rental car is strongly recommended. Puglia’s towns are spread across a large area and public transport between smaller places (Valle d’Itria, Matera) is slow. The main cities (Bari, Lecce, Brindisi) have good train connections to each other.

Fly in to Bari; out from Brindisi — or vice versa — to avoid backtracking.

When to Go

May, June, September: ideal — warm but not extreme, sea swimmable from late May, beaches manageable. July–August: very hot (35–38°C), packed beaches, accommodation at premium — the Italian holiday season. October–April: Puglia’s interior is mild; the coast is quieter and cheaper. Many masserie close October–April.

What to Eat

Orecchiette alle cime di rapa (Bari), burrata (at any point), focaccia barese (Bari), taralli (everywhere), frisella (Salento), pasticciotto (Lecce), Primitivo and Negroamaro wine throughout.