Puglia

Will you have a car?

Check out experience-path.com. They offer all kinds of excursions — we did a wine-tasting excursion from Lecce with them. Also check Viator — they have several options.

If you don’t have a car, you can take a train from Lecce to Gallipoli or to Otranto for day trips.

Be aware that the tourist infrastructure (trains, buses) in Puglia is not as easy to use as in more frequently visited parts of Italy.

Also be aware that everything in Lecce shuts down from about 2 pm until 6 pm — all stores, restaurants, offices. Restaurants do not reopen until 8 pm so plan accordingly.

Thank you for your reply. No we will not have a car

How long are you planning to stay in Lecce? And what period ?
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Try https://www.neverendingvoyage.com/lecce-italy-travel-guide/ for info on Lecce. RS Italy doesn’t cover Puglia. I looked at various Puglia tours (with walks) advertised by different companies and planned our own trip. We visited Lecce Oct 2019 for 2 nights, stayed at a comfortable room found through booking.com. No breakfast but a couple of interesting local cafes frequented by ‘locals’. We had a car but parked it as we came in (didn’t want to drive into the old town) and walked to our Room, got the keys and drove the car to their parking lot. Booking.com gives a map showing location which I supplemented using Google maps. We didn’t use the car for the next 2 days. Food was good at a couple of restaurants in the old section. I also use Tripadvisor for restaurants. Ask the manager of your accommodation for recommendations close to your room. Relax and go with the flow.

I posted in May asking for suggestions for Lecce/Matera but have been absent ever since with life issues. Anyway now it’s crunch time since we leave in one month. Back in May Charlene mentioned everything closing down 2-6. Would you suggest tours at that time? Otherwise what do you do if you can’t even get a coffee/cocktail? 4 days Lecce 4 Matera after spending a week in Sicily. Any hole in the wall fab restaurant suggestions? Any special tours you personally have loved?
Thank you all. These forums are always so helpful

"Everything" being closed is a bit of an exaggeration, although a good warning to check on places you want to go to. I just looked up the hours of some of the big churches in Lecce and they are open all day, so are the gelato shops I looked at. The transportation museum in Lecce is closed from 12:30 to 5:30 (that's the only museum I could think of). Coffee bars will be open and many restaurants will be open for lunch. Some pharmacies and grocery stores will be open all day, others may close from 1pm to 4:30pm.

Thanks everyone. We are foodies and I haven’t heard about any fun not fancy restaurants. In Lecce or Matera. Anyone anyone?

Does anyone know a driver I could hire in Puglia

We haven't been to Puglia for 4 years, so I kind of hate to recommend restaurants in Lecce, but back then we enjoyed eating at Trattoria Fiori di Zucca (just outside the walls) --- it was April, and they served us interesting wild greens, like poppy leaves. Also ate wild hyacinth roots. Such foods are not fancy new things to eat but very traditional --- we saw them for sale in the market, too.

If you can get to Ostuni, here are three of our favorite places to eat in all of Puglia (but, again, 4 years out of date):

Osteria Monacelle (very very small and very non-fancy but #1 place during our week in Ostuni --- you'll need a reservation for sure)

Vicolo 45 (it's in a cave)

Osteria del Tempo Perso

Renee, there are several towns in baby boomers post.
https://www.neverendingvoyage.com/8-towns-not-to-miss-in-puglia/

Almost all of these , from Lecce to Bari are on the train line. . Use the Trenitalia.com for trains. Your lodging host should be able to tell you about bus service in the area.

We’ve done several trips to the area.

Do you have Tripadvisor? We are going to Puglia in September, but won't be in Lecce (we will be much further south). Anyway, I searched Lecce restaurants in TA, and there's a huge list. I investigated some of the top ones, and most of them are right in Lecce. Check it out! The number one restaurant is called Ueme Tastexperience. The pictures alone made me wish I was in Lecce!

P.S. I don't book excursions directly thru Tripadvisor if possible. They use Viator, which tacks on an extra fee. I choose the ones I like using the reviews etc then book directly from the vendors website to avoid the extra $$ that Viator charges. Have fun!

Also, where are you staying? I would either ask the front desk if a hotel, or message the host if a vacation rental. They often have wonderful connections. You can probably set this up ahead of time.

In June we used the car service from http://www.placenpeople.it and was pleased with the experience. On our departure day from Lecce, they drove us to Alberobello and then on to Matera where we stayed for two nights. We then used the service again to transfer from Matera to Salerno. We would recommend the company. We did a day tour with the company located directly across from the Basillica of Santa Croce (sorry I have forgotten the name). We did not have a great experience with them. Too many cities were jammed into too little time. Our favorite restaurant in Lecce was Osteria Agulina.

Thank you so much. Will look into the car service and just made a dinner reservation
Can’t wait

Thx Joan. Very helpful
I noticed your from treasure island.we live in Sarasota. Have fun on ur trip. Come to Lecce and we’ll have dinner together

Thanks Renee!

Depending on where you are going after Matera, you might find your way to Caserta ( accessible by train and worth a visit for the palace there).

https://visitworldheritage.com/en/eu/caserta-royal-palace-and-park-italy/73cf1988-9d13-4658-99f5-2f23a706bc00

Then use a taxi or car service to take you to the nearby village of Caiazzo for the “best pizza in the world”.

https://www.pepeingrani.it/?lang=en

It’s worth watching the video in this blog:

https://www.pepeingrani.it/alex-french-guy-cooking-il-blogger-francese-da-pepe-in-grani/?lang=en

We hope to include this in our trip to Puglia next winter, on our way back north.

Matera is our last stop but thank you
8 days in Sicily 8 in Puglia

Matera is in Basilicata, not Puglia, and there are no nearby airports. How are you getting home from there?

Matera to Bari Palese an hr ride. I think there’s a bus

Ok, you’ll be fine then. Enjoy your trip!

I highly recommend renting a car. It is a little more difficult to tour the region without one.

Yes, rent a car! Also visit Polignano a Mare and/or Monopoli, lovely seaside towns. Trani is interesting too as is Bari’s Old Town.
Inland you should visit Locorotundo and Oltrarno. Dining in Polignano a Mare- Antica Mura, Il Bastione. We loved Puglia, Matera not so much.