Puglia, or Apulia, is becoming a popular destination for an Italian getaway with its historic & quaint towns and beautiful beaches. It’s the southern region located right at the heel of Italy’s “boot.”
If you are looking for ideas of where to stay and what to do in Puglia, here’s our exact itinerary to help plan your next trip. We stayed for a short 3 nights/2 days as part of our 3 week Europe family vacation in between Greece and Switzerland.
How to get to Puglia
You can fly into Puglia via the Bari International Airport-Karol Wojtylat (BRI) or the Brindisi Salento Airport (BDS).
Popular towns to visit in Puglia
Polignano a Mare is known for the romantic & picturesque Lama Monachile beach located at the bottom of a cliff.
Lecce is a historic town full of baroque buildings including the Basilica di Santa Croce.
Ostuni is a beautiful white-washed town known as The White City.
Monopoli is a charming coastal fishing town perfect for a dip in the clear blue waters and a peaceful stroll through its narrow streets full of white stoned buildings.
Matera is the third oldest city in the world that will take you back in time with its ancient medieval buildings.
Alberobello is a small quaint town known for its trulli, whitewashed stone huts with a cone like roof.
Locorotondo, is a lesser known town full of olive groves and trulli, overlooking Itria Valley.
Where to stay in Puglia
When in Puglia, stay at a masseria or trullo to have an authentic Apulian experience. A masseria is a traditional rural estate that’s been renovated into luxury accommodations that still retains their historic charm and architectural features. A Trullo is a traditional dry stone hut with a conical roof.
Travel Hack: If you are looking to stay for free on points, you can stay at the Il Melograno on Hyatt points. It’s a masseria located in Monopoli that is part of the Small Luxury Hotels group.
As we were only able to get 1 free night (rather than 3) at the Il Melograno, we decided to book 3 Airbnb nights at Acres Itria, a beautiful trullo villa in Locorotondo. It was by far one of our favorite places we’ve stayed at. 
What is Puglia famous for
Puglia is surrounded by plenty of olive groves and famous for its olive oil production, which makes up 40% of Italy’s olive oil.
What to try in Puglia
Orecchiette pasta
Burrata cheese
Pasticciotto – traditional pastry filled with custard
Caffè Leccese or Caffè alla Salentina is an iced coffee made of almond milk/syrup and espresso.
Our Puglia Itinerary
We were only able to enjoy Puglia for 2 full days as our travel plans were a bit tight. We made the most of it and had an amazing time.
We flew in at midnight to the Bari Airport from Santorini, Greece.
🚘Car Rental
Rent a car to explore Puglia. You can book through any car rental at the airport but because the car rental places were all closed by the time we arrived, we used Turo, a peer-to-peer rental service. The owner met us at the airport to drop off the car.
🏨Airbnb – Locorotondo
We stayed at the Acres Itria in Locorotondo and had the most memorable experience. Locorotondo is a little over an hour from the Bari Airport.
Day 1
🏞️Centro Storico Locorotondo
Explore the charming small town of Locorotondo at Centro Storico.
🥐 Caffe della Villa
Have a light breakfast at Caffe della Villa and try their pasticciotto and caffè leccese.
💐Piazza Antonio Mitrano
On Fridays, check out the weekly local market located at Piazza Antonio Mitrano for some local fruits, cheese, etc. The market ends at 1pm.
🍷 Sirose – Bufano Winery
Stop by and enjoy some wine tasting at Sirose Bufano Winery overlooking the luscious landscape of Itria Valley. It was around €12 to sample 3 glasses.
🛒 Todis
If you’re staying at an Airbnb, go grocery shopping at Todis, a local supermarket in Locorotondo, and buy food to make lunch and breakfast at home.
🥗Lunch & Siesta
Make the most of your Airbnb stay – opt for a home cooked meal, take a swim, take a nap.
🏖️ Polignano a Mare
Explore the town of Polignano a Mare and take in the views of the Cala Monachile beach from above or go down for a swim.
🏞️Monopoli
Explore Monopoli, a picturesque fishing village, known for its historic old town and beautiful beaches. We had early dinner reservations so didn’t have time to check it Monopoli on the way back.
🍝Borgo Egnazio
If you don’t have the opportunity to stay at this gorgeous luxury hotel, make reservations to have dinner at any one of their restaurants located in the hotel. We ate at La Frasca.
Day 2
🥐Breakfast
Have a home cooked breakfast at the Airbnb.
🏞️Lecce
We drove a little over an hour to explore the historic city of Lecce. Take a walk around in the old town and appreciate the baroque architecture.
🍕00 Doppiozero
If you’re eating outside of the siesta hours of 2-7pm when most restaurants are closed, Doppiozero is a good spot for lunch. The portions were huge.
🍨Tentazioni Gelateria
We had the best gelato at Tentazioni. You can also try the local Caffe Leccese here.
🏞️Ostuni
On the way back, stop by Ostuni to explore the white-washed buildings.
🍹Borgo Antico Bistrot
Have a sunset dinner and drinks in the heart of Ostuni at this pretty hidden spot. We unfortunately didn’t make it to Ostuni since everyone was tired after the drive back from Lecce.
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We went to bed early this last night as we had an early flight the next day to Switzerland. Our Puglia trip was short but we had a beautiful time. Staying at a trullo at the magical Itria Acres was probably the highlight of our entire trip. We were not as impressed by the food in Puglia compared to other parts of Italy, but the gelato and iced coffee were memorable.
