The heel

2 nights in Alberobello/Locorotondo (they are next to each other just 5 min apart)
2 nights in Matera (although it's only 70 min drive from Alberobello)
2 nights in Vieste (if Gargano interests you)
2 nights in Lecce
2 nights in Otranto
2 nights in Polignano

Replace locations and reassign nights as you wish, but I'd say to stay at least 2 nights at each location. Puglia is however very large and it takes time to go from place to place, so I would stay no more than 3 nights at any given locations, otherwise if you choose too few bases and try to visit on day trips you'll spend a lot of time in the car.

PS: Puglia is more efficiently done with a car.

Wow!! Thank you so much. Rick Steves does not address that region/area. I will start my research with this information.

Puglia is often discussed here on the Italy forum:

https://search.ricksteves.com/?button=&date_range=2y&filter=Travel+Forum&query=Puglia&utf8=%E2%9C%93

Thank you for the resource.

We did two nights each in Lecce and Polignano al Mare and Imwished we’d spent at least three. Both made great hubs for day trips. I would add in Vieste or Matera with the time you have but two nights per town is just too fast for me. I like to get a better feel for a place than that usually allows.

I had a wonderful time in the Puglia region in May and would be happy to return! I moved locations often, but my trip report could at least help you with ideas of which places you might like to stay. I would suggest for the three - one city along the coast, probably Lecce for the southernmost, and one further north and also inland. Or for the third one, select Bari.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/my-1-month-independent-trip-to-southern-italy-tribute-to-my-husband

Thank you Idaho and Oregon. Got it down!!

What time of year will you go?

We will be going first 2 weeks of April.

We spent about 11 days in Puglia this past April. Not sure that I can make recommendations so much as I can share experience.

Enjoyed Bari and wish we had explored it more deeply. We were there just 24 hours. St Nicholas from the 5th Century and Spanish domination of the city and region in the 16th and 17th centuries were major influences on the city and our experience. We weren’t there long enough to explore musical traditions or any clubs and that could interesting.

We then went to Alberobello and started a self guided, 7 night cycle tour that was pretty cool until we ended a week later on a rainy day. I think good bases for the trip you are describing could include Monopoli or Polgnano a Mare. Both are lively, near one another, and the train stations are near the historic town centers, unlike Ostuni’s.

Otranto was quite interesting and could serve as a nice base for the southernmost part of the heel. Otranto was heavily influenced by the Eastern Roman Empire in and following the 5th Century.

The one place where we did not spend enough was Matera, which is in neighboring Basilicata but quite near Puglia. Interesting history though I don’t know it well enough to speak to a 3 day stay; our 3 hours was insufficient.

3 nights in Lecce was, I think, perhaps more than enough, though I am sorry to have missed its Jewish Museum which closed in the very early afternoon the day I had hoped to go there. My favorite hour and a half in Lecce was at the Museo Castromediano. As for Lecce’s well regarded Baroque era architecture, I found it over the top. I was not especially moved by the church interiors. The Basilica St. Nicholas in Bari was more moving for me.

We did not get to the Gargano nor Brindisi so I have nothing to offer there, nor did we make it to Gallipoli.

Check out https://www.pugliacycletours.com even if you don’t choose to do a cycle tour like we did. It will tell you about the various sights in much of the region. For our own TR, for better and for worse, see https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/southern-italy-30-days-three-ways-to-travel

We are going to be there in a few weeks.
Getting the train from Naples to Bari and straight on to Matera.
Staying 3 n in Matera.
Train back to Bari, then train to Lecce for 5 n.
We will maybe take a couple of day trips , to Otranto and Gallipoli, both by train or bus.
We never drive in Italy but always take the so far excellent public transport.
I’ve never been that far south, past Alberobello, so really looking forward to it.

Jean’s trip report is an excellent resource for us all heading that way!

Thank you W. Canada and Seattle. I am in Eastern Washington. Thank you so much for the detailed information. Writing all of this down. Glad to hear you use train/bus. Our past trips to Italy we have always relied on trains and they were perfect.

Hello!

We also visited Puglia in May of this year, spending 7 days inn-to-inn supported walking/hiking. Our trip report is here: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/rome-puglia-13-days-may-2024. We only had one night in Lecce and really wished we had at least 2. We did have 2 nights in Otranto and also loved that -- could have spent a 3rd night but 2 was also enough. The one place we did not visit that would have been lovely was Matera -- it didn't work into our plans but it looked amazing from the train :).

Carrie

April is a good time to visit, Easter is late in 2025 so it should still be quiet during the first two weeks, although the weather may still be cool . If you plan on using public transport and not renting a car Bari can make a good base because you can visit everywhere on the east coast easily using the fast and efficient train service. This is a week we spent in Bari at the beginning of April:
https://slowtravelitalyspain.blogspot.com/2019/11/puglia-bari-in-april-trip-report.html
There are also buses to Alberobello and Matera from Bari. Maybe Lecce for the other base?
Gargano/Vieste without a car is too difficult.

Thank you, Cari and Tinac!
Great and valuable information. My notes are getting long. Looking forward to our trip now that I have all this great information.