Where to go in Puglia

Where are you arriving/departing?
If Bari, look at Matera (technically Basilicata), Monopoli, Itria Valley villages
If Brindisi, look at Lecce.
Do you prefer a town or rural stay? One base or two?

Thanks so much....We do not have our airline tickets yet but we were planning on flying into Bari.....We would love a mix of rural and town, and will definitely look into those you suggested....We would love to stay at a masseria as well.

Search for "masseria" on this forum and I know you'll get a couple of good recommendations from people who have posted about them. There was also a recent post about a bike tour some folks took in Puglia. They loved it and wished they'd opted for the longer tour!

Masseria Aprile near Locorotondo was a great base for us and you get to stay in a trullo: http://www.masseriaaprile.it/en/home/

Homemade breakfast, on-site parking, a donkey, a garden, an olive grove off the back terrace, wonderful hosts, and we visited an olive oil press and farmers market in Locorotondo (walking distance, but we drove).

I think you'll want a car if you only have a week.

I would suggest Lecce. Good transportation options to smaller towns nearby.

If you decide on Lecce, which was also a favorite base of ours in Puglia, fly into the Brindisi airport. We rented a car at the airport (nice, small airport!), but you could take a bus to Lecce. Lecce is about an hour south of Brindisi. More like 3 or 3.5 hours from Bari airport by public transportation.

There are many tours, cooking classes, and excellent restaurants in Lecce, and the sculptures on the Romanesque church exteriors are some of the best in Puglia.

Thanks everyone!! I really appreciate all the tips....Happy travels.

Hi Elizabeth

You've certainly picked a great region for your trip.

We were in Puglia last July and had the benefit of advise from a good friend from Lecce. Lecce would be a good base as it is centrally located and all small towns and sights would be easy driving distance. It is also a beautiful city with many restaurants and its own places of interest to base yourself in.

We definitely recommend looking in to Matera, Alberobello, Otranto. Polignano a Mare was a particular favourite with great food and wine. This is a little further away from Lecce so definitely worth considering staying locally for a night to get full enjoyment!

Paul & Nicki

Seconding Masseria en Aprile - one of the very best places I’ve ever stayed. Beautiful, affordable, and super personal. The family that owns it is so nice and the homemade breakfasts are wonderful. It’s a 15 minute walk (uphill) into the centre of Locorotondo which is a really cute little town with a number of restaurants, wine bars, etc.

My sister and I stayed there and made day trips to: Cisternino and Lido Tavernese; Monopoli; Alberobello; Grotto Della Poesia on the way to Lecce; Matera; and Ostuni (as well as White Ostuni Beach Club). We had planned to get to Polignano al Mare but never made it. All of these were doable as day trips though we did feel like the drives to/from Lecce and Matera were a little longer than was ideal for a day trip and because some of the driving involves pretty narrow, windy, hill roads, we found the drives home from those two at night kind of stressful. I’d definitely rent a car to have more flexibility in daytripping but could be worth dividing your time between a base further south and one like Locorotondo.

Can’t speak to cycling I’m afraid. I think there are some olive oil farms you can tour but we didn’t do that. Same with wineries - we did a lot of tasting in wine bars but didn’t make it to any wineries.

It’s a gorgeous region, you’re going to love it.

I found the text of the recent post about cycling (which I had copied to send to a friend). Sorry I don't know who the original poster was.

We just returned from an 8 day self guided cycling trip from Matera ending in Ostuni with Puglia Cycle Tours. Was an amazing way to see the country, mostly on empty back roads surrounded by olive trees. We are not big cyclists (well I am not anyway!) so we rented e-bikes. Great places to stay and wonderful support on the road when needed. We were sad that we didn't choose the longer tour. Loved all the towns we visited and stayed in, Matera is especially enchanting.

Thanks everyone.....I really appreciate your suggestions...