The Mini Rough Guide to Puglia (Travel Guide eBook)

Rough Guides

• Publisher: Rough Guides
• Year: 2022
• ISBN:
  9781839058097
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Crescita personale
• Subtopic: Viaggi

This pocket-sized guide is a convenient, quick-reference companion to discovering what to do, what to see and how to get around Puglia. It covers top attractions like the Tremiti islands, the Gargano peninsula and Otranto, as well as hidden gems, including Alberobello - the centre of Puglia's famous trulli, the quaint, conical-shaped houses - Castel del Monte, a unique medieval masterpiece, and Lecce, Puglia's Baroque gem, packed with lavish architecture and fanciful facades. This will save you time, and enhance your exploration of this fascinating region. This title has been fully updated post-COVID-19. This Mini Rough Guide to Puglia covers: The Gargano Peninsula, Puglia Imperiale, Canosa di Puglia, Bari and beyond, Valle d'Itria, The Salento, An excursion to MateraIn this travel guide you will find: RECOMMENDATIONS FOR EVERY TYPE OF TRAVELLER
Experiences selected for every kind of trip to Puglia, from cultural explorations to family activities in child-friendly places or chilled-out breaks in popular tourist areas. TOP TEN ATTRACTIONS
Covers the destination's top ten attractions not to miss, including Martina Franca, Lecce, Gallipoli and a Perfect Day/Tour itinerary suggestions. COMPACT FORMAT
Compact, concise, and packed with essential information, with a sharp design and colour-coded sections, this is the perfect on-the-move companion when you're exploring Puglia. HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL INSIGHTS
Includes an insightful overview of landscape, history and culture. WHAT TO DO
Detailed description of entertainment, shopping, nightlife, festivals and events, and children's activities. PRACTICAL MAPS
Handy colour maps on the inside cover flaps will help you find your way around. PRACTICAL TRAVEL INFORMATION
Practical information on eating out, including a handy glossary and detailed restaurant listings, as well as a comprehensive A-Z of travel tips on everything from getting around to health and tourist information. STRIKING PICTURES
Inspirational colour photography throughout.

Out and About

The ‘land of two seas’, Puglia stretches 400km (248 miles) from north to south, between the Ionian and Adriatic seas. A car is the best way to get around but you would need at least three weeks to take in all the highlights. The majority of visitors arrive at the capital, Bari, explore the whitewashed hill villages and trulli of the Valle d’Itria and then head south to the Salentine Peninsula. Those with more time can take in the alluring but less accessible Gargano promontory in the north of the region. The chapter starts here and moves south along the coast to Bari, through the Valle d’Itria to the Baroque city of Lecce and the coastal towns and beaches of Salento. Last but not least is the city of Matera, the jewel of the region of Basilicata, just across the border from Puglia.

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Vieste, beautifully set on a tip of the Gargano Peninsula

The Gargano Peninsula

The only real mountains of Puglia are clustered on the Gargano promontory, a thickly forested peninsula that juts out into the Adriatic to form ‘the spur’ of the boot of Italy. This is one of Italy’s most beautiful regions, discovered but not wrecked by tourism. The coastline is spectacular: craggy, bleached limestone cliffs, pale sandy beaches, grottoes, rocky coves and beguiling blue-green waters. In contrast is the thickly wooded wild interior, where only dappled light penetrates the trees.

For most foreign tourists the Gargano is still regarded as rather out of the way. The road from sprawling Manfredónia, gateway to the promontory, is very slow-going, whether you opt for the serpentine coastline or the hairpin bends through the mountains. From Bari airport it takes at least 2 hours 30 minutes by car to the main resort of Vieste. In July and August large numbers of northern Italians flock here – and to the lovely little Tremiti islands offshore. Outside these months it’s relatively quiet. By October, when it is normally still warm and the sea water averages 20˚C, many tourist amenities have closed down completely and don’t get going again until late spring.

Foresta Umbra

In the heart of the Gargano National Park the Foresta Umbra 1 [map] is an ancient 15,000-acre forest of beech, chestnut, Aleppo pines and oaks. The only true forested area in Puglia, this protected region is the habitat of deer, foxes and hares and is home to most of the varieties of orchids indigenous to Europe. The forest has marked trails and is becoming increasingly popular for guided hiking and cycling tours.

Monte Sant’Angelo

The Gargano’s best-known medieval town is Monte Sant’Angelo 2 [map] , a remarkable little pilgrimage town, which was designated a World Heritage site in 2011. It perches on a rocky spur at 800m (2,625ft) and affords jaw-dropping views over the Bay of Manfredónia. Whether you’re a worshipper or not, it’s well worth the journey up tortuous bends to see the old quarter with its picturesque alleys and monuments. Avoid Sundays and on no account go on the 29th September, St Michael’s Day, when thousands of pilgrims flock to the hilltop, some climbing all the way up on foot from Vieste. Their target is the fifth-century Santuario di San Michele (www.santuariosanmichele.it; 7.30am–7.30pm, shorter hours off season), located in a grotto where the archangel is said to have appeared three times to the Bishop of Siponto. From the double-arched Gothic portico, flanked by an octagonal belfry, a staircase of 86 steps takes you down to the dimly lit sanctuary. The cave is entered through a pair of beautiful bronze doors, depicting biblical scenes and believed to have been cast in Constantinople. Inside the grotto are a 16th-century statue of the Archangel and a 12th-century marble episcopal throne.

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Santuario di San Michele

Opposite the Sanctuary steps lead down to the Tomba di Rotari (April–Oct 9am–noon and 3–7pm, Nov–March to 4.30pm). Originally believed to be a Lombard tomb, it is now thought to be a 12th-century baptistry. Entry is via the remains of the medieval Chiesa di San Pietro, destroyed in a 19th-century earthquake. At the uppermost part of the town is the much-modified Norman castle, with fine views and one surviving tower, the Torre dei Giganti.

From Mattinata to Vieste the inland road climbs up steeply for about 18km (11 miles), and for the next 24km (15 miles) twists downwards through the wild landscape before reaching Vieste. The much slower coastal road, via beaches and tourists resorts, has some fabulous stretches of sands, including the Baia delle Zagere, an exquisite crescent of white sand beach, with two large rocks rising from turquoise waters.

Vieste

The largest resort in the region, Vieste 3 [map] is beautifully set on a tip of the Gargano Peninsula, surrounded by caves, cliffs and golden-beaches. Among its attractions are the boat trips, skirting the cave-riddled coast, and excursions across to the Isole Tremiti (Tremiti Islands, for more information, click here). Tourist development dominates the outskirts of Vieste but the town has a charming historic quarter of whitewashed houses, medieval alleys and arches. The dominant monuments are the Romanesque cathedral, remodelled over the centuries, and the castle (closed to the public), built by Frederick II at the highest point of the town.

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Spiaggia di Pizzomunno and its monolith

Vieste is famous for its beaches. Two of the best are the spacious Spiaggia di Pizzomunno, south of the resort, named after the 20-metre (66ft)-high rock monolith rising from the sands and the huge Spiaggia di Scialmarino, 4.5km (3 miles) to the north. There are also beaches within walking distances. As in most Puglian resorts the larger swathes of sand are blanketed with regimented rows of sun-loungers and parasols but after August everything, including the tourists, seems to disappear.

The trabucchi of Gargano

On the rocks between Vieste, Peschici and Rodi Garganico, look out for the dozen or so wooden contraptions suspended over the sea, known as trabucchi. Traditionally used for fishing, these consist of a large platform and long wooden poles, beams, ropes and pulleys to lower nets into the water and bring them up with the catch. Some of the trabucchi have been restored and three of them have been converted into enticing sea-view restaurants.

Peschici

From Vieste the SS 89 winds through olive groves, then snakes its way up into the wooded mountains before descending to Peschici. A stop at the roadside stalls selling cheese, olive oil and chillies will make a welcome break from the hairpin bends. Perched high above the sea Peschici 4 [map] is a charming fishing town where white houses tumble down the cliffside. More intimate than Vieste, the seaside resort has a lively little centro storico, a hilltop castle and dozens of inviting outlets for local Pugliese products, including the highly regarded local olive oil. You can learn all about it at Al Vecchio Frantoio which has an old olive press and quality extra-virgin olive oils (lemon-flavoured is a speciality), along with explanations and tastings. From here the cobbled street leads up to Castello di Peschici (June–Sept 9.30am–1pm, 4.30–8.30pm), dating back to the 10th century but much remodelled. The ground floor, formerly used as a prison and arms depot, is now a museum with a gruesome collection of torture devices.

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Peschici

Ferries from Peschici depart daily in season for the Isole Tremiti. Another option is a coastal boat trip to see bizarrely shaped and fancifully named grottoes, quiet coves and secluded beaches. Taking a dip in the pristine sea is always an option.

Rodi Garganico

The SS89 continues its scenic switchback route through the mountains, cutting through forests of lush pines, then dropping down to the sprawling, non-descript resort of San Menaio. The beach stretches all the way to Rodi Garganico 5 [map] which, like Vieste and Peschici, is picturesquely set on a headland with houses built up on the spur. It is more down to earth than Vieste or Peschici and a railway div...