Puglia in mid-June

The tourist meccas like Polignano an Monopoli and Ostuni will be crowded, but there is a lot more in Puglia than those towns.

I’ve been to Puglia only in July, August and September (most recently in July, twice) and apart from August, when seaside towns are packed, the crowds were manageable. I think in June will be even more so. I wouldn’t worry about crowds in June, however famous tourist destinations like Alberobello and Polignano, will have many visitors. Many seaside destinations will have fewer vacancies on weekends, so be prepared for that. Just to let you know, even though I travel there in July, I never book hotels ahead. At most I book it just a few hours before getting there, but Saturday nights are busy in summer, and sometimes my winging strategy doesn’t work well on Saturdays, so I have to call more than one of my preferred hotels to find a place.

Oh good, that was what I was hoping to hear!! If I were to pick 2 towns for homebases what would be your suggestions? We generally stay in airbnbs and like to live amongst the locals! Thank you!

With car or without? Flying to Bari or Brindisi?

We are open to having a car or using public transportation, whichever is best!
Where we fly into would depend on pricing likely.
Still in the very beginning planning stage!

I don’t think there are places in Puglia with few locals, but in seaside towns there will be plenty of Pugliesi vacationing there from the nearby major cities like Bari, Lecce, etc. but not necessarily residents of the town. If by non locals you mean non Italians, you will find foreigners mostly in Alberobello, Vieste, Polignano, Lecce. Otherwise most of the region is largely Italian vacationland.

If you are looking for a base near the water (since you travel in summer that would be my choice), Monopoli is a good base on the coast which you can use to visit also nearby Alberobello, Ostuni, Polignano, Locorotondo, etc.

Further down, in the southeast, still on the coast, I like Otranto, from which you can also visit beautiful Lecce, 40 min drive away.

The Gargano peninsula (the spur of the Italian boot) is mountainous and harder to reach (lots of twisting roads), so you can’t visit it easily from other places. If the Gargano is in your plans, then nase yourself also there. Vieste or Peschici are good choices as a base for the area.

A car is recommended for Puglia but not absolutely necessary, except for the Gargano peninsula, where, in my opinion, it is a must.

My husband and I spent ~2.5 weeks exploring Puglia mid-June to very early July last year. I didn’t feel as though there were many crowds anywhere with the exception of Alberobello and Polignano a Mare—though we spent very little time in either of these places. If looking for a more authentic experience, I would advise the same. We had several bases as we had a bit more time to explore and wanted a mix of coast and inland stays. Our main hubs were Bari, Locorotondo, Lecce, and Monopoli. We had a car for the entirety of our travels with the exception of the first few days in Bari which made getting around quite easy.

We started in Bari for convenience of flying to the region—definitely a more authentic location which we really enjoyed, but also may be perceived as “rougher” by some. It is conveniently connected with a train to other parts of the area though.

We based ourselves just outside of Locorotondo for exploring the majority of the smaller towns: Cisternino, Martina Franca, Ostuni, Alberobello, etc. This area is not well served (to my knowledge) with public transport, so a car is recommended. We also biked quite a bit, but I understand that is not for everyone. We stayed at Pietra Pesara which was really magical (would definitely need a car if staying here though). Martina Franca would likely also make a nice little base if not staying coastal—slightly larger with more restaurant options, but still very quaint and cute in the older town area—close to many other cute little towns and the coast.

Monopoli is very charming and I highly recommend—it did get quite busy during the evenings when everyone was out for dinner, but during the daytime, it was quite nice. This was also our last Puglia stop, so the beginnings of July which may have made a difference in the crowds. I believe it is also fairly well connected by train which might be useful.

Lecce was great for being a bit further south and seeing more of the coastal areas. It’s a very beautiful city, but I wouldn’t necessarily use it as a base if looking to visit all the small towns due to the distance—just personal preference. Of course it all depends on how much time you have as well.