Puglia Top to Do, See and Eat
my Top 10 (from North to South)
1a Monte Sant’Angelo ( World heritage site)
UNESCO world heritage church, carved in a rock dating back to 568 AD
1b Castel del Monte ( world heritage site)
UNESCO world heritage castle by Frederick II, incredibly well kept, unique shape immersed in nature
Great spot 1 hr in between my 2 favorite world heritage sites: Cerignola (my hometown hence I’m biased here)
While I was born in a nearby town I lived up until I was 14 in Cerignola, a 70,000 inhabitants town where incredible food is the biggest attraction aside from a big duomo that is a copy of the one in Florence.
if you to to Montesantangelo and it’s summer
2 Gargano Promontory (more spots: Mattinana, Vieste, Peschici)
While closer to my hometown of Cerignola I prefer Salento’s (Lecce’s area) white sandy beaches with shallow waters, since Gargano is much more about rock, stronger currents, deeper water and sometimes also jellyfishes :/
3 Trani: Cattedrale
Looks like a castle from the sea but it’s actually a cathedral. As Romanic as it can get, full of statues of crazy animals like Gargoyles, Elephants and God knows what. It’s made in Trani white marble which is not available anymore.
Restaurants in Trani:
- Best Pizzas for Lunch Scugniz, for dinner Lievito 72 and Pulcinella
- Best Seafood + View: Le Lampare al Fortino
- Great Seafood: Gallo
- Beach Club + Fish Sandwich: Pescaria
Closeby in Barletta there is one of our family’s favorite restaurants:
4 Bari (the capital)
Capital of Puglia with many shops and walking streets, plus the main opera theatre (http://www.fondazionepetruzzelli.it/)
5 Polignano a Mare
Beautiful views on the sea, though kinda small and very touristy spot. I wouldn’t spend more than a few hours.
6 Alberobello
Famous all over the world for it’s little houses with it’s unique shape
7 Ostuni
The white city
8 Lecce
It’s the main city of the province of Lecce. Lots of beautiful baroque in town, most likely the nicest larger city in Puglia (I’m from the province of Foggia so I’m no that biased)
9 Otranto
It’s where I’ve gone almost every single summer of my life. Gorgeous little town with an incredible cathedral and a magic castle, it’s got some amazing beaches nearby.
Best restaurant:
- Old town street + seafood starters (Antipastini): Da Sergio
- Latest and greatest: L’altro Baffo
- Real and Authentic: Il Contadino
10 Gallipoli
Similar to Otranto, just on the other coast, bigger but also way more crowded hence I prefer Otranto though it’s beautiful as well
Next trips from Puglia:
Bari Airport has improved a lot in the last few years with lots of new connections
- Check the airport website for all the latest flights
- Budapest, Riga via Wizzair
