Although Southern Italy is often considered the best destination for relaxing beach holidays, we should not forget that this part of the peninsula has 7 amazing UNESCO World Heritage Sites! Among the Southern Italian regions, Puglia has attracted, over the last 5 years, more and more visitors. For those who have already been there, the reasons behind this interest are obvious: sun and wonderful sea, of course, but also incredibly good food (with genuine ingredients fished from nearby waters and produced in the hedonic countryside surrounding each city in Puglia), local wines such as the Primitivo di Manduria and the Nero di Troia, cheap prices and, last but not least, the hospitality of the locals. This itinerary does not include much sea: it is therefore designed for sunny days of spring, or for those who do not particularly like the beach. Given the proximity of the sites (and the small size of certain towns), you should be able to see everything in 3 days. Now, let’s find out some of the hidden treasures in Puglia.
Day one: Polignano al MareWhy should you start your trip from Polignano? This Italian town is a beautiful oasis waiting to be discovered, characterized by its cliffs and caves, but also by its backstreets, terraces and balconies that will offer you wonderful panorama. Furthermore, Polignano has a strategic position: it is just half an hour far from Bari, where many flights arrive. Once arrived, you will discover that in this small town, nature and art have been mixed together in order to create astonishing views. Admire its white cliffs and try to translate some of the most famous poems of the last centuries, painted on doors and stairs of this beautiful historic centre. Despite the tourists, if you walk in Polignano you can still feel the genuine air of one small Italian town, where everybody knows everybody and friendliness is evident everywhere.
Among the attractions, we recommend the emblem of Polignano: Cala Porto, a romantic small beach between two cliffs. That is one of those corners that make Polignano unique, where you can admire the water fading from green to blue. In the past, that place was an ancient trading port, today is one of the most loved attractions of the town. Another tip? Have you ever heard the song “Volare” (“Volare, oh,oh… Cantare, oh,oh,oh,oh… Nel blu dipinto di blu… felice di stare lassù…”)? Well, Polignano was home to the great singer Domenico Modugno, who wrote and sang that international hit as well as many other famous Italian songs. Go to see his statue, in front of the sea, and listen to one of his famous songs.
Polignano has become a popular destination among Puglian people because of a wonderful place where you can taste delicious fresh seafood paying about 10€ per person. The Pescaria is a friendly restaurant in Piazza Aldo Moro 6/8, where you can find gourmet fish panini (such as panini with fried octopus, panini with tuna tartare), fresh fish tartare, fish salads and delicious main dishes. Its popularity is given also to its combinations: fish and local products are often combined in ways that you would not think, but that are really a riot of flavours! During the summer, this restaurant is often full, therefore we suggest that you book in the morning if you do not like the idea of waiting for a free table. If the Pescaria is too full, you might try the restaurant Il Pescato Dispensa di Mare, Via Atropo 23, where you can enjoy delicious Mediterranean cuisine and excellent dishes of fish at very competitive prices. The location is small but very cozy, the staff is polite and quite quick, the dishes served are more than abundant! Prices from 15€. After the lunch, why not trying one of the best gelati of Polignano? At Gusto Caruso exquisite genuine ingredients are combined with the art of pastry to give life to an excellent homemade gelato. Every detail is well studied, from the cialda (waffle ice cream), customizable with different types of melted chocolate, to the presentation of the gelato. The homemade cone is very tasty, as well as the many original variants. Prices around 3€. Would you like a special coffee? Near Cala Porto you can find Il Mago del Gelo, the bar where the Special Coffee was born. It is a coffee with a unique flavour created combining coffee, cream, lemon zest and amaretto. Another good variant of coffee is the caffè in ghiaccio, with coffee, almond milk and ice. The result is amazing!
If you stay at Polignano for your dinner, you will find so many options for a romantic night! We suggest the restaurant A Mère ‘n ‘du Paeise: impeccable food, delicious scents, nice atmosphere, refined cuisine with ties to the maritime tradition of the place. Prices from 20€. One antipasto of fish costs around 10€, as well as one main dish or a dish of pasta. Some options? Fried octopus, seafood crepes, salad calamar, risotto with salmon, shrimp and pumpkin, very tasty tagliata! Our tip: for a romantic dinner, ask the owner, Silvio, to have your dinner on a table right on the rocks. Add a bottle of white wine, a couple of candles on the table and you will make your partner truly happy.
If your budget is higher, and if you want to spoil yourself, you should definitely try one of the best Italian restaurants in Southern Italy. The Ristorante Grotta Palazzese is very famous for its amazing ambience inside a cave in the Adriatic. The harmony between nature and architectural elements is rare, and we think this should be the main reason to book your table in this restaurant ( here you can find some photos). The menu is quite expensive: the average price of à la carte dishes is 40 euro, including starters. The food is good, but not excellent (although the Polpo in due cotture, Pappa al Pomodoro e la Scarola Ripassata, and the Tre visioni della Polpetta: Crema di Piselli, Salsa di Mandorle e Sugo di Pomodoro are tasty combinations of tradition and innovation). Remember! The cave is open from Easter to October, while during the rest of the year you can have your dinner at the “Sea lounge”, a salon with a well less exclusive sea view. Booking is required!
Are you travelling with your family? Book one of the flat available in the Centre of Polignano! One example is Casa Angy, 5 minutes walk from the beach. The flat offers a dining area and a kitchen complete with an oven and a fridge, a flat-screen TV and a terrace. There are two bedrooms: one double room with a bunk bed and the other with a double bed. For two persons, one night costs around 65€. For 4 persons, one night costs around 90€. Breakfast included!
Would you like a wonderful balcony offering views over the sea and the Polignano coast? The B&B Malù might be the right place for you. This B&B is one of the gems of Polignano a Mare: well-known for its attention for welcoming and the hospitality and for its marvellous overlook on the medieval town that overhangs the sea. Here you can live moment of pure relax, and can enjoy one of the many desserts prepared for breakfast, together with homemade yogurt and fresh fruits. Prices from 100€ for a double bedroom during the summer and private parking available at 10€ per day (reservation is needed).
TransportationsIf you arrive at Bari, you can rent a car for three days. For instance, one Panda for 5 persons will cost you around 160€ in total if booked through the Hertz website! Once in Polignano, the best options for a car park are in this map . One good free car park is near via Paolo Dorsi, 2 minutes from the centre of Polignano.
If you prefer trains and buses, you can reach Polignano by taking a train from Bari Centrale (tickets cost 2.50€ per person). The train will take only half an hour, however you will have to take a bus or the Ferrotramviaria to go from the Airport to Bari Centrale Station. here you can find timetables and fares for the Ferrotramviaria, while here you can find some info about the bus. Both the bus and the Ferrotramviaria take 30 minutes to arrive at the Bari Centrale Station, and both cost around 5€. In total, going from Bari Airport to Polignano will cost you around 7.5€ per person.
After a truly Italian breakfast, you should be ready to move to the second attraction of this itinerary: the Grotte di Castellana. These caves, located at the entrance of the Itria Valley, began to form about 90 million years ago. Today, they are considered part of the Italian natural heritage, and their value is inestimable. If you choose to visit the Grotte, you will be guided inside the caves to admire amazing stalactites and stalagmites, calcifications characterized by wonderful colours and astonishing shapes, and varieties of fossils. The tour is long 3 km, and you will move at about 70 meters deep. There are two types of tour: one complete of 120 minutes and one partial of 50 minutes. The complete tour costs 17.50€ for adults, 14.50€ for children aged 6-14 years old. Tickets for children under 5 are free! The partial tour costs 13.50€ for adults, 11.50€ for children aged 6-14 years old. Remember! IKEA Members and travellers arriving at Bari airport “Karol Wojtyla” with ALITALIA flights enjoy a discount of 3€ on the ticket for the visit with Complete Itinerary. The reductions are valid only for tickets purchased at the ticket office of the Castellana Caves and are only valid for the holder of the IKEA card or for ALITALIA travellers.
Lunch at CastellanaIf, after you tour, you want to visit a bit Castellana, you could have lunch at the Locanda Romanelli (Via Sant’Onofrio, 21). From the caves, walk toward the centre for 30 minutes. Locanda Romanelli is in an elegant and relaxing location, there you will taste delicious cheeses, fantastic Bruschette made with traditional bread from Altamura (the speciality of the restaurant), appetizing meatballs and very good main dishes. Price around 10-15€ per person. Ps: you should really try the bruschetta, they are big and made with very good ingredients! One bruschetta costs around 3€.
If you would like to move directly to Alberobello, then one yummy solution is to buy some slices of pizza and focaccia before leaving Polignano, at Pan Per Focaccia (Via V. Lepore, 41). There, at the price of 5-8€, you will have a wonderful packed lunch made of excellent focaccia Barese (a typical Puglian focaccia) and delicious panzerotti al forno (savory turnovers which resemble small Italian calzoni, both in shape and in the dough used for its preparation).
TransportationsBy car, you can reach the Caves from Polignano taking the Strada Provinciale 120/SP120. That is definitely the easiest way to move! It will take more or less 25 minutes. Buses and trains are not well connected in this area, therefore if you do not have a car, you might prefer to use services such as Blablacar or Uber.
Alberobello is universally-known as the capital of the Trulli, and for this reason is one of the World Heritage Site in Italy. Trulli are traditional Apulian dry-stone huts with conical roofs. If you visit Alberobello during a sunny day, the view of the town, with all these white-stone Trulli, is picturesque and charming! However, if you are not lucky enough to have a sunny day, do not worry: Alberobello is wonderful even when the sky is dark or covered! To visit the town, take one of the narrow streets dotted with Trulli. Nowadays, many of these building are shops selling souvenirs and local products. Enjoy the products and the cordiality of the shopkeepers: most likely, some of them will invite you to enter the store to taste some biscotti alle mandorle (almond biscuits), amaretti and many varieties of handmade olive oil taralli (typical baked snack very used in Southern Italy). If you are looking for souvenirs, this is an excellent place: Trulli are in general full of Italian food, postcards and small souvenirs.
TransportationsBy car, you can reach Alberobello from the Grotte di Castellana taking the Strada Statale 172/SS172. The travel is short, less than 20 minutes, and it will allow you to admire the genuine Puglian countryside. If you prefer the train, you can take the train Linea 1 from Castellana Grotte to Alberobello: in 34 minutes, you will arrive, and the ticket will cost you only 1,80€. You can buy tickets online (tickets can be purchased 7 days before the chosen date), or at Castellana (in Piazza Vittorio Emanuele, via XX Settembre 8 or Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 3) Remember: shops selling train tickets at Castellana are closed on Sundays. Here, at the Ferrovie del Sud Est, you can find more info.
Dinner at Alberobello
Although Alberobello is becoming a touristic attraction, it is still possible to find restaurants for authentic Puglian dinners. Our suggestion is that you try L’Olmo Bello (Via Indipendenza, 33), a suggestive restaurant inside a trullo. The menu is a mixture of tradition and innovation, and the main courses are described by many costumers as excellent (furthermore, also the wine list is noteworthy). Average price for antipasto, main course and dessert around 25€ per person.
If you are searching for something more refined, or if you love wine, the Michelin one-star restaurant, Poeta Contadino (Via Indipendenza, 21) is the perfect choice. In this stone-built restaurant divided into two spacious and comfortable rooms, furnished in a liberty style, good food is served by a welcoming, helpful and responsive staff: at the presentation of each course, the composition of the item is explained in a clear manner. Furthermore, the restaurant has 3 wine naturally climatized cellars hosting more than 25.000 bottles with 3300 labels! Trust us: the quality of food and wine, the attentive and timely staff, and the lovely atmosphere will make you experience a lovely culinary journey. Prices around 50-60 € per person. More info here.
Despite the small size of Alberobello, a growing number of B&Bs and hotels can be found inside the city centre. Among them, the B&B Da Silvana is often recommended because of its central location (just a 5-minute walk from the train station) and its welcoming staff. It offers spacious air-conditioned rooms with a small kitchenette and private bathroom. Its pros are the very traditional breakfast served at a café located nearby, the fact that almost every room has a private balcony, and the charming building in which the B&B is located (a traditional trullo). The cons are the fact that the B&B cannot be reached by car (it is right beside the main church in Alberobello), and the absence of wifi. If you travel by train, the absence of parking should not be a problem, therefore this B&B might be the perfect solution. Prices per couple per night around 80 €.
Are you travelling with your family? You might try to find a flat to rent on the website Wimdu, where nice flats are offered at very convenient prices. One example? One trullo flat, located in the countryside around Alberobello and composed of two double bedrooms, one large bathroom and a kitchenette with fridge and utensils costs around 100 € for couples, 120 for 3 persons and 140 for 4 persons (more info here).
Day three: OstuniLocated on three hills at an altitude of 229 meters, Ostuni is famous for its truly impressive historical centre, characterized by the white buildings which has led this town to be known throughout the world as the white city. Small roads, alleys, arches: all magically adorned by white. At the top of one hill you will find the 15th century cathedral. If you have time, you can visit the baroque column of Sant’Oronzo (the patron of the town), and the church of San Vito Martire, home of the Museo delle Civiltà preclassiche delle Murge meridionali (Museum of the Preclassical Civilizations of the Southern Murges). You should not leave Ostuni without going around the Aragonese walls surrounding the town: there you will enjoy the amazing panorama, spending the last part of your holiday in front of olive trees and the blue of the Adriatic Sea.
If you have a car and would like to take a dip Adriatic Sea, remember that there are wonderful public beaches very close to Ostuni. One of them is Costa Merlata, characterized by a rugged coastline, with the sea that creeps between the cracks of a rocky coast, forming unique and intimate sandy coves. This beach, as well as many others, are just 10-15 km far from the city centre. If you prefer beaches with private facilities, you might try Lido Morelli, a long beach with dunes and Mediterranean scrub 8 km far from Ostuni. This area is a Regional Natural Reserve, and was declared by the European Community as an Area of International Importance.
Lunch at OstuniInterestingly, Ostuni combines the gastronomic delights of the hinterland with those coming from the sea. Typical dishes include the frittata alla menta (mint omelette), il cappello (stuffed with fried courgettes and aubergines, slices of meat and boiled eggs), fish dishes such as the alici arracanate (anchovies). If you are looking for a nice place serving aperitivo, brunch and panini, try Mozzarella & Co. (Piazza della Liberta, 11), a place where you can dine by tasting sandwiches stuffed with very good cheeses, salami and prosciutti. You might also try a cutting board with a mixture of typical cold meats and cheeses. A cutting board for 2 costs around 6€ per person, add a glass of wine and another small dish and you will pay less than 15€ for a very delicious lunch.
Another great restaurant where typical dishes are served by a young and kind staff is Sapere e Sapori (Vicolo Incalzi Cantore 10). Here, a dish of orecchiette (a typical kind of handmade pasta) costs around 8€, and will allow you to taste the genuine Puglian food so famous around the world. Pasta, typical meat and delicious dessert are the strengths of the Sapere and Sapori’s menu, which attracts both tourists and locals.
TransportationsBy train, you can reach Ostuni from Alberobello by taking the train to Cisternino, and then a bus from Cisternino to Ostuni. More precisely, you can buy a ticket from Alberobello to Cisternino, but you will have to change train at Martina Franca. From Alberobello, take the train Linea 1 to Martina Franca; from Martina Franca, take the train Linea 2 to Cisternino. Although it might seem complicated, the travel from Alberobello to Cisternino lasts only 45-55 minutes and costs just 2,10€ per person. Once in Cisternino, you can take a STP bus to Ostuni (the ticket costs just 1,10€ per person). The schedule of the STP bus changes over the week. If you are travelling on Sunday, you can take the bus leaving Cisternino at 12.05 pm, while from Monday to Saturday you can also take the bus at 9.35am, 12.55pm, 15.45pm and 17.15pm. More info about the train here, while here you can find more info about the bus to Ostuni (the website is in Italian, gg means every day, ls means from Monday to Saturday, lv means from Monday to Friday). Remember, if you want to travel by train, you can buy all the tickets together the second day, at Castellana. You can also buy the ticket at Alberobello (in via Manzoni 55, Corso Trieste e Trento 56, Piazzale Kennedy 3), or online. Finally, here you have a list of the places in which you can buy a bus ticket to Ostuni.
By car, just follow the signs for Fasano, then takes strada statale SS172dir and finally strada statale SS16 to Ostuni. You should arrive in 45-50 minutes.
For your return flight, you have two options: you can either go back to Bari (2 hours by car, 1 hours by public transports), or take your flight from Brindisi (Brindisi is 30 minutes far from Ostuni by car or by train). If you wish to return to Bari, take a train from Ostuni to Bari Centrale (it takes 1 hour and costs 5.60 € per person. Then, take the Ferrotramviaria to the Airport ( here you can find timetables and fares). If your flight is from Brindisi, take a train from Ostuni to Brindisi, it takes 20 minutes and costs 2,80€. Once at the station, takes the bus line AP to the airport (it takes 30-45 minutes and costs around 2€). For more info about the train from Ostuni, look at the href= http://www.trenitalia.com/tcom-en> Trenitalia website.
Best Italy Trips 