This was an excellent way to explore Puglia, the towns of Matera, Alberobello, Ostuni and Lecce all were fascinating and atmospheric yet different. The hotel accommodation was in the town centers in the first three locations and was very good. The cave house and the trullo being a real experience. Accommodation in Lecce was a real disappointment. It was located on a ring road about a 25-minute walk from the center and was a basic business class hotel very few facilities. Our room was bright orange (think Easy Jet) and small, breakfast was limited compared to the previous hotels. Altogether a poor finish to a good experience.
Puglia Tours & Trips
Puglia Trips
Located in the heel of Italy’s boot, Puglia will surprise you with its picturesque landscape, ancient hilltop towns, emerald waters, and lush farmlands dotted by ancient olive trees and distinctive conical shepherd huts known as ‘trulli’. After a day of walking, sightseeing or cycling, enjoy the legendary regional cuisine that includes outstanding seafood and melt-in-the-mouth burrata cheese.
Highlights of Puglia tours include Matera, an area famous for its cave-and-stone Sassi houses, and Alberobello, where white cone-roofed trulli houses still stand after 500 years – on some of our Puglia holidays you can even stay in them. Strolling through the old narrow streets of Ostuni and Locorotondo will transport you back in time, allowing you to discover Puglia’s distinct identity. The whole region is a food lovers’ paradise and local produce includes durum wheat pasta, vegetables grown just a few steps from the sea, and olives, broad beans and chicory – all used to prepare simple, tasty dishes such as orecchiette pasta served with a sauce of turnip-tops or fresh tomato and sheep’s-milk ricotta cheese.
Puglia Adventure Holidays
graeme davies Puglia: Discover the Heel of Italy
Susan Howard Puglia: Discover the Heel of ItalyI have given this tour a 4* rating because the basic structure of the tour was so good.
Matera, Alberobello and Ostuni were all outstanding. The towns have been restored and are fascinating and atmospheric as well as beautiful (especially at night). The hotel accommodation, which was in the centre of town in all three locations, was quirky, interesting, and well-appointed. We were disappointed with the Eos hotel in Lecce, however. It was a let-down and a rather sad end after what until then had been a fabulous trip with amazing accommodation elsewhere. It’s situated on a ring road, a 20 minute walk from the gate into the old town with little in the way of bars, restaurants or atmosphere nearby. It was a budget hotel with pared-down facilities and a disappointing and very basic breakfast. For example, by 8.00 am on the first morning there was limited choice because once foods had been consumed they were not always replaced. The staff were less helpful than in the other hotels. Lecce itself was very impressive with some amazing architecture. However, we were there over a bank holiday and it was consequently very busy. It would be nice to go back when it was quieter. The local guide in Lecce was not as good as the one in Matera, not least because her English was limited.
Dean Harman Puglia: Discover the Heel of ItalyI joined this itinerary in April 2025 and was utterly blown away by the locations visited. Matera was stunning, Lecce’s winding streets were beautiful with gems hidden round every corner, We stayed in a traditional Trulli house which was a personal highlight for me!
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