I’ve been saying for a long time that Puglia is not just sea, and in my job I try to express how much beauty it has to offer.
So, if you are planning your holidays in Puglia, please don’t limit yourself to go to the seaside resorts.
In Puglia there’s a lot more!
I understand that sunny days are an invitation to take a stroll on the beach, for sunbathing, I know that, I was born here and I admit that it’s “pura vida”, but I am well aware that my territory is ready to provide a magnificent heritage of culture and emotion.
When you leave Puglia, don’t jut carry around sand in your shoes, blue in your eyes, warm on the skin, a cheerful chat with a local person, taralli in your baggage…
Impress on your mind and take into your heart the charme of a monument, the treasure of a story, the memory of the history, the intimate tradition of a region!
For those who are not satisfied with a beach vacation, here are some tips to discover Puglia:
1. Having guided tours
Puglia boasts 3 Unesco World Heritage Sites: Alberobello, Castel del Monte and Monte Sant’Angelo.
If you only visit these destinations, it allows you to appreciate the important past of this land.
You can find old villages that preserve enchanting medieval sceneries, such as Locorotondo and Cisternino in Itria Valley and Otranto in Salento, listed among the “Borghi più belli d’Italia” (there are 12 towns all over Puglia).
We can recognize cities of art of great value, in primis Lecce, capital of the Lecce Baroque style with its carved churches and craftsmanship, Bari, capital of the region, that talks about centuries of dominations through its monuments and the gastronomy tells about specialities, and Taranto, so disfigured but still the birthplace of the Magna Grecia.
Having a guided tour means you rely on expert and professional guides, that are not improvised Cicerone, but they will accompany you in the discovery and the acknowledgment of customs and traditions, and seeing through new eyes the historical, artistic and natural attractions.
2. Exploring the nature
Puglia extends for more than 850 kilometers along the Adriatic Sea and the Ionian Sea, but beside the marine activities, it houses a wonderful countryside of olive and almond groves and vineyards, 2 national parks, the Gargano National Park and Alta Murgia National Park and many regional parks and protected areas, where you can make trekking or stop and observe the typical flora and fauna.
Go for a bike ride or a walk open-air it allows you to admire gorgeous landscapes and empathize with these authentic locations.
3. Enjoy the “made in Puglia”
In addition to a good restaurant or a typical taverna, give yourself the opportunity to learn about the production of Apulian oil, cheese and wine, hopefully visiting a local farmhouse.
Be curious about the process of pressing olives to produce the extra-virgin olive oil, of which Puglia is the first producer region in Italy, go see cheese-making methods into a dairy-farm, strictly handmade, don’t miss the chance to take a tour in a winery, to walk in a vineyard and contemplate the various stages of an Apulian wine, that in the last decades is getting more success: there are 4 DOCG wines and 28 DOC wines among the most famous Negramaro, Primitivo and Nero di Troia.
4. Experience the local traditions
Speaking of food, why don’t get your hands dirty and try to prepare some delicacies of the Apulian gastronomy? All around Puglia now you can find many masserias organizing cooking lessons to realize old recipes: to knead homemade orecchiette, bread, taralli and the tasty Bari focaccia.
It could be a moment of leisure in which to measure your cooking skills experiencing the local traditions.
5. Feeding mind and soul with art
In Puglia almost every town has got churches, museums or monuments to be visited. From the Gargano to the Salento you’ll be spoilt to choice, I can guarantee.
Therefore, let your soul and mind captivated by the art, the millenial history, the archaeology and the culture that Puglia emanates.
Just to mention a few: from the Altamura National Archaeological Museum to the National Archaeological Museum of Taranto, from the Art Gallery De Nittis in Barletta to the National Archaeological Jatta’s Museum in Ruvo di Puglia, from the Archaeological Park Passo Corvo, in province of Foggia, considered the largest Neolithic settlement in Europe, to the Canne della Battaglia Archaeological Site, from the Archaeological Park of Siponto to the Egnazia Archaeological Park, from the Monte Sannace Archaeological Park in Gioia del Colle to the Megalithic Garden of Giurdignano in Salento.
Among the most beautiful churches cannot be missed the Cathedral of Trani, overlooking the Adriatic Sea, the Basilica of Saint Nicholas, great example of the Apulian Romanesque style, the Basilica Santa Croce in Lecce, a triumph of baroque carvings into the Lecce stone, the Cathedral of Otranto with an extraordinary mosaic pavement full of medieval symbolism.
Then, if you are looking for a bit of lightness, you can choose the Museo del Confetto in Andria, which was the previous factory of the sugared almonds Mucci, or the Whistle Museum in Rutigliano, that hosts a large collection of more than 700 whistles realized in town, and moreover the Wheat Museum in Cerignola, that collects working utensils and shows the processing of grain in the last century.
Well, you’ve got it, Puglia is not only sea…
viaggieitinerari... in Puglia by Valeria Dicarlo 