Italy-If you had 5-6 days in Puglia-HELP

Old Aug 7th, 2018, 12:38 PM
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I think Lecce might be a bit too far. In addition to Lecce, staying somewhere in the Itria Valley would allow you to see everything except Lecce, which is the outlier distance-wise. It just depends on the amount of time you want to spend in a car. A lot of people recommend viamichelin for accurate route mapping, but I just use Google maps and round up a bit.
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Old Aug 7th, 2018, 12:39 PM
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I forgot Polignano, and since that is next door to Monopoli, you can go there any of the "extra" time you have while there.
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Old Aug 7th, 2018, 05:04 PM
  #23  
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Originally Posted by yolosotravel
if we are coming from Naples via car and dropping car off to take train into Rome, should we start or end our trip in Matera? I haven't checked on the drive time between Matera and say Lecce. Do you we are trying to cover to much in 6 days. We don't want to spend all our time driving.
Of course you are trying to do too much! But that would be the case if you had a month, so IMO, a better question would be: How can you maximize what you want to see and do in the time you have?

For drive times, check rome2rio.com or google maps or viamichelin.... With rome2rio, you can plot out various options for driving and trains and test out which sequence works best for YOU given the times of day when you prefer to travel, etc.

IMO, Lecce is a perfectly reasonably place to spend the majority of your time in Puglia -- I wanted more than a full day just for the city itself. If you don't mind moving around a bit, you could also choose a second base -- your trip, your call!
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Old Aug 9th, 2018, 08:18 AM
  #24  
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Hello my Fodor Friends. I sure hope I am know considered a “proper” member of the forum. As I mentioned, I have not been able to post anything. Thank you all for your wisdom, time, and moral support. What a great collaborative forum. Your suggestions have been so helpful. I’ve applied many of your recommendations to arrive at the next revision of our itinerary. I removed Lecce because it seemed to be too much drive time. I would be thrilled to get your comments on this.

For day trips, we would like to limit drive time so it doesn’t exceed 1.5 hrs roughly, so we aren’t spending all our time in the car, even though there is a lot to see.

I’m still not set on a base location. I’m probably overloaded with data at this point. I know you’ve given me suggestions but if you have any final advice, that would be great. For a base, we would like someplace that offers the best options in restaurants, food, nice town environment that we can stroll around in the evening.

Drive from Naples to Itria Valley (Puglia) – approx. 4.5 hr drive?

4 1/2 days in Itria Valley
--- Monopoli, Polignano, Martina Franca, Cisternino, Alberobello and perhaps Trani but might be too far and too much.
--- For a base, we would like someplace that offers the best options in restaurants, food, nice town environment that we can stroll around in the evening.
--- Any recommendations for base and lodging accommodations?

2 days in Matera
-– Should we drop the car off someplace and use public transportation to Matera or drive to Matera?
---I haven’t figured out if or what we would see outside of Matera. I know there’s plenty to see there so I don’t know if we need a car or not.
---Trying to book Dolce Vita B&B, or Locanda Di San Martino. If you have any other recommendations, let me know.

We need to get from Matera to Rome. We don’t want to drive to Rome. Options seem to be drive to Bari, return car and train to Rome. Anyone have any other suggestions. Also, if we returned the car before we got to Matera, what would be the best way to get to Rome? THANKS SO MUCH
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Old Aug 9th, 2018, 08:55 AM
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Yay, it's coming together. I have stayed in Monopoli and Cisternino and liked both. Both have great restaurants.
There are plenty of airbnbs in Cisternino, some with roof terraces.
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/3350825
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/327348
We stayed in "Casa Mario" through Booking.com and it was great.

In Monopoli, we rented this huge lovely apartment, but the luxury hotel in front of it kind of marred the experience. They play annoying music on their roof deck.
Puglia Vacation Rentals Monopoli | Hello Apulia
I would not hesitate to stay in Monopoli or use that rental agency again though. They also have a great place in Polignano that I considered.

In Matera, I cannot recommend Torretta ai Sassi highly enough, but they only have a few rooms.
I would keep the car through the Matera visit and drop in Bari. The park on the other side of the gorge from Matera is more accessible with a car. Also with a car you could visit Craco, an abandoned village that is fascinating.
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Old Aug 9th, 2018, 03:15 PM
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Hello Yorkshire, Thank you!!!! Good news I have a better handle on where we are going. Bad news, I'm striking out with accommodations. Casa Mario (Cisternino) is booked, I sent an email to Matera: Torretta ai Sassi, Dolce Vita B&B twice, nothing back yet, and Locanda Di San Martino. Several others I check were booked . It's difficult to tell how the rooms are configured on-line. I need a room that will sleep 3 people. 2 can share a bed if it's big enough and one can sleep solo. There isn't an easy way for me to communicate that without sending an email to them asking them. I fear everything will be booked when and if they do get back.

I haven't found anything available and with good reviews in Cisternino, Monopoli, Polignano, & Martina Franca. If you or anyone has any recommendations of accommodations, please let me know. We would like to stay in town so we can walk to dinner, etc. Although, we will have a car. Since I'm not familiar with any of these towns or areas, I can't get a good feel for location unless it shows distance. If you have any tips or recommendations on how far out to stay or landmarks to look for when I searching for places that would be wonderful. Shoot, I was feeling like I was finally making progress, now I'm in a slump again. As long as this message goes through I will be OK, though. Thank you again.

book on-line because Torrett 4 1/2 days in Itria Valley –

Can stay in monopoli or cisternino, or polign...https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/3350825 https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/327348, B&B Solosud – B&B

Casa Mario – Cisternino – booked, emailed torrettasassi in matera, hard to know if the room can sleep 3, emailed Dolce Vita B&B twice, nothing back yet, emailed locandadisanmartino- Bed and Breakfast La Corte dei Pastori – matera/booked

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Old Aug 9th, 2018, 03:17 PM
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Oh dear, please ignore the garbage at the end of the post. Sorry about that.
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Old Aug 9th, 2018, 03:56 PM
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Yolo, at the bottom of your post, there is an edit button for a brief period after you post. You can easily delete the "garbage" if you use that option within a short window.
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Old Aug 9th, 2018, 03:58 PM
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We generally stay in airbnbs and had a good selection in Puglia. Getting an entire apartment might be a good option for 3 people. And, they are usually less expensive than a hotel room.
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Old Aug 9th, 2018, 04:07 PM
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Have you consulted booking.com for available accommodations?

To get from Matera to Rome -- bus or train from Matera to Rome, bus or train from Matera to Bari and then flight to Rome, etc. Check rome2rio.com
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Old Aug 9th, 2018, 04:26 PM
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Woo hoo, I seem to be able to post away to my hearts content....I hope! Thanks Whitehall for the tip on editing and also airbnb. I think airbnb is a great option but since i'm so unfamiliar with the towns, it's hard to know if we are going to far outside of town or not. At this late stage, I might not find anything in the heart of town but didn't want to be too far outside (our first option anyway). For instance, in Matera, are there areas that are better to stay in, centrally located, etc. I guess the same for any of the towns in Puglia (martina, loco, poli, monopoli, etc.).

kja, thank you for the input as well. I will check rome2rio. I think we will drive to Bari, drop off the car and train to Rome. I've never used bookings.com but I've noticed a lot of fodorites do so that's a good endorsement. Its still hard to know what part of town to stay in, etc. ????

Really appreciate all your input. Sorry, if I'm asking naive or the same questions.
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Old Aug 9th, 2018, 04:38 PM
  #32  
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Some of these places are very small, and booking.com will give you links to maps. You can also check google maps, which will allow you to calculate walking (or other) distances between any two specific places (e.g., the address of the lodging you are considering and, say, the town's cathedral or main square or whatever). And yes, MANY of us use and recommend booking.com

Now that you've gotten beyond the you-are-not-a-spammer screen, consider letting a few comments come in before responding -- otherwise, you risk simply reacting without considering a variety of perspectives. Totally your call!

And while few guidebooks provide decent coverage of Puglia, consulting a good one wouldn't do you any harm.
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Old Aug 9th, 2018, 05:55 PM
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Airbnb has a map with each city, showing all the available places for the time period you select. It may be worth taking a look. They do a nice job of presentation; they are based in the US (San Francisco); and we have found their service to be top-notch (phone, text, etc.). Booking is located in Amsterdam. The airbnb descriptions also generally will tell you how far from such places as city center or rail station. We use booking.com as our second choice, and have had great success with both.
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Old Aug 10th, 2018, 04:04 AM
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If you are not using booking.com you are severely limiting yourself in lodging choices. They not only list 'big' hotels, but many small B&Bs now use them. I've spoken with many people who run tiny hotles/B&B type places who told me they are able to stay in business because of booking.com and it's cheaper/easier than running their own website/booking service. There are filters for the types of places you prefer, maps to choose your location within a city, etc. In most cases there is no prepayment. I travel for 7 weeks a year and almost always use booking.com (and am usually sorry when I don't).
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Old Aug 20th, 2018, 08:36 AM
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Hello everyone,

I hope this message reaches you. I've been off the grid for a few weeks but I'm back. Thank you again for all your recommendations. I think we have our trip close to final. I had a really hard time with accommodations (there are 3 of us). There were great recommendations in many of your trip reports but they were all booked. I've posted our rough agenda and a few questions, of course!!!

Questions: Does anyone know what train station in Bari we should drop the car off at. We would then take the train into Rome (high-speed). Haven't purchased tickets yet.

Any recommendation on maps, GPS, favorite restaurants, shopping areas, or sites not to miss.

I'm going to check out Auto Europe for the car rental and also Hertz. We are members with Hertz so we may get a good deal. Any recommendations, cautionary notes, etc.

Naples - 2 days (meeting point)
-Pick up car at the Naples airport
Polignano - 2 nights (airbnb) (day trips to Monopoli, Ostuni, Conversano?)
Locorotondo - 2 nights (airbnb/farm) (day trips to Martina Franca, Cisternino, drive thru Alberobello)
Matera - 2 nights (airbnb) (not sure of day trips,maybe Bernalda, Pisticci,?)
Tour w/matera tour guide (Antonio)
Drop car off at Bari train station. Train into Rom
Rome - 4 nights (airbnb)

Grazie Mile!
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Old Aug 20th, 2018, 08:50 AM
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There is a Hertz office near Bari Centrale--it is outside the ZTL. That was the first place we ever drove in Italy, and did not find it difficult (and you will be well practiced by then).

Not sure if I mentioned it before, but while in Matera, we toured an abandoned village called Craco--near Pisticci--and it was fascinating! Our hotel called and helped us set up a tour, which was in English (ask for William if he is still there).
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Old Aug 20th, 2018, 09:24 AM
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Hi Yorkshire, good to hear from you. I looked up the address for the Bari Central Train Station. Here's what I found: Piazza Aldo Moro, Bari BA, Italy. When I search Hertz locations there are 17 in Bari but none say train station or look like this address. Hate to bug you with the details but it's making me crazy. Would you have any details on the specific Hertz location. I don't want to list them all here .

Thanks for the info on Craco. I will definitely check that out. I've seen Pisticci mentioned in several trip reports but haven't been able to figure out what's there and if that is good stop for a day trip. THANK YOU!!
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Old Aug 20th, 2018, 09:30 AM
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No problemo--its Via Luigi Ricchioni, 26, 70124 Bari BA, Italy

We actually drove through Pisticci in driving rain in desperation for food because we had skipped a meal to do the Craco tour and everything was closed (our b&b had a huge great breakfast). We managed to grab a snack--not sure what is there, just glad we survived that rain storm, lol.
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Old Aug 20th, 2018, 09:40 AM
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Oh my what a day you had. Always makes for good stories! thank you so much for the address of the train station. You must have the magic touch. I will check it and start working on getting a car. I feel like we need to have maps because I'm afraid of being 100% dependent on GPS and cell reception. Did you use any maps you found particularly helpful and did you use any specific GPS app. We all have iphones. Thanks again Yorkshire!
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Old Aug 20th, 2018, 09:55 AM
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We had a GPS but I supplemented while husband drove using google maps on the iphone. My eyes and skills are fairly useless with paper. Of course good to have one just in case, but you will be in well traveled routes and rarely far from civilization. I like autostrada driving the least.
No major problems to report, though we once ended up in an olive orchard somewhere near Ugento, and I began to wonder if we'd get out--another happy memory.
These are small towns so I think the most important thing is to familiarize yourself with signage well before arriving. Know where you can park (our only hiccup has been a parking ticket), especially what ZTL signs look like, and so on.
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