The route that gives Puglia its full argument — the region that the Italy repeat visitor discovers after Rome and Florence have been done and that the first-time Italy visitor often misses entirely because the marketing department is north of Naples: two days in Alberobello for the trulli (the 1,400 circular stone houses with the conical roofs that look like the fairy-tale illustration of a village and are, uniquely, the actual village rather than the set), two days in Lecce for the Baroque architecture that the pietra leccese (the soft local limestone, carvable with the specificity that the harder northern stone prohibits) allowed the 17th-century craftsmen to produce in a level of detail that makes Lecce the most elaborately carved city in Italy, and three days on the Puglia coast for the Polignano a Mare sea cave restaurant and the Otranto at 6am and the specific Adriatic that the Puglia summer gives at the price that the Amalfi charges four times more for.
Reading time: 10 minutes | Last updated: 2026
Before You Leave
Getting there: Fly London-Bari (Ryanair from Stansted — 2.5 hours) or London-Brindisi (Ryanair, 2.5 hours). The car: Essential for the trulli and the coast circuit. Hire from Bari or Brindisi Airport: €25-50/day. The Puglia road (the SS16 coastal road, the SS7 Appia interior) is navigable at normal Italian speed.
The Route
Bari (1 night, arrival) → Alberobello (2 nights, 1 hour south) → Lecce (2 nights, 1.5 hours further south) → Adriatic coast circuit (2 nights: Otranto, Gallipoli, Polignano) → fly home from Bari or Brindisi
DAY 1 — Bari
The Bari Vecchia:
The Bari Vecchia (the old city — the Basilica di San Nicola (the 11th-century Romanesque church built to house the relics of Saint Nicholas, the specific Bari that the Russian Orthodox and the Catholic pilgrimage both visit, the crypt visible at the lower level), the specific old city morning when the nonnas (le signore — the older Bari women) roll the orecchiette pasta by hand on the stones of the old city lanes visible from 9am):
The orecchiette demonstration (the Via dell’Arco Basso in the Bari Vecchia — the pasta-making visible in the street from the doorways, the shapes formed by pressing the thumb across the small pasta disc): free to watch, the pasta for sale by the bag at €3-5/100g.
DAYS 2-3 — Alberobello
The trulli at dawn:
The Alberobello trulli (the UNESCO World Heritage Site — the 1,400+ trulli (the single-room conical stone houses, the mortar-free dry-stone construction, the specific roof shape (the cone built without mortar so the roof could be dismantled when the property tax inspector came — the specific Puglia tax-avoidance architectural tradition))):
At 6:30am: the Rione Monti district (the main trulli quarter — the Via Monte Sabotino, the trullo silhouettes against the pink sky, the specific Alberobello image available only before 9am when the tourist shops open within the trulli themselves).
The trullo interior (the single circular room, the vaulted stone ceiling giving the cool interior regardless of the August heat outside, the specific Puglia domestic architecture): the interior accessible at the trullo hotel (the stay within the trullo — from €80-150/night for the 2-person trullo accommodation).
The Castellana Caves:
The Grotte di Castellana (the cave system 30km from Alberobello — the 3km underground circuit, the Caverna Bianca (the White Cave at the circuit’s end, the stalactites and stalagmites in the white calcite that the guided torchlight gives at the cave’s most dramatic point)): €15-25 depending on the circuit length.
DAYS 4-5 — Lecce
The Baroque Lecce:
The Basilica di Santa Croce (the 17th-century Baroque façade — the pietra leccese (the golden limestone) carved into the rose window flanked by the Baroque figures, the specific Lecce architectural elaboration that the harder northern Italian stone prohibits and that the Lecce craftsmen exploited to produce the most carved façade in Italy):
At 8am: the façade in the morning light before the square fills, the carved detail visible in the low angle of the sun.
The Lecce pasticciotto:
The pasticciotto leccese (the oval pastry filled with the custard cream — the specific Lecce breakfast pastry, made here since the 18th century, the correct Lecce morning): €1.50-2 at the Bar Natale or the Pasticceria Alvino in the Piazza Sant’Oronzo.
The caffè leccese (the espresso over ice with the almond milk — the specific Lecce hot-weather coffee culture): €2-3.
DAYS 6-7 — The Adriatic Coast
Otranto at 6am:
The Otranto (the easternmost city in Italy — the Cathedral of Otranto (the 12th-century mosaic floor, the Albero della Vita (the Tree of Life mosaic covering the entire nave floor, 12 months × the human life stages visible in the figures), and the Castle of Otranto (the 15th-century fortress visible above the harbour)):
At 6am: the castle walls visible in the first light, the Strait of Otranto visible (Albania visible at 72km on clear days), the specific Italian geography of the heel of the boot.
Polignano a Mare:
The Polignano a Mare (the town built on the Adriatic cliff, 35km south of Bari — the old town visible from the beach below as the houses on the cliff edge, the sea cave visible from the kayak that the beach rental gives):
The Grotta Palazzese restaurant (the restaurant inside the sea cave — the tables set in the cave, the sea visible through the cave opening, the dinner at €80-150 per person): the most specifically dramatic restaurant setting in Italy. Book 4-6 weeks ahead in summer.
The Gallipoli beach:
The Baia Verde (the beach south of Gallipoli — the Ionian Sea beach, the water at 25-27°C in July-August, the specific Puglia sea that the Adriatic beach gives on the east coast and that the Ionian gives on the west):
What It Costs
| Category | Budget | Mid-Range |
|---|---|---|
| Return flights (UK-Bari or Brindisi) | £20-80 | £40-150 |
| Car hire (5 days) | £125-250 | £175-350 |
| 7 nights accommodation | £105-280 | £280-700 |
| Food (7 days) | £40-100 | £100-250 |
| Entries (caves, castle) | £20-40 | £20-40 |
| Total | £310-750 | £615-1,490 |
Puglia is the most affordable quality Italy week in this guide — the Ryanair flight from £20 each way and the self-catering trullo accommodation from €80/night for two people give the Italy holiday at the Balkans price.
