Adriatic Coast - Venice to Brindisi

I would be interested in hearing from experienced travelers as well. We will be driving up from that area to Padua (Padova) in November.

What are ya'll asking about? Travel routes, places to stop, things to see?

Sorry I lost track of this. Yes, travel routes - where to stop and stay and what not to miss. General info and insights. Also how about public transport vs. car rental. Many many thanks.

Ravenna, a little south of Venice, has amazing Byzantine mosaics and might be a good stop your first day. I particularly liked the basilica of S Apollonaire at Classe, a few miles outside of Ravenna. Hotel costs struck me as reasonable compared to Venice, Florence, Rome, etc.

Thanks Sherry.

We're doing this as a three-week trip in October, and there is SO much to see. We're planning to make our bases in Senigallia (great "foodie" town), Trani (a lovely little harbor town), Matera (for the Sassi houses), the Valle d'Itria (a lovely part of Puglia with Alberobello, Locorotondo and other Trulli villages), and Lecce (with trips to Otranto and Gallipoli, and a cooking class). Here's a great webpage about Puglia ... scroll down the page to see pictures and a story about Matera, and further down for their "Top 10" places to visit in Puglia ... http://www.italycookingcourses.com/ We will definitely have a car for the Val d'Itria (we are staying on a Masseria ... a farm ... so will need a car). We are debating where to pick it up but plan to drop it in Brindisi, train to Lecce, and spend our final week there, using trains/buses to get around. You might want to search the Helpline for some of the places I mentioned above. I think you'd find lots of information.

Trani, Ostuni, Alberobello, Matera and Lecce are all just wonderful. I didn't find a lot of tourist information on Trani or Ostuni before my trip--I recommned research prior to leaving.

Charlene! Thanks so much for the post and all of the info. I'm on it!

I prefer driving myself. You won't need a car for Venice but it could make things easier for visiting towns along the way south. I've driven from Venice to Martina Franca. For the most part A14 is good road. From Rimini to Ancona can be rough as there's ongoing roadwork. As far as routes: I would say stick to the autostrada. Even if it takes you out of the way it'll be quicker. For example: It takes me two hours to get to Venice from where I live using the autostrada. I did the "shorter" route one time up the coast just for the experience and it was almost four hours. Small roads, heavy/slow traffic, tiny towns, stop lights etc etc. And not very scenic. Towns: Ravenna is a great choice. San Marino, San Leo, Urbino is a great town (a bit of your route) as well as the Frassasi caves close to Urbino. Alberobello in Puglia was pretty cool. Try to stay in a trullo....it's an experience. Towns between Venice/Ravenna using the autostrada route: Padova and Ferrara. a bit off would be Vicenza, Bassano del Grappa and Verona.

Promontorio del Gargano is a very nice and underrated area. It is not crushed with visitors and have a lot of scenic places along the coastal local road. Well worth the small-ish detour from A-14. I second recommendation for Urbino. It is a very nice and lively university city.