Enchanting Puglia

Puglia. It will redefine your concept of beauty...

There were moments in Puglia when my heart would flutter and I was stunned by the magnificence of this region. Puglia wasn't just a place, but a feeling; of tranquility, love, peace, belonging. And when it was all said and done, there was this confirmation: this is why I travel. It is amazing how you can think you know beauty, but then see something and realize a whole new realm of beauty exists. This is Puglia.

The water is even in the shape of a heart! <3

You know those travel magazines (or Instagram accounts) that show far off places, with landscapes so beautiful you think they must not be real? Or that maybe only a photographer with a ton of saturation in Photoshop could get colors so pure? This is what Puglia looks like, only it's real. It took me hours  (days!) to write this blog post...not because there wasn't anything to write, but because I was having trouble finding the words to describe this magical destination and I was afraid that whatever I wrote just wouldn't do it justice!

Puglia is not a large tourist destination, with the exception of a few spots; however, Puglia has EVERYTHING - culture, history, architecture, national parks, amazing panoramas, a breathtaking coastline with beckoning beaches, and UNESCO world heritage sites.

First of all, I will be eternally grateful to my Italian teacher, who is Pugliese and gave me some great advice on where to go (and stay!) in Puglia. We would have missed some amazing stops if she hadn't helped me out so much (and answered all my questions along the way!). Having some perspective from a local always makes a trip so much better.

And speaking of a local perspective, we also received advice along the way...because people in Puglia are SO NICE. Once of the first things I noticed was the kindness and politeness of everyone we talked to. People gave us advice on where to go next, were genuinely interested in learning more about us, invited us to dinner and lunch with friends and in their homes, and made us coffee. But then again, my Italian teacher is by far the nicest person I have met in Italy, so maybe it is a Pugliese thing 💗

I can't say enough wonderful things about Puglia, so let me just tell you about what we did...

On to our Adventure

I know I always bore you with maps, buuuut there will be just one in this post (to help you see where Puglia is!). And here we have it, the heel of Italy's boot, the region with the longest coastline in Italy and some of the most gorgeous beaches I have ever seen in my entire life.  We drove in to the north of Puglia and over the course of nine days, drove around nearly the entire coast (and center).

Our Itinerary

Here is the itinerary we followed. I would tweak it a bit (suggested itinerary at the end of the blog), but overall it was an amazing trip. One of our goals is to explore every region in Italy, but Puglia may be the only region we'll be able to spend so much time in!

Day 1: Napoli → Gargano. Manfredonia, Mattinata. Spend the night in Mattinata. 

Day 2: Vieste, Peschici. Spend the night in Mattinata. 

Day 3: Castel del Monte, Polignano a Mare. Spend the night in Polignano a Mare. 

Day 4: Castellana Grotte (caves), San Vito, Alberobello, Locorotondo. Spend the night in Locorotondo. 

Day 5: Martina Franca, Ceglie Messapica, Cisternino. Spend the night in Locorotondo. 

Day 6: Ostuni, Lecce. Spend the night in Lecce.

Day 7: Otranto, Gallipoli. Spend the night in Gallipoli. 

Day 8: Porto Cesareo, Punta Prosciutto. Spend the night in Punta Prosciutto. 

Day 9: Punta Proscuitto → Napoli; with a stop in Bari

Breakdown by Day

Day 1: Manfredonia & Mattinata

We drove to Manfredonia in the morning, did a little walk along the shore, climbed up the Manfredonia castle, and ate lunch before heading to Mattinata. I would definitely recommend climbing up the castle - it was free and had an incredible view from the top! 

After lunch we drove to Mattinata, checked in to our hotel and went straight to the beach! Our plan was to check out another beach nearby, but let's be real - once you're already soaking up the sun it's hard to move 😉

You can see the sun AND the moon!

In the evening we drove to the town of Mattinata (our hotel was on the beach) and picked a restaurant with a view. Lucky for us, the food was also good! 

Day 2: Vieste & Peschici

This day was probably my favorite day! There was nothing super special about it, but it was simple and beautiful. Matt and I drove along the coast and stopped at a few beaches along the way. It seemed like after every curve was a gorgeous new view. We walked through Vieste for a few hours and stumbled upon a market where we bought some orecchiette, sweet (rainbow) taralli, and burrata (YUM!).  (side note: I regret not buying all the figs....) We swam at beaches in both towns and drove back during golden hour through Gargano. There really is nothing like a little road trip and seeing new sights with the one you love 💖

Vieste

Peschici

Gargano

Day 3: Castel del Monte & Polignano a Mare

Castel del Monte is a UNESCO world heritage site located on a hill in Andria. It is also the castle that is shown on the Euro one cent coin (should have thought to bring one with me!).We drove here from Mattinata, through olive groves and other wonders! Geometrically speaking, the castle is quite unique - it is octagonal , with octagonal towers at each corner. It is said to have been a hunting fortress; there was information in the castle about hunting with birds, and the hierarchy of hunting falcons (????), but let's be real - Matt read it and gave me the highlights but I forgot. There's only so much room in the brain, and there wasn't much space for hunting birds! oh well. 

Then, off to Polignano a Mare, a town overlooking the Adriatic Sea! If you have ever heard of this town, I am sure you picture Porto Bianco and its neighboring beach. The crystal clear waters here are what everyone showed me when they said I had to make a stop here. There's also a centro storico and the sap in me loved the poetry lining the streets; one night we got lost (on purpose) in the labyrinth of Polignano and found stairs, doors, streets, and walls covered in poetry and quotes. It definitely made my heart sing!

We left one of our love locks! #MJML4E

We also enjoyed a lovely dinner here! We wanted something local so headed over to Casa Mia. We sat in the bistro (not restaurant) section and ended up having some really great local snack foods. It was a great way to taste a bunch of dishes (and if we were here for another dinner, I would have tried the restaurant section as well!). Coincidentally, we were sat next to an American couple on their honeymoon - the husband also works for the Navy AND they live in the same town as us in Virginia. We even had overlapping acquaintances. How crazy is that?!??!

Day 4: Castellana Grotte, San Vito, Alberobello, Locorotondo

The caves in Castellana are a must see! We almost skipped them, and because I had seen other caves in other countries, I opted for the short tour which is only one hour, and half the caves. I really wish we had seen all the caves (the prettiest one is at the end!), and would honestly go back again to do the full tour. It is worth the stop. 

On our way to Alberobello we stopped in San Vito for lunch. If we're being completely honest, we stopped here because I saw a picture of the port on Instagram 😁 but there really wasn't a whole lot to do. Though, it was beautiful! 

Alberobello is another UNESCO world heritage site full of trulli; it was cute but touristy. Trulli were originally built to avoid payment of taxes - they were constructed in a way where they could be easily dismantled and not considered "permanent" structures; this makes these still standing homes even more intriguing! I am glad we saw it but some of the charm was lost in the throngs of people. I will say that we went back later in the day, and there were not as many people so we were able to walk around a bit more freely and watch sunset. There are roof terraces throughout the town and you can go up them for free, so I would recommend doing this to get a better view!

We went to Locorotondo for a bit then back to Alberobello for sunset and an aperativo. We found a nice little wine bar with local food and wine and camped out there for a few hours! This is also where we bought our first case of wine (bio, organic, delicious). 

Day 5: Martina Franca, Ceglie Messapica, Cisternino

Martina Franca was probably my favorite of all the little towns we saw in Valle d'Itria. It was also the largest. It has long been the commercial center of the area, and was a completely walled city until the reunification of Italy in 1861. You can still see renaissance and baroque gates that separate the old town from the modern part of town. 

We had a little less luck with Ceglie Messapica and Cisternino. Cisternino was super cute and we were able to walk around and stop off for some wine, but many things were closed when we got there. As for Ceglie Messapica, it was super small and absolutely nothing was open. It seemed like a ghost town, and we weren't sure if anyone was there! 

Ceglie Messapica

Cisternino

Cisternino

Day 6: Ostuni & Lecce.

I loved both Ostuni and Lecce.

Ostuni is known as The White City, for its uniformly white buildings. Buildings were originally lime-washed to brighten up the dark streets, then later to limit destruction from the plague! As always, go to the historical center, see the main square, go to the cathedral. Eat something local 😊 Ostuni has a certain charm to it and I could have spent the entire morning (or even day) walking around and getting lost in the streets. Before you go, make sure to get a view of the city from afar!

Lecce is full of baroque splendor and has been described as "The Florence of the South." I've never been to Florence, but Lecce was pretty cool. Get lost in the streets, hop in to some shops, have an aperativo on the street, absolutely go to the Piazza del Duomo and see the Basilica di Santa Croce...actually, go see everything. There are signs pointing to all the sites so follow them around until you've explored them all!

Day 7: Otranto & Gallipoli

Otranto is gorgeous. I know I have been saying this about pretty much everywhere in Puglia, but I'm serious... When I saw the water here it was like seeing a whole new world. I wasn't wearing a swimsuit this morning (why?!?!?!? ALWAYS wear a swimsuit when you're in Puglia. If there's one thing you take away from this blog post, it should be this 😉). I was tempted to take off my pants and go for a dip, because really, what's the difference between underwear and a bikini (?!) but alas, I refrained. 

Instead, we moved on to the Otranto Cathedral. There is a mosaic with scenes from the Old Testament (among others) and the Tree of Life surrounded by scenes representing humanity from sin to redemption that extends through the entire nave. If you make it to Otranto, don't miss this. 

If you could have seen my hair that day (quick description: Shirley Temple curls with frizz on steroids) you would have understood how humid it was. So when we arrived in Gallipoli we decided to skip seeing antique olive presses and went to the beach. Who could blame us?! Water, granitas, gelato....nothing could cool us except the waves in the water! 

Once again, we picked a restaurant based solely on sunset viewing location and I ate one of the best meals of the entire trip there! *win* Then we wrapped up the evening with a stroll through town (which REALLY comes alive at night. Thanks for the tip, Tina!). Bellissima! 

Day 8: Porto Cesareo & Punta Prosciutto

Our last beach day (and full day in Puglia 😭). We drove to Porto Cesareo, parked, and walked around a bit. We found the Porto Cesareo beach and took a dip but it wasn't as hot that day and the beach was also less impressive than we thought (meh). On to Porto Prosciutto. 

Heeeeeeeeeeeere we go. This is where all that beautiful water was hiding 😀 And this is where we spent the rest of the day. Crystal clear, Maldives of Italy, water from Heaven. 

Matt: the sun is going down. How long do you want to stay here?

Me: forever.

Our Airbnb was also one block away from a beach. I couldn't sleep so went for a walk at dawn and was able to see one last mesmerizing sunrise.

Day 9: Bari
Ok, again with the honesty - we were pretty tired when we reached Bari. We had been travelling for about a month (we had a few trips before Puglia) and were one stop away from home.

Me: want to go in that castle and see the view?!?!?!
Matt: not really

Me: should we walk around the historical center and get lost in all the streets?!
Matt: ummmm ok. Let's eat first?

Me: wanna just go home and come back another time?
Matt: yeah, ok!

So, yeah. We did a little walk around town, grabbed a sandwich, and headed back to Napoli.

Budget and Logistics

I would say we are mid-range travelers; not budget or luxury. Basically, we find the cheapest nice place, eat what looks good, and try not to worry too much if we splurge (but try not to do it too often!). Here is a rough estimate of what we spent.

Food and wine ($500) - There were some days we sat down to eat and others where we grabbed sandwiches and walked along the road. We don't really have a preference, it just depended on the day and what we were doing. Wherever we go we try to sample local dishes, and luckily for us Puglia had good food and great wine. Some things to try - Bari Focaccia, Lecce Pasticciotto, Orecchiette, Altamura bread, Maccheroni al forno, burrata di Andria, Vin cotto di fichi, friselle, Taralli, Puccia, Martina Franca capocollo, bombette, fresh seafood, WINE (and ask them to educate you on the grapes).

Lodging ($524+tourist tax) - On average, we spent about $65/night. We looked for private rooms or apartments with parking and great location (walking distance from what we wanted to see).  We looked at Airbnb and booking. We usually use Airbnb more, but booking seemed to have cheaper places in Puglia. Here are the links to places we stayed:

Mattinata - Casa Vacanze Fracarluccio, $55/night and near the beach

Polignano a Mare - Casa Vacanze Don Gil, $81/night and in center. Close to beaches and town. 

Locorotondo - Annalocos, $78/night (we basically wanted to stay in a trullo one night). Anna was great and invited us to dinner with her friends, where she cooked local dishes for us. It was really nice. If you want to stay here I have her number and you can contact her directly for a discount 😉

Lecce - Palazzo del Centro, $58/night, in center. 

Gallipoli - B&B Dimora San Vincenzo, $66/night, close to beach, in center. 

Torre Lapillo (Porto Cesareo/Punta Prosciutto) - Airbnb, $60, walking distance to beach, private room in a house (mom and son were there and super sweet)

Art and wine ($500) - Puglia made us crazy, y'all! Crazy for art and wine, that is.  As Matt put it, as long as we're buying a bottle we might as well buy a case. And that is how we ended up with four cases of wine from Puglia 😆.  However, you can buy good wine for cheap here, so why wouldn't you buy a bunch of cases?!?!?! We also bought two pieces of art (trying to add to our collection!).

I know I talk about wine a lot in this post. Yes, there is good wine here but Matt and I also had many dates over bottles of wine in graduate school. And we fell in love over many dates at a local wine bar, so wine has a special connotation for me! (in this case wine really does = love)

Language - It might be a bit challenging to travel to some of these areas without speaking Italian. The only place anyone addressed me in English was Alberobello, a super touristy area (I'd like to think it's because my Italian is so good another language wasn't necessary...HA...but that probably wasn't the case 😉).

Suggested Itineraries and Trips

I would keep mostly the same itinerary, but take out a few of the little towns. Also, if you are stopping through these towns, I wouldn't recommend passing through in the afternoon, as almost everything will be closed! It is also easy to stop in Matera,  located in Basilicata, if you have time (I would HIGHLY recommend this - it is one of our favorite places).  If you still have extra time and are hungry or love wine, you could also stop in Benevento for wine, meats, and cheese (this is still on our list)! Also be sure to check out different festivals that are going on (we were lucky enough to be in Matera for a wine festival but just missed a music festival in Puglia!).

Day 1: Napoli → Gargano. Manfredonia, Mattinata. Spend the night in Mattinata. 

Day 2: Vieste, Peschici. Spend the night in Mattinata. 

Day 3: Castel del Monte, Bari, Polignano a Mare. Spend the night in Polignano a Mare. 

Day 4: Castellana Grotte (caves, long tour) San Vito, Alberobello, Martina Franca, Cisternino. Spend the night in Ostuni. 

Day 5: Ostuni, Lecce. Spend the night in Lecce. 

Day 6: Otranto, Gallipoli. Spend the night in Gallipoli.

Day 7: Punta Prosciutto.** Spend the night in Punta Prosciutto or Matera. 

Day 8: Matera. Spend the night in Matera.

Day 9: Matera. Spend the night in Matera or drive back to Napoli.

It is also possible to break these up and do weekend trips. For a weekend trip, I would recommend breaking it up like so:

*Gargano → Manfredonia, Mattinata, Vieste, Peschici

*Bari → Castel del Monte, Bari Vecchia, Polignano a Mare 

* Valle D'itria → Alberobello, Martina Franca, Cisternino, Ostuni 

*Lecce → Lecce, Otranto, Gallipoli, Punta Prosciutto 

* Matera

You might not get to spend a TON of time everywhere if you squeeze these in to weekends, but it is doable. You could also take a long holiday weekend and take your time or try to squeeze two of these together!

Note: if we had time (and it wasn't so humid!) I would have liked to do some hiking in Gargano and Alta Murgia, and some biking around the region - there are multiple routes, with various distances and stopping points!

Conclusion: GO TO PUGLIA!!! You won't regret it. With it's dreamy blue coastline, alluring baroque architecture, and welcoming feel you'll get back and wonder if it was all a dream!

**If time is an issue, you don't have to stop here. The water is beautiful, but so is the water on the other coast...they're just different. But if time is an issue, you could go Lecce → Matera. However, if you're doing a Puglia tour I do think it was nice seeing the different beaches. And if you go all the way to Otranto and Gallipoli, might as well go to Punta Prosciutto!

Disclaimer: information in this post told to me or information I read during our trip. For complete accuracy, feel free to research these facts, or let me know if they are inaccurate!