Itinerary
Day 1 – Arrival in Puglia
Our tour begins with three nights based in Polignano a Mare. We provide with a private transfer from Bari Airport or Bari Centrale train station to our hotel in Polignano a Mare. We meet in the evening for aperitivi and welcome dinner.
Overnight: Polignano a Mare (D)
Day 2 – Castel del Monte and Trani
Our first full day in Puglia is spent exploring Castel del Monte, the enigmatic castle built by the Emperor Frederick II in the 13th Century. After lunch at a local Slow Food restaurant, we visit the pretty port town of Trani with its impressive Norman cathedral.
Overnight: Polignano a Mare (B, L)
Day 3 – Bari and free time
This morning we travel north to Bari, capital of Puglia and home to. Fascinating old medieval centre. We spend the morning exploring Bari with a local guide. After free-time for lunch in Bari we travel back to Polignano a Mare where the afternoon is at leisure. You may choose to swim at the beach (a short 5 minute walk from our hotel) or wander around Polignano’s quiet streets.
Overnight: Polignano a Mare (B)
Day 4 – Ancient olive trees, Ostuni and the Valle d’Itria
We start the day with a visit to an olive oil producer where you can admire some olive trees that are more than 2,500 years old, see the ancient olive presses and taste their olive oil.
Our next stop is Ostuni, the white city, where we will spend some time wandering the pretty streets and there will be free time for lunch.
In the afternoon we drive on to our lovely Masseria in the heart of the Valle d’Itria. After check-in there will be some free time, you may choose to swim in the hotel’s pool or to sit under an olive tree with an aperitivo.
Dinner at the restaurant at the Masseria.
Overnight: Valle d’Itria (B, D)
Day 5 – Trulli and the pretty towns of the Valle d’Itria
This morning we visit the UNESCO World Heritage site of Alberobello. This town has been listed because of its high concentration of over 400 trulli. Make sure your cameras fully charged for this ridiculously pretty town!
We visit Locorotondo, one of the prettiest towns of the Valle d’Itria and there is free time for lunch.
In the late afternoon we head into Martina Franca, the main town of the Valle d’Itria where we will have aperitivi and dinner.
Overnight: Valle d’Itria (B, D)
Day 6 – A top Pugliese winery and Lecce
We drive to a very picturesque winery this morning, where we have a private tour of the vineyard and winery, before sitting down to a delicious lunch with matching wines.
In the afternoon we have a guided walking tour with a local guide in Lecce where you can admire the splendid Baroque architecture.
Overnight: Valle d’Itria (B, L)
Day 7 – Matera
We visit another UNESCO World Heritage site today: the ancient city of Matera – and also the location for Mel Gibson’s film ‘The Passion’! Matera is internationally famous for its ancient town, known as the Sassi, which translates as ‘stones’. The sassi began life as a prehistoric troglodyte settlement mined into the rocky face of a ravine but over the centuries many groups of people lived in these cavernous dwellings. The inhabitants were forcibly removed in the 1950s but today much of the area has been regenerated and there are small business, hotels and bars there. A local guide will show us the principal sights.
We return to the Masseria in the evening for our farewell dinner.
Overnight: Valle d’Itria (B,D)
Day 8 – Farewells
On the last day of the tour we provide a transfer back to Bari for your departure by air or train. The transfer arrives at Bari Airport by 10am.
Overnight: NA (B)
