The Ultimate 2-Week Puglia Road Trip Itinerary

The Ultimate 2-Week Puglia Road Trip Itinerary

This is our exact route that we followed for our recent Puglia trip – you can find the whole video series on YouTube.

Puglia, the heel of Italy's boot, is a stunning region known for its whitewashed hill towns, centuries-old farmland, and hundreds of kilometres of Mediterranean coastline. This 2-week road trip itinerary will take you through some of the most beautiful and interesting parts of Puglia, allowing you to experience its rich culture, delicious cuisine, and beautiful landscapes.

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Stop 1: Bari (2 days)

📍 About the place

Bari, the capital of Puglia, is a vibrant port city with a charming old town (Bari Vecchia) and a modern city centre. It's an excellent starting point for your Puglia adventure, offering a mix of history, culture, and delicious street food.

🏡 Accommodation

We stayed at Flavi, which are serviced apartments run by a charming family. The apartments are quite small, but they offer nice views of Bari’s port and they’re conveniently located on the edge of Bari’s old town. Coffee, snacks and other drinks are available 24/7 and included in the stay, which we loved!

💡 Our tips

• Watch our video on Bari, in which we try a variety of delicious street food.
• The narrow streets of Bari Vecchia can get very busy. If you can, try to time it so that you’re out and about in the morning or late in the afternoon.
• In addition to orecchiette and famous focaccia at Santa Rita or Fiore you should try an original Barinese dish called Spaghetti all’Assassina. It’s a crispy and spicy dish that you can find across the city. We really liked it at La Locanda dell'Elfo.

Stop 2: Monopoli (3 days)

📍 About the place

Monopoli is a charming coastal town with a beautiful old port and historic centre. We quickly fell in love with Monopoli and it’s probably our favourite town in Puglia! Of course it can also get quite busy and touristy, but we really liked that the town still has a very local vibe to it. Monopoli also has one of the most beautiful old towns we’ve ever visited and walking along Monopoli’s promenade in the evening is a lot of fun.

🏡 Accommodation

We stayed at La Dimora dei Sorrisi, which we found to be a great base for exploring Monopoli and its surroundings. It’s a news renovated apartment located in an old building – again not the biggest, but it was perfect for us. Its location in the middle of old town is hard to beat, close to the beautiful “Piazza Giuseppe Garibaldi”, which gets very lively in the evening.

💡 Our tips

• For great coffee in the morning head to Karmico Caffè.
• For a cheap beer or cocktail with the locals close to the beach, head to Kambusa Rock Bar.
• For a fantastic seafood dinner with a beautiful view head to CarloQuinto.
• If you can’t get enough of delicious Spaghetti all’Assassina (or are craving a delicious pizza), head to Il Quadrifoglio.
• From Monopoli we also explored the white town of Locorotondo and the UNESCO World Heritage site of Alberobello, as well as the neighbouring coastal town of 
• Polignano a Mare.

Stop 3: Region Ostuni (5 days)

📍 About the place

The area around Ostuni, known as "The White City" due to its whitewashed buildings, is a highlight of any Puglia trip. This region is especially known for its beautiful countryside, historic trulli houses, and excellent food and wine.

🏡 Accommodation

We split our time here between two accommodations:

• First we stayed at the wonderful Masseria Donna Nina (2 nights). The Masseria is beautiful and we enjoyed relaxing by the pool and of course – the delicious breakfast spread every morning.

• We then stayed in a truly unique accommodation, which was another highlight of our trip. Lacinera Trulli & Lamie is located in an old Trullo, one of the iconic dry stone huts that you can find all over Puglia. Staying in a trullo is like staying in a tiny house, but we really felt at home here, eating dinner on our beautiful terrace and enjoying incredible views by the pool. (3 nights)

💡 Our tips

• Explore the old town of Ostuni and enjoy great panoramic views.
• Head to the cute town of Cisternino for a BBQ dinner at Zio Pietro. You choose your meat at their deli counter and they then prepare it for you on their grill.
• Visit Masseria Seppunisi for a tour of their dairy farm and cheese factory – of course including a tasting. If you want you can also try your hand at making your own burrata!

Stop 4: Otranto (3 days)

📍 About the place

Otranto is a coastal town on the easternmost point of Italy. It's known for its beautiful old town, impressive castle, and stunning beaches. We didn’t stay directly in Otranto, but we walked through its old town and also had dinner there. All in all we had a great time, especially enjoying the interesting scenery along the coast, but if we had to skip one stop on our itinerary this would probably be it. We just didn’t enjoy Otranto as much as the other places on our road trip. Instead we’d probably spend more time in Lecce or at an accommodation directly at one of the beaches further in the south.

🏡 Accommodation

We stayed at Masseria Panareo, a beautiful converted farmhouse complex that was larger than we expected. It’s a 15 minute drive to Otranto. The views from our room and the pool are beautiful and it’s a great place to calm down and do nothing for a while.

💡 Our tips

• On our way from Ostuni to Otranto we stopped in Lecce for lunch and delicious Pasticiotti. If we’d had more time on this trip we also would’ve liked to stay here for a few nights!

• Take a scenic drive along the coast to see the rugged cliffs and azure waters.
• For a fantastic farm-to-table lunch head to Orte. It can be a bit confusing to reach, as you can either hike there or drive to a gate at which you need to call a number to get picked up by a golf cart that drives you there. The food was great though and all ingredients are grown on fields around the restaurant.

Stop 5: Matera (2 days)

📍 About the place

Although technically in the neighbouring region of Basilicata, Matera is often included in Puglia itineraries due to its proximity and incredible uniqueness. And Matera really is a special place and we’d recommend everyone to visit this town and, if possible, stay here for a night or two. Known for its ancient cave dwellings, or "sassi," Matera is a UNESCO World Heritage site and was the European Capital of Culture in 2019. It’s one of those places that you have to see in person to really understand it.

🏡 Accommodation

We stayed at The View Matera, which offers incredible views of Matera and the sassi. When we first walked into the apartment there might have been a slight audible gasp when we saw the view from the window. But even better: the apartment also has a roof terrace, which was the perfect place to enjoy aperitivo in the afternoon.

💡 Our tips

• Take a guided tour of the sassi to learn about their fascinating history. Learning about the city’s history will make your stay even more impressive.

• Hike up the other side of the mountain to explore ancient caves and enjoy spectacular views of Matera.
• For a great dinner head to Ristorante Baccus (the lasagna and tiramisu were especially delicious).

Final Stop: Back to Bari

After Matera, head back to Bari for your departure. If you have time, you could revisit some of your favourite spots in the city or do some last-minute shopping for local products to take home.

This 2-week itinerary offers a perfect blend of historic towns, beautiful beaches, and unique landscapes that make Puglia such a special destination. Remember to take your time, enjoy the delicious local cuisine, and immerse yourself in the relaxed pace of life in this beautiful part of Italy.