Hi, I hope some Southern Italy experts can help me. I am taking the ferry from Corfu across to Brindisi in December and am planning to pick up a hire car and travel across to Sicily. I want to spend about 5 days getting across Southern Italy and am looking for some advice on the itinerary.

I am thinking of first heading down to Otranto for one night then driving up to Matera and staying a couple of nights. I am also thinking about Tropea before I cross over to Sicily but what about from Matera to Tropea. Am I best just heading straight across or is there somewhere good to stop in between. Is it worth, for example, taking the coast road around via Crotone etc.

All advice most welcome.

Guy

Wow, I've tried Trip Advisor and Fodors and no-one seems to have much of an idea about Southern Italy, or at least, nothing that they want to share with me...

There are quite a few trip reports for southern Italy on Fodor's. Just enter some of the cities you plan to visit in the search function. You may have to adjust the default dates and click to search entire thread not just title.

The key word is December. I would drive to Alberobello or Martina Franca for a nite to explore that area and then to Lecce for 2 nites. You decide about Matera---I have not been there. I would skip the coast in Dec but drive directly to Taormina for at least 2 nites---you can get a day trip excursion from there to Mt. Etna if you want. Have fun !

Thanks kybourbon and bob

I plan to spend a couple of weeks in Sicily, so defintely three nights in Taormina, then on to Siracusa and beyond, but I'm hoping to get a plan straight in my head for Puglia, Basilicata and Calabria.

I'm now leaning mroe towards Lecce as you suggest bob, rather than Otranto which I think may be a bit dead in December...

I'm thinking Lecce-Alborobella-Matera-Maratea-Tropea then across to Sicily.