Puglia or Calabria?? Need Help
 

I can not decide between the two. I want to spent two weeks at a language school at either place, I do not want to split up my 2 weeks. So, now I can not decide which would be best. I like beaches and love to walk around to the shops museums and churches. I also would like to travel out on weekends to other near by areas. So my question is which of the two is the best location?

Puglia is much more "known" and you will probably find more info. on it than on Calabria. It will probably become a much more "hot" destination long before Calabria.

I haven't been to Puglia yet, but I have family in Calabria. When you are there, especially if you're American, you feel like you are discovering little known places. There's Italian tourism and German I believe, I don't think too much else....

There are gorgeous beaches and AMAZING food. Not too many people speak English, so you will have to really use what you learn. I think there is some language schools in Tropea, is this where you are looking? It is a magnificent & picturesque town with a beautiful beach.

Other interesting towns to sitesee in include Gerace, Stilo, the Serra San Bruno Monastery and I've yet to get to (but hope to this summer) Reggio Calabria to see the Bronze statues of Riace.

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I would probably recommend Puglia over Calabria for a number of reasons (all of which are personal and so please feel free to take with a pinch of salt and all objectivity removed).
Puglia is better attuned to tourism and has more facilities in place than Calabria. Calabria has very beautiful landscapes but it is also has more poverty and can be more difficult for a tourist to manage.
Puglia has certainly the cleanest and best beaches in Italy. It has more cities of artistic interest - Lecce in particular, but also Otranto, Alberobello, Ostuni - Bari has some interesting parts too but probably not known for it's beauty.
I believe there is a language school in Otranto (I don't know much about it though, sorry) and it has a great beach and would serve you well for Lecce (the so-called Florence of the South which is famous for it's Baroque architecture). There are beaches all over the place too. Up by Alberobello and Ostuni you have the trulli country but probably not as easy to get around and further from the beaches.
I haven't spent much time north of Bari, except for a few weeks which I spent in the Gargano Peninsula which is very beautiful for landscapes but not easy to get around (but I don't drive) and I found the dialect impossible to understand (being completely subjective again - I know lots of people love it there and if you are looking for remote it can be good).
I would suggest a base in Lecce/Otranto which are the larger towns in the Salento peninsula.
As for Calabria, you would certainly find good beaches.. the main city of Reggio Calabria isn't exactly picturesque but it does have a great museum with the Bronzi di Riace which are stunning.
Sorry if i've been rambling a bit!

vnh:

Any recommendation for a 3-night base at the Gargano in September? We're leaning towards Trani to do some daytrips out of.

We're going there and set on 3 nights in Lecce and 3 in Gargano (Trani?).

Thank you.

Trani isn't on the Gargano but is an OK beach town, nothing special. If you will have a car, I highly recommend staying at Baia delle Zagare just outside Mattinata. It is situated on a gorgeous beach which you will still be able to enjoy in September, and is an easy drive to San Giovanni Rotundo, Monte San Angelo, Vieste and the Norman castle at Andria.