My Party in Puglia (11 Fabulous Days and Nights!!)

Great descriptions, Flame ! Keep it coming.

BTW our v. old automatic car has a gearstick too - do you mean they don't in the US (assuming that's where you're from) ?

Caroline - thanks.

Yes, we do have these types of cars, but I had never used or seen one before and not getting instructions or help from anyone at the Avis staff was very frustrating. It is the second time now and I doubt I will use them the next time I need to rent a car!!!

Anyway, here is Day Three :


Day 3

We had breakfast again at "our" Super Bar on Via Mario Paganoi. Same delish cappuccino and cornetto. Today we drove out of Trani (which was QUITE the experience with the Italian drivers on these really narrow streets!!) and into some small towns along the coast and a bit inland as well. First we drove to Andria in order to get to Castel del Monte. We had to park in a parking lot, for 4 Euros, and from there take a shuttle to the Castel. It is perched high up on a hill and is very impressive from the outside. It was REALLY windy, maybe because of the weather today or maybe because it was so high on a hill but it was really scary. Once inside, for another 3 Euros each, it was OK but nothing "to write home about". Since no one seems to know why this Castel was built, it has an air of mystery surrounding it but that is about all. Back to the shuttle to get the car and then we drove towards Ruvo di Puglia. A very poor small town with an interesting cathedral and that was about it. There is a large archeological museum here called Jatta but none of us was interested in seeing it so we skipped it. Terlizzi was our next stop today where again it was a small poor little town with a small center, a pretty church and that was it.

From here we went back to the coast and got to Molfetta. Here the port was quite nice and we decided to stop for lunch as it was about 1 PM already. The place we went into had a very pretty flower-lined entrance and inside it looked very elegant and attractive. We were just about the only ones there though (which has been pretty much the pattern – maybe because it is not considered "the season" here yet). The food was good and plentiful but nothing special and the price was alright.

Fortified, we walked some more along the port and then drove to Bisceglie which turned out to be the nicest of the small places we saw today. Again a port with some nice buildings, a large square in the center, etc. From there we returned to Trani and all decided that Trani was the nicest of all and had the most to offer. We put our feet up a bit and later went down to the port and back to Rosa dei Venti where we were greeted so warmly by the owner already down the street, even before we got even near to the restaurant. This time we chose to order less food because we were not that hungry. Since we were second-time customers, the chef started us out with "his speciality" on the house of a freshly made puff pastry with meat and melted cheese. We each then had fabulous bruschetta, like last time. We ordered the scallopini and another assorted cheese plate. We all had salads with it and wine. The meal ended once again with wonderful lemon sorbet and the bill was 15 Euros each. Best deal ever.

Tomorrow we leave Trani and go towards Conversano where we are booked for 4 nights at Masseria MontePaolo.

Thanks for taking the time to post this during your trip; I look forward to more...

Concidentally I am now reading the new book by Lidia Bastianich which has a chapter on Puglian food; if you plan to return to the Andria area, she recommends the "spectacular" burrata (cheese) made by Domenico Asseliti and his family.

hi, flame,

great report on a neglected area.

in fact, so neglected, I've no idea where Trani is!

would you be kind enough to give me an idea plus driving time from Rome, and when you were there?

regards, ann

Ann: Just in case you are in the US and watch PBS, the new series called Lidia's Italy (same as her new book) had a program on Puglia recently in which she featured Trani. You can probably catch the rerun.

Good stuff, Flame. More, please.

ekscrunchy - thanks. I am not actually writing this as I vacation. I have returned already and am putting the report together. Yes, I read about this buratta cheese. I believe we may have also eaten it and not really known. We had some very special cheeses on this trip and I am sure this was one of them.

Ann - the Puglia area of Italy is the "heel of the boot", i.e. the southeastern part. To get there from Rome, as we did, we drove south first towards Napoli (about 200 kilometers) and then cut across the country, easternly, to get to the eastern coast, the Adriatic Sea, and that was about another 200 kilometers to Tranu. Another 200 kilometers southwards to our final stop got us to Lecce. We were just there now during the first 11 days of May 2007.

Holly - thanks. And here is more !!!


Day Four

On our way to Conversano. We left Trani, sadly, around 10 AM and arrived at the Masseria around 11:20. We were booked into 2 beautiful rooms with balconies overlooking gardens and countryside. Completely isolated and beautifully quiet and peaceful. The price here was 85 Euros for a double, 55 Euros for a single. After settling in we drove towards Polignano di Amare where we stopped around the port and old city center and had a small meal of tagliolini with porcini mushrooms for my cousin and me, with salmon for my husband (L'Osteria di Chichibio, Largo Gelso 12, Polignano di Amare; Tel – 080-4240488; web – www.chichibiopolignano.com). We later found out that this was a restaurant recommended especially for its amazing and fresh fish, which we actually saw while seated next to the man preparing them for cooking/baking, etc. But we were not hungry for a large meal anyway. We then walked forever all over the old town and by 3 PM we were hungry for an espresso, for some reason the restaurant did not offer coffee at all. So we stopped at a small outdoor cafe right at the entrance to the old city and rejuvenated ourselves with great coffee.

We walked back to the car and drove into the city of Conversano. Again, we walked all around the old city with beautiful castles, fabulous churches, had our first gelato for even a very inexpensive price of 1.30 for 2 big scoops in a cone. We returned to the Masseria around 5:30 and just enjoyed the peaceful quiet, rested, took showers, etc. before dinner at 8 PM here.

Dinner – many many small antipasti including canapes of tuna salad and a dried tomato paste, plate of various cheeses, fried bread balls, fried mozzarella balls, a fried dough with melted cheese and tomato inside. Prima piatti of really al dente spaghetti with tomato sauce and parmeggiano, secondi piatti of delicious goulash-type beef with roasted potatoes and rosemary. Desert was petit four of chocolates and nuts. Water, red and white wines. Yum. Quite good. We ended up having dinner here each night and it was 20 Euros each.

A comment about the dinner at Montepaolo. One of the reasons I chose this place for 4 nights was because of comments on tripadvisor. People raved about the food, the owner, etc. We did not have the same experience. The food on two nights that we ate here was very good, since those were the two nights that there was either a large party or another table set for about 10 people coming from somewhere just for the meal. So we enjoyed the special foods made for them. On the other two nights, while the food was OK and even tasty, it was nothing really and truly great. The owner, while nice enough, was not even there for two of the four days we spent. And when she was, she was too busy to give us more than a quick Bona sera, etc.

hi, Flame,

thanks for the signposts to puglia. in fact it was trani i couldn't place - one of the other students on my italian lessons has a house in puglia, but I hadn't read your title properly. Duuuh!

the trip sounds great - what made you pick that bit?

regards, ann

Ann - you are welcome. We picked Puglia on the suggestion of a traveling companion. She has friends who have a summer home in that area and they had been raving about it for some time. So we took the plunge and decided to visit there.

More coming soon.

Flame--I'm loving your trip report and definitely bookmarking it for reference for our trip next year (yes, so far off, sigh!) I've been trying to find a guide book specifically for Pulgia (have checked under Apulia also) but cannot find anything more than several pages in a Southern Italy guide book. Did you have a book and if so can you tell me the name and author? Thanks.

Angela - I also had very little to go on when trying to find books. I actually received a couple on loan from a friend, for this trip. One indeed was the one you write about on Southern Italy, but it was much more than a few pages, it was a chapter of maybe 40-50 pages. But since it spoke of many towns there really was not more than a half page or page for each place. The other book was called The Blue Book on Southern Italy, if I remember correctly. That was less useful. I relied also on whatever I found on travel sites (not so much on Fodors site but more on tripadvisor and slow travel). And I found that I really had more than enough information.


Here is Day 5 :

We had breakfast at 9 AM, it consisted of bread, some pound cake, cookies, good yogurt, not-great cappuccino, not-fresh orange juice. Not at all what I expected (or read about). Oh well…. We were out just before 10 AM and drove to Alberobello, the Trulli village. We walked around the tourist part and also the "regular" part of the town where people actually live. Very beautiful and special to this region only. Locorotondo was next, another small village in the Trulli area. Here we had a great light lunch of pasta with gorgonzola, tomatoes and basil, the speciality of the region, i.e. pureed fava beans with chicory (or spinach in this case) which was really and truly outstanding, and a "chef's plate" of various marinated or fried vegetables, meats and cheeses. A memorable and very very inexpensive meal in a small trattoria which I would happily return to (Trattoria Centro Storico at Via Eroi di Dogali 6; Tel : 080-4315473; www.ilcentrostorico.biz).

Our next stop was the charming little town of Cisternino where we walked around the old centro storico and then drove to the big city of Ostuni. Here we had some trouble finding the actual center and even parked the car much further than we should have, but we finally got there and was it worth it!! Beautiful whitewashed houses, a very big center, several beautiful churches and buildings, and a great gelato which we enjoyed in the afternoon heat. We walked around the city some more and then headed back to the car.

Driving back to Conversano we got a bit mixed up around Putignano but stopped at a gas station and asked someone who was filling up his car and he said to wait 5 minutes and follow him. He got us out of the mess and on the right road but we ended up at the masseria at 7 PM, much later than we wanted. There is a private party here tonight at the Masseria but we were promised quiet by midnight, let's see if that will hold. We are having dinner here again tonight.

Dinner was great!!! Appetizers included bruschetta with tomatoes and olive oil, mozzarella, deep-fried light vegetables (fritta mista), two kinds of focaccia, spinach and ricotta quiche. Lasagna was prima piatti, not for me because it had eggplant. No second piatti for any of us because it was pork tonight but we got some kind of wheat dish in tomato sauce. And the proprietor came out to tell us that we were her guests for dinner tonight, both because of the above and both because of the private party tonight and to "make up" for the many people and noise, etc. That was really very nice of her (and good business!!). We rounded off the meal with a millefiore cake with pistachio cream and fondant and on-the-premises-made almond liquer. WOW!!!!

A P.S. to the party and noise – there were indeed many people, maybe about 100, and it included small children. The "noise" was barely audible and everyone conducted themselves in a very elegant and proper manner. It was beautiful to see and I believe that the music, which was actually welcome and beautiful (the owner thought we would be bothered by it), and the party itself were finished even before the promised midnight hour.

Don't know if you are still reading my report, but here is Day 6 finished :


Day SIX

We awoke to a beautiful sunny morning for a change and it was warmer than till now. We drove to Altamura and visited the beautiful historic center there, churches, etc, We got some info from some aging pensioners sitting outdoors in the sun and in the "tourist office" (more aging pensioners sitting indoors who were all very sweet and as helpful as can be). Altamura is the "city of bread" and we found the excellent de Gesu bakery that I wanted to visit after reading about it (F. lli. Di Gesu` S.n.c., Via Bari, c.s. 1047, 70022 Altamura; Tel/Fax : 080-3142737). It smelled wonderful and we bought some typical Pugliese taralle and biscotti to bring home.

We continued our drive to Matera, the Sassi city of caves. We were all truly "wow-ed" here. It was really something special and unusual and we had never seen anything like it before. We walked around for a long time, stopping at every corner for pictures and "wow-ing". We stopped for a drink and sandwich around 3 PM at a lovely little outdoor seating area of a hotel called La Casa di Lucio, Hotel Relais, on Via S. Pietro Caveoso 66; Tel 0835-312798, www.lacasadilucio.it. There was a small outdoor area and it was a pleasant respite from the midday heat. We used the bathroom there and it was so elegant and beautiful that I needed to photograph it. The hotel itself also was gorgeous and I asked the woman what is the cost. She told me 135 Euros per night for a couple. There are quite a few hotels here in this sassi area and I guess people choose to spend some time there. It looks like it would REALLY be eerie at night, it was eerie enough now during the day. We started back around 3:45 and will be having dinner at MontePaolo again tonight.

We had a fabulous meal tonight (maybe because we saw a large table set for about 10 guests from outside?). We started with tuna crostini, lightly battered and deep-fried zucchini strips, pastry filled with melted cheese and tomato, also fried, marvelous soft
mozzarella cheese, soft and creamy inside with some lettuce, mounds of creamy ricotta with mint. Primi piatti was creamy risotto with asparagus and parmeggiano. Second piatti was the best barbequed veal I have ever eaten with a lovely salad. Fruit (kiwi, strawberries and oranges) rounded off the meal along with a small cup of custard and fruit, wine and water.

You are making me want to follow in your footsteps ! Please keep it coming. Sorry if it's in there somewhere already, but what was the name of the masseria you stayed at ?

The name of the Masseria is Agriturismo MontePaolo just outside Conversano.

Thank you. I've thought about going to Puglia & looked at a few masserias (masserie, I suppose), but being in historic buildings they don't generally seem to have balconies. This looks nice and very reasonable.

Hope you don't mind me asking - how good is your Italian ? We speak some but not fluently - is that enough for Puglia ?

When you say you speak some Italian, what do you mean? I also speak some Italian, and can understand if spoken slowly. I had absolutely NO problem with anyone in Puglia, even those who knew no English whatsoever (most of them!!) just because they are such kind and generous people, who are willing to go to lengths to make themselves understood. We even had people driving us to destinations because it was easier than trying to explain it. They were truly marvelous.

If you speak a little and are patient and sensitive yourself, I don't think you will have any problems.

I also had an pocketbook of Italian/English dictionary with me and it came in useful from time to time. The main thing is to say a few words in Italian. They are so pleased that you are "trying" that everything else is forgiven!!

Thanks, that's good to know. I've done 3 years' worth of evening classes but as I said, am by no means fluent and I'm not that confident. I've been to Italy 16 times (I think) so far but not usually so far off the beaten track - usually our problem is not getting to practice our Italian because everyone speaks to us in English (or in Ischia, in German) !

More please!

Here is more !!!


Day SEVEN

We had our sad breakfast as usual and we were off around 9:45 towards Martina Franca, a beautiful elegant little town with very exclusive shops, very well-manicured piazzas and little green areas and gardens in the city, and a nice centro storico where we walked around for some time.

Castellana in Grotto was next where we had a vegetarian Panini and a drink before entering the stalagcyte and stalagmite caves which were amazing. They are apparently the biggest in Italy and very very impressive. We had a tour of about an hour in German because that is what they were offering at that time (there were very few tourists and so we would have had to wait several hours for one in English). We then drove towards the sea again and stopped in Monopoli which was a surprisingly beautiful and interesting town. MANY MANY churches, at every corner a different one, and a very big and grand centro storico. We again wandered down to the port which was much larger than we had expected and so we were happy we decided to go there.

We returned to the hotel around 6 PM, showered and waited for dinner.

It seems that we have better dinners when there are parties going on here. Tonight we had tomato and basil crostini, fresh mushrooms in a lemon and oil dressing and a cheese and potato/bread baked pie. Delicious tagliatelle with artichokes were the primi piatti.

Some stewed beef, cold potatoes and very large and strange cucumbers were the main course and only some sad fruit with whipped cream for desert.

Thanks - really good report on an area not reported on very often. I have friends who are driving through Puglia and then back over to the Amalfi Coast, so I know they are reading this report with great interest.

Yes, Flame, more please. I am taking notes! Sounds like a wonderful trip

Barb - glad someone can make good use of this report.

SeaUrchin - thanks for the compliments, indeed it WAS a great trip.

And here is Day EIGHT:

Day EIGHT
Breakfast today was the worst ever, not even bread was served even though I asked for some. Very very meager offerings for breakfast here.

We packed up and were on our way for Lecce, after receiving some wine bottles with the MontePaolo name as gifts and purchasing olive oil and almond liquer made on the premises. We stopped on the way at Torre Guaceto to see the beach which was supposed to be astounding. It was nice, beautiful blue water, etc. but nowhere near astounding. We arrived at B&B Villa Guiliana right before noon, got settled in. Price here is 70 Euros for a double, 40 Euros for a single. We met Andrea and his Mom, he speaks perfect English which is nice after a week of trying to manage in broken tongues. It is really really hot here now so we went to a FAB restaurant for a light lunch on Andrea's recommendation not far from here and I believe we will be frequenting it often. It is called Li Spilusi Pizzeria Trattoria on via Gramsci in Arnesano Phone 0832-323576. There were only three other people at one table there for lunch. The proprietor received us and we ordered. He first brought out some outstanding homemade breads with a very nice cheese, on the house. We had some insalata mista which was more than just a dollop of veggies, it was nice after so long without, 2 pasta dishes, one omelet and water. He rounded off our meal with some freshly cut watermelon, on the house, 3 coffees on the house, and then asked if we would like to taste a special house liquor. It was THE BEST ever. It was made with a special wine from this region (Negroamaro), added cherries and alcohol and was served almost frozen. It was ecstatic!! I want to buy some but he says he has no more left and the old lady who makes it only has so many she can make!!! Strange.

We decided to have a siesta on this very hot midday and went out to Lecce in the late afternoon around 4:30. The weather much much better. We drove to centro storico and parked the car right at the entrance through one of the old gates to the city. Fabulous old center, many many gorgeous churches and baptistries, small streets with quaint shops. We stopped for a gelato around 5 PM. We walked to Piazza Oronzo, the main piazza, where there is an old Roman amphitheater. Santa Croce church which is just amazing in size and intricate work outside in stone. We wandered some more and more "getting lost" in the maze of streets. We returned around 7:30 to B&B and decided to go back to dinner at Li Spilusi. We had a fabulous antipasti of grilled veggies, special breads, fried meats, cheeses, etc. We chose the pureed fave with chicory and bread crostini for meal. Tasty. Very strong red and white wine was delicious. The proprietor insists once again to finish our meal with the luscious cherry liquor of lunch, to which we cannot say no.

We slept really really well.

hi, flame,

I am really loving your descriptions of this area - as i said above, i have a friend with a house in puglia and I've already asked her about renting it some time next year. May sounds ideal.

any disadvantages?

regards, ann

Ann - glad you are enjoying the report.

Where does your friend have the house? Disadvantages in what respect? The time of year? The area? I am not sure I know what you are asking, please be more specific and I will try and help.

hi, flame,

I suppose i meant parts you didn't like so much, traffic, roads, etc.

I can't remember exactly where the house - one thing I have to find out.

thanks for the offer to help - I'll come back to you if I may when i fnd out where it is.

regards, ann

Sure, it's OK. I will be happy to help with anything you need, if I can.

As to "parts we did not like", the only day I thought was a bit "wasted" so to speak was Day 3 where we traveled to visit some small towns in the area around Trani. These were very small and quite poor towns and they were completely unoriented to tourism (not a bad thing in my book per se), but they were just uninteresting and we did not really see anything great.

Our favorites? We loved Trani, Monopoli, Lecce, Otranto. Alberobello and that whole area was very interesting. And Matera (not really in Puglia, it is in Basilicata but close enough to visit while there) was also fascinating (the cave city).

thanks, flame.

regards, ann

Day NINE

Breakfast was so-so. No real coffee to speak off and except for several very nice homemade cakes, nothing great. Oh well, breakfast is a disappointment in Italy. We had a lovely chat with Andrea before embarking on our day's adventure and we started off towards Otranto. What a very lovely and interesting city. One of the nicest yet. A very big beautiful port, well developed and a bit more geared towards tourists. A big castle with moat and fort at the entrance to the old city and a very special cathedral with a huge mosaic floor and some frescoes inside. We had a drink in a little cafe along the walk by the water and enjoyed some nice cooler air. We then drove down to S. Ceasarea Terme which is along the coast on Route 378 which was one of the nicest drives ever. This is more of a Moorish Arabic influence on the town and there were many fine buildings and restaurants in the area, again right on the beach. At this point we were a bit hungry and went looking for a little bar to have a snack. We had a sandwich and drinks nearby at Alcazar Bar. And then we decided to continue along this route down the coast all the way to the tip of the Salentine Peninsula to S. Marina de Leuca. Here we saw a very big lighthouse and then we turned around the tip and went up the other side of the coast (Ionian sea now instead of the Adriatic) towards Gallipolli. Gallipolli is a very big port and city, much dirtier and more run down than others. We stopped in the center and walked around a bit and then made it back to our B&B, albeit with LOTS of getting lost right before Lecce. In the end after SO SO many times of missing exits, etc. we finally stopped at a gas station and we asked one of the guys there if he would drive in front of us and lead us to where we need to be. He happily did so and finally we got to our B&B, by then it was after 6:30 already.

I fell exhausted onto the bed, and then got up and took a shower. Dinner was again at our favorite Li Spilusi. Tonight we had some appetizers of delicious fava beans and a warm salad of marinated beets and turnips with their special bread baked with olives. A very fresh garden salad, insalata mista, together with veal scallopini in white wine was our main dish tonight. We shared some red wine, finished a bottle actually between the three of us. And then Francesco kind of insisted we try a very special desert which was like a homemade ice cream in chocolate and nocciola flavors, very good, which you then pour some special liquor onto. YUM YUM YUM

Still loving this report, thanks for posting! what a wonderful free wheelin' trip!

Thanks SeaUrchin. It truly was a marvelous and well thought out trip.

And here are the LAST TWO DAYS :

Day TEN

We had another mediocre breakfast and another too too hot day. Today was market day in Lecce so we drove into the city, after getting very good directions from Andrea and looked for the market which was easy enough to find. It is huge and has just about everything you can think of but there was nothing unusual or out of the ordinary so we just wandered for about half an hour and then took the car and drove to the newer part of the town where we tried to do some shopping but with not much luck. We passed by and went into a very unusual church (La Chiesa di S. Antonio) and we found just a few things to buy afterwards. We thought about having lunch at Il Giardino recommended by Andrea but when we asked someone closing his shop where it was, he told us but then said we would be better off at a place right next to it called Osteria degli Spiriti and we decided to go with that Via C. Battisti 4; Tel : 0832-246274; info@osteriadeglispiriti.it) . Boy were we NOT disappointed. It was a very nice place and the food was outstanding and not expensive. We started with a 6 plate antipasti which included some quiche-type veggie offerings, all sorts of marinated and cooked veggies and wonderful special breads and crackers. We each had a very good pasta dish and finished with coffee.

Back to the car and had a good siesta today, again much too hot during the day but gets cooler and nice at night.

After packing and a shower, we lounged outside in the great afternoon air and then went again to Francesco for our last dinner here. We started with the regular cheese and breads, a fabulous insalate caprese with buffalo mozzarella, beefsteak and fava beans (got the recipe!!!) and ended with the famous cherry liquor!! Said sadful goodbyes and took some pics.

Day ELEVEN

Had coffee and wonderful fresh orange cake at 7 AM, packed up and said goodbye. By 7:30 we were on the road, there was no traffic and everything was fine. It was exactly 200 kilometers back to Trani from Lecce, and then another 200 to Napoli. Another 200 got us to the Rome area. We stopped once around 11:00 for a strong espresso to keep me awake at an Autogrill. Continued the drive basically till almost at Ciampino airport, where we filled up gas for the last time and dropped off my cousin around 3 PM. Then we drove back to the GRA and got to Fiumicino, managed to deliver the car back to Avis and walked to the Hilton Hotel. From there, we had a shuttle take us to the new Hilton Garden Inn which is fabulous.

We enjoyed being "back to civilization" so to speak, in the sense that the hotel was very new and geared for executives, we had free Wi-Fi internet connection in the room, big fluffy towels and a great king-size bed with great big pillows as well. We ended up having a very decent dinner there in their cafeteria and had a truly wonderful night's sleep before our early morning departure the next morning.


Comments and Observations :

Puglia is NOT Tuscany/Umbria. You will not be "wow-ed" at each turn with beautiful rolling hills, lots of green and gorgeous views. Puglia is almost completely flat, mostly you will see thousands of very old and beautifully intertwined historic olive trees, many fruit trees, gorgeous wildflowers in the springtime.

Food is outstanding. They use basic and very fresh ingredients and make the most delicious dishes. These are no-nonsense and not fancy. They are filling, interesting and fun to try and learn about. Wine is much stronger than Northern typical wines, 14% alcohol in most!! Very delicious. Food is not expensive here and you get more than value for your money.

Accommodations can be very basic and inexpensive mostly. But there are fancier and costlier hotels available in some places if that is what suits your fancy.

Breakfast, even in those places where I read would be fabulous, was less than adequate even. Maybe it was because we were not there in high season and there were very few other people and they just did not want to make an effort.

Drivers in Puglia seem to be even more aggressive and fast than their Northern counterparts. They mostly have little patience and enjoy using their horn. However, they do seem to be safe drivers, and that does count for something I guess!!

People will go out of their way to be friendly, helpful and accommodating. They love their country and they respect it. Even in the very poor small towns that we visited or passed through, they were very very clean, flowers were on every balcony or windowsill.

We had a great time and now we are just left with beautiful pictures, memories, and an ever-strengthening yearn for more and more of Bella Italia!!!

Thank you for your report, I will follow it in a few months.

Is that the best way to get to the Garden Hilton, to take the shuttle from the other Hilton? Is the price much lower? Do you know the shuttle hours?

I can't wait for my trip in that same area!!

SeaUrchin -

When are you going and where to exactly??

The shuttle from the "older" Hilton airport hotel to the Hilton Garden Inn is free. Since we returned the car to the Avis counter at the airport, it was very easy just to walk over to the "older" Hilton. They received us very warmly and when I told them we had reservations at the Garden Inn, the clerk immediately called for their shuttle, which arrived in about 10 minutes and drove us to the Garden Inn (about a 7-8 minute ride).

The shuttle hours, as far as I can remember are 6 AM till 11 PM but they wrote me if we needed it at a different time, all we needed to do was ask or reserve it. We did not but I am sure they would have done it. The have a fabulous staff !!

So yes, for us it was the best way.

Flame - will you be posting some of those beautiful pictures online for all to see?

Hi Flame, I will be there in Sept/Oct. I am renting a car in Rome and just driving off without a plan, but now that I have read your report I may follow your ideas for the most part.

The night before I fly back I like to stay as long as possible wherever I am and just drive up to an airport hotel late that evening. I usually stay at the "old" Hilton but I have been reading nice reports on the Garden. If it is really less expensive I may go there instead. I don't want to cut my last day short just to go back into the city of Rome.

I am bookmarkin this as I am going to Puglia at the end of the month. FYI, a brand new travel book dedicated completely to Puglia was released June 1st, I am waiting for it to arrive. It's called:

Travellers Puglia (Travellers - Thomas Cook) by Thomas Cook Publishing (Paperback - Jun 1, 2007)

I just noticed that another book to be released very soon--date wasn't provided on Amazon.com--Lonely Planet Puglia & Basilicata, Feb. 2008. Puglia is quickly becoming popular!

You are my guardian angel. We are planning almost the same trip and you have provided my wife and myself with a lovely blueprint to follow. Thank you so much.

I am reviewing in depth and will probably have questions but thanks again for now.

skedoo - your post is just about the loveliest I have ever read. Thank you so much!!! Feel free at any time to ask questions, etc. and I will be more than happy to answer and help however I can. When are you planning your trip?

thanks for the info, it was very helpful. i have family outside of troia in northern puglia and we will be spending the month of august there. we have reservations for a place in matera, but we are still deciding on what other cities we want to see and you post was very informative.

how did you find the driving in puglia? we have a car for the time we are there, but i don't know how much time i should figure in for traveling. from my experience in northern pulgia, sometimes we find empty flat roads where you can go as fast as you want, and some run through the villages and remind me of ireland. what was your experience in the south? thanks

Matera is a VERY special place, I think that it is actually in the region of Basilicata but right on the border of Puglia.

Anyway, driving in Puglia is a breeze, after having driven in Toscana. Most roads are indeed flat and if you go on the autostrada you are allowed 120-130 km. The roads inside the small cities are AWFUL, in the sense that they are very bumpy and you can see that there is little money alloted to fixing them. But you have to drive slowly in the city anyway and at least you get to see everything.

It was VERY hot when we were there in mid-May so I imagine in August it will be truly difficult.

Flame, what a wonderful trip report about an often overlooked area. I know many of the places you have spoken of very well: Trani, Cisternino, Alberobelo, Lecce, Bari and I can just picture "your" masseria. I can also reccoment masseria San Marino where excellent English is spoken by Connie and Gianni. We have family in Pezzi de Greco, very close by and we look forward to spending time with them. I thought it well worth it to TTT this as many questions are being asked about Puglia that this thread answers.

LJ - thanks for your lovely comments and compliments!!

Hope you have a great time when you go.

Thanks for the response to the hotel in Trani. Just read your trip report. It was great. Can't wait to go.

Thanks again

Fred

Fred - you are most welcome. I hope you enjoy as much as we did. It is a fabulous, unspoiled, mostly undiscovered area and we really loved it.

Have a great time.

bkmk

Dear Flame:

I posted the journal of our Apulia trip. It was fun and we had a lot of the same experiences as you.

Thanks so much for the guidance.

Fred

Hi Fred,

You are more than welcome. Happy I was able to help and even happier that you had a good time. Can't wait to read your trip report!!

Fred, I can't seem to find your trip report. Can you guide me to it please? Thanks.

Great trip report Flame! I enjoyed it very much!

I'm dying to visit southern Italy (I've just been to Capri), but I can't decide which area to visit first.

By the way...

There's an excellent detailed bookguide of Puglia (in Italian) relased by DeAgostini in 2006. It talks about every single town and area there is to visit in Puglia (there's also a top 10 list of what not to miss) and it features a lot of beautiful pictures and suggested driving itineraries. The food and wine chapter is very thorough and it lists a lot of hotels and masserie in each location. You can even order it online on www.internetbookshop.it or www.unilibro.it

National Geographic also released a bookguide of Naples and Southern Italy this year that includes a chapter about Puglia and where all the places Flame visited are mentioned. The chapter about food isn't that good, though.

Castellanesse, What is the name of DeAgostini's book on Puglia? When I look on the internet site you listed all I find by DeAgostini are road maps.

Hi Marta,

It's called "Puglia. Con atlante stradale tascabile 1:450000" and it costs 23 Euros. I'd forgotten to mention that it comes with a road map.

I thought it was available on both websites, but only www.internetbookshop.it has it.

Grazie mille Castellanese. L'ho comprato.

Prego.

Am researching where to go this time in Italy and your report was excellent. We stayed one night in Matera two years ago and really liked the Sant' Angelo hotel there. We didn't spend much time in the area though.