Elisabeth54

We, a couple in our late fifties, are planning a trip to Southern Italy in the second part of September. Never having visited the South before we are thinking of the so-called "heel" of Italy: Puglia, as our destination. We could fly to Brindisi or Bari and take it from there. Any advice on interesting cities, towns and accommodation is more than welcome! We like bed and breakfasts or small, family owned hotels. You Fodorites have been more than helpful in the past so I'm counting on you again!

NeoPatrick

Have you done a search here yet for that area? There have been some wonderful posts and trip reports for that area, including mine, although that's been a few years. My favorite spot in the entire area? Polignano di Mare (did I spell that right?). We stayed at the wonderful Palazzo Grotto Hotel (in you can get one of the couple "cave" rooms, and you'll love dining in the cave with the waves of the sea literally crashing beneath and behind you.

Elisabeth54

Frankly I have not yet done an serious search. The weather in my part of the world has been so atrocious since mid-June that we are in dire need of some sunshine before the onset of Winter. We do like a combination of fine weather, culture and good food though, anywhere not too touristic. Since we have never visited this part of Italy we wanted to find out more. After having read the very lengthy travel report by Franco (you are truly amazing when it comes to detail, Franco) I am not so sure that this is a good idea. I get the feeling that Puglia is a bit more "complicated" than I am prepared to bargain for . We are the kind of people who like to rent a car and roam, not just stay put on a deck chair overlooking the pool or the sea. I'm giving it a good thought while continuing to read Franco's report. Haven't found yours yet, NeoPatrick but thanks for your help sofar.

ekscrunchy

We are not the deck chair types either. We paid our first visit to the region (from the US) last September and liked it so much that we returned this past May. These are the reports that those trips generated; I am happy to help with details but I first recommend a search here as there are several very helpful threads discussing planning a trip to the region. Once you have come up with a semblance of a plan, we can help refine it, and suggest accommodations based on your price range...there are many small family run hotels in the region and many agriturismi, or working farms that accept guests.


http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ern-puglia.cfm


http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-di-senise.cfm


Hotel mentioned in NeoPatrick's post above:

http://www.grottapalazzese.it/it/home/

Approach_Guides

I agree that a search will provide quite a bit of helpful information on types of itineraries and hotels. Best to decide what type of experience you want first.
We went to Puglia last year and absolutely loved it. We did a concentrated architectural tour, exploring the Romanesque churches in Puglia, which offer a blend of architectural styles (Romanesque with Byzantine and Islamic influences). Highlight cities: Manfredonia, Troia, Trani, Molfetta, Ruvo di Puglia, Bitonto, and Bari. Another favorite spot in Puglia is Lecce for its Baroque architecture.
Have fun planning -- Puglia has a lot to offer!

NeoPatrick

Sorry. I can't find my trip report either. My screen name was just Patrick back then -- I think it was either 2002 or 2003, but the advanced search finds me nothing!

We too rented a car and drove around. It was remarkably easy even without either of us speaking any Italian. We did make advance reservations for hotels everywhere there, which made things somewhat easier. Nothing complex about it at all.

ekscrunchy

Here you go:


http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...el-and-toe.cfm

NeoPatrick

Wow thanks, ekscrunchy. I worked for awhile with various keywords and couldn't find that trip report no matter whan I tried.

As I said, it was a long time ago -- 9 years! So if anything, I'd assume travel there has only become easier in that time.

Elisabeth54

Thank you all for your help. I have a lot of reading to do! Appreciate your thoughtfulness and perseverance!

annhig

as a perhaps slightly easier area but with loads to do [and very few foreigners there doing them!] can I suggest the area round Orbetello? about 150 kms north of Rome, stunning scenery, beautiful beaches, loads of historical sights to visit, wonderful food, no-one there [except Romans at the weekends].

you can easily drive from there to inland southern Tuscany or Umbria, or even get to Siena in a day if you don't mind a bit of a drive.