We are arriving in Rome on October 1 for a 3 week trip in the heel of Italy. We are thinking of picking up the rental car and heading to Tivoli for our first night to get some sleep. We see the mountain area of Abruzzo around Sulmano and are looking for recommendations for places to stay. From there we are heading over to the Gargano area for a week or so. Vieste looks a little busy for us and wonder if someone could recommend a good home base in a smaller villiage on the sea. We are looking for recommendations for our next stop for a few days. Lecce seems like a place to visit but we like to stay on the water. Suggestions appreciated. We then need to make our way back to Rome. Suggestions for a route would be great. We can't decide if we want to get into the madness at Pompeii. Do we need to spend the night there our is there somewhere nearby that might be nice? Thanks for any suggestions or recommendations!
Posted by
New England
12047 posts
We loved our stay in Polignano a Mare on the coast of Puglia.
Posted by
6151 posts
I really don't think Vieste will feel very busy in early October.
Likewise, further south in October I would look for nothing smaller than Monopoli or Otranto.
Are you looking to stick to another small place for Pompeii? You could check out Cetara, which is not too far along the peninsula so maybe okay with a car.
Posted by
North Italy
574 posts
The season in Vieste winds up mid September. By October you are likely to find it too quiet, not too busy (although I like it there even in October because I like quiet places). For your stay further south in Puglia, Monopoli and Polignano are the most popular destinations for foreign tourists, but you could look at Otranto or Gallipoli although they are a lot further south.
Our favourite town on the sea is Trani, but Puglia is a large region so your base will depend on which places you want to visit exactly.
https://slowtravelitalyspain.blogspot.com/2023/12/hidden-gems-of-puglia.html
Posted by
OP
5 posts
Thank you for all the great recommendations. Our itinerary is shaping up with your help. Since we leave October 1, I need to get busy!
Posted by
Abruzzo Mountains
1145 posts
How many is 'we'? For Tivoli, this is a lovely apartment that overlooks the gardens at Villa d'Este: Domus Colonnato su Villa d'Este. I've stayed there and it was fabulous. Holds a couple and a child. There's an upstairs apartment that I think is a little bigger, same owner. Parking can be a little tricky so I just parked in the lot near the bridge that crosses into the pedestrian zone, very central.
Yes, Sulmona is gorgeous and so is the drive to get there from Tivoli. I've stayed at and enjoyed Grancia dei Celestini B&B, in a 13th century monastery, right by the Roman gate into Sulmona. It's oddly not showing availability for the rest of the year on Booking.com, might be worth calling them directly.
Il Marchese del Grillo is very highly recommended, including by a friend, but I haven't stayed there myself.
Another good choice would be Pacentro, just up the hill from Sulmona. Really pretty town. I don't personally know any lodging but there are plenty of small places.
The only place I know in Puglia is Monopoli and we stayed in this fantastic place: Residenza Garibaldi Holiday Home
Can't help you after that, as we haven't explored Puglia, but I hope you have a great trip.
Posted by
OP
5 posts
Thank you. There are just two in the we. The places you suggested look lovely. We will check them out. We are hoping since it will October we can book a few days ahead rather than prebook everything. I'm making note of things on my tablet and hope there will be good WiFi available.
Posted by
Idaho, USA
8838 posts
Hi, I’ve stayed in some of the places mentioned by others. I will just link my two trip reports that covered several cities where I stayed in Puglia, plus the first one includes Sulmona. The second one includes Tivoli.