Southern Italy tour in Puglia, Trullos, what to see

We visited Puglua and Basilicata on a road trip a few years ago. We really liked seeing Matera and Lecce was a great city. We had a great meal in Bernaldo, where Coppola has a hotel (didn't stay there, but fun to see). We went to Alberobello and saw many trullos, but we found that just walking around the town for a few hours was enough. It was quite touristy and the trullo hotels were expensive. If you go, where will you pick up your car? We drove from Salerno and stopped at Maratea on the west coast, which was beautiful.

Trulli are great, I stayed at a small B&B, not a resort. Otranto, Locorotondo, Trani, Lecce, the cliff and mountain towns are beautiful. Matera is one of my favorite places (cave hotels are an experience).

We visited Matera, actually in Basilicata, and found it very interesting. Also liked Ostuni, Martina Franca, and Taranto, in addition to those mentioned by other posters. There is a good cave park at Castellana Grotte; and, near to Polignano, there is a Roman archaeological site with a museum. Trulli that have been converted into hotels an b&bs are quite common in the Val d'Itria. You don't have to stay in Alberobello to find one. Grottaglie is a town totally devoted to ceramics, with a nice museum and many, many pottery shops.

I rented a trulli in Cisternino a short drive from Alberobello last year. The LA Fogliarella resort has an old masseria with several rooms, and 4 Trulli for rent . This place is Fabulous! The trulli are very private and a short walk to the masseria where the large built-in pool is located. The pool was cleaned daily the only negative is that the lounge chairs were a little weathered. The owner, Melania and her husband, I don't remember his name, ( we thought he reminded us of Jerry Garcia..lol) were very helpful and available. One day after taking the wrong train and getting off in a town where there was absolutely no one and nothing around I called Melania for advise and she sent a car to pick us up. Now back to La Fogliarella. Our trulli was adorable and very clean with a small kitchen, 2 BR, 2Bath. The living area had a TV and was very comfortable. One of the baths had washer which was great. The outside had a covered patio with a table and chairs, stone barbecue and sink.

A few nights we opted to stay home and cook. We drove to Fasano where they have a Conferama, picked up supplies and made great meals with minimal ingredients.

A car in Puglia is a must if you want to see the region because it is less populated. You must bring a GPS and map. I toured most of Italy and Puglia is my favorite. There are many wonderful sights, the beaches are as good as any in the Carribean, the food is delicious the people are friendly . Alberobello can be seen in half a day. We drove in the morning walked around the tourist areas, had lunch and that was all there was to see. You will have a better experience staying at La Fogliarella. If you wand more specifics on restaurants or place to go let me know.
Lorieann

I would like to thank everyone who responded to my post. Your replies were very helpful in planning our itinerary!