From Matera to Alberobello to Polignano a Mare in Puglia, Italy I
Off the beaten track Med Travel Tips with an abundance of Med Style!
Ciao! Buongiorno! Buonasera!
Italy has been a favourite travel destination since travel abroad became a thing - a.k.a. The Grand Tour of the 17th century.
The food, the open air art, the style, the slow living countryside of rolling hills, vineyards, and Cyprus trees - plus the post-card perfect cities and towns that promise la dolce vita!
We keep going back again and again, because there is so much to eat, pray, love. Just being in Italy provides us all with a sense of that dolce vita.
One place I had been dying to visit for some time is Puglia. The boot heel of Italy on the Adriatic Sea. Many friends have raved about it, and yet it still feels like one of Italy’s well-kept secrets.
CondeNast Traveler calls Puglia:
“Poor Puglia” as a Guardian article calls it, is steeped in diverse culture from past rulers such as the Greeks, Romans, the Normans, Arabia and Spain, “For centuries rampaging armies used this heel of Italy as a convenient motorway en route to richer pickings further afield.”
We took a road trip from Matera to Alberobello to Polignano a Mare and WOW!
I was absolutely blown away. I had imagined Puglia as a more local and less touristy Tuscany. Vast open spaces full of beautiful estates and great food and wine at every stop. I had no idea the rugged enchantment I was about to discover…
In this blog I share our off the beaten track tour through Puglia, with Med Style recommendations from beautiful boutique hotels, to amazing food, and where we wanted to stop time and stay forever.
5-DAY ROAD-TRIP TOUR I MED STYLE TRAVEL TIPS I PUGLIA, ITALY
GETTING THERE
To start our tour of Puglia we flew to the city of Bari. Capital of Puglia or Apuglia in Italian.
Within Europe flights to Bari are plentiful and quite inexpensive. easyJet, Ryanair and Transavia budget airlines all fly to Bari.
We rented a car at Bari airport and set sail, so to speak, for Matera.
TIP: For car rentals in Europe - check the deposit policy of the car rental company as they vary wildly between €400 - €1500.
MATERA
Ok for political correctness, Matera is actually in the region of Basilicata - however, right at the border with Puglia and just under an hour drive from Bari.
In researching our trip we learned that Hollywood has helped to make Matera famous via the opening scene of the 2021 James Bond movie, No Time to Die (2021), Wonder Woman (2017), and as the setting for ancient Jerusalem in movies such as Pier Paolo Pasolini's The Gospel According to St. Matthew (1964) to Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ (2004)
Matera’s former fame was not so glamourous however. It was evacuated in 1952 due to poor living conditions and extreme poverty with the lowest standards of safe drinking water and sanitation. The recognition as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in December 1993, labelled la città sotterranea ("the underground city"), has assisted in attracting tourism and accelerated the reclaiming of the site. In 2019, Matera was declared a European Capital of Culture.
Even if you scroll through YouTube videos of Matera before your trip - be prepared to be awe-struck. Matera is truly a wonder of the world. I had the same feeling upon arriving in Matera as I did visiting the Grand Canyon and the Great Wall of China. It is quite unbelievable what has been built there.
Matera has become very chic today. A centre of luxurious boutique hotels and restaurants - it must have been a restoration and decor dream! Where it is grand in its architecture, it is modest in its beauty, with facades that remain true to their history. It is when you start to explore inside that the magic is revealed.
WHAT TO SEE
THE SASSI
Matera is a city on a rock with a complex of cave dwellings carved into the mountainside, called the Sassi. The Sassi originated in a prehistoric settlement, thought to be among the first ever human settlements in what is now Italy.
The Sassi are neighbourhoods of cave dwellings built on top of each other. The dense architecture is said to consist of around twelve levels spanning the height of 380 m, connected by a network of paths, stairways, and courtyards. The design of the medieval city, clinging on to the edge of the canyon of a rocky ravine, is said to have been for its defence - to be invisible from the western approach.
You can spend hours getting lost in Matera’s caves and maze of tiny streets. We did actually get lost a few times winding up down and around amongst the historical wonder. It is easy to forget where you started.
Getting lost is no panic when you can stop for delicious Italian food in a historical setting and get your bearings…
THE CISTERN
In addition to the Sassi, vist the cistern! It is truly a unique experience. Matera’s intriquite architecture made it difficult to access water. Early settlers built cisterns, large underground reservoirs and systems of water channels within the Sassi.
The largest cistern has been found under Piazza Vittorio Veneto, the Palombaro Lungo which was built in 1832. it has been called a water cathedral, which is navigable by boat. Like other cisterns in the town, it collected rainwater that was filtered and flowed in a controlled way to the Sassi.
You can visit the cistern under Piazza Vittorio Veneto today for about €15pp and it is a must see on your tour.
FOODIE HEAVEN
This region’s food is rustic local cuisine. Home cooking on a deliciously grand scale.
One of my favourite food discoveries was the Cime di Rapa. It tastes like broccoli but is actually a type of cabbage native to the region. I don’t know what they do to it, but it is absolutely Devine. I love broccoli, but the cima di rapa is on another level. I must learn how to grow it my Med Garden.
When we arrived in Matera from Bari it was mid-afternoon and as we waited to check in to our hotel we went to Piazza San Pietro Caveoso for a proseccino (little Prosecco) and a snack. We ordered a medley of Bruschettas on the menu - this is when I was introduced to cime di rapa - on the bruschetta! I could have eaten it all day - but I’ve learned to pace myself in Italy because every meal is just as delicious as the next. I tried to have cime di rapa at every meal - in pasta, in soup, on pizza… they use it everywhere and I can understand why.
Agriculture plays a prominent economic role in Apulia. Among the first in Italy for the production of many famously Italian products used in Italian cuisine: durum wheat which is used to produce pasta, tomatoes, grapes, almonds, olive oil.
Also not to be missed if you are a wine lover is the Primitivo from Puglia. I love a spicy wine rich in notes of black pepper. Primitivo is my wine. It seemed to not matter the wine maker, they were all beautiful. I learned to go with the house Primitivo after a while, as you don’t have to spend a lot to have a great Primitivo.
WHERE TO STAY
A friend had recommended the hotel, Sant’Angelo .
I love this friend’s taste in holidaying and so we booked ourselves in for 2 nights.
It was incredible. Our room had a large balcony overlooking the square from the James Bond movie.
It was breathtaking. All of the details were exquisite. The staff even arranged a full service dinner on our balcony for us so that we could enjoy the historical view from our private oasis.
WHERE TO EAT
APERO: Osteria San Pietro
A visible spot at the edge of Piazza San Pietro with a lovely terrace to enjoy the wonder of Matera. Ask for the Bruchetta with Cime di Rapa!
PIZZA: Piu Sud
For a chic pizza, go to Piu Sud. It has a lovely covered terrace area off one of the alleyways of Piazza San Pietro.
LUNCH / DINNER: Oimari
Getting lost in the Sassi you may come across a small street lined with lovely looking restaurants. We tried Oimari, and it was excellent. It was hot that day and so we opted to sit inside their beautiful cave restaurant which was wonderfully cool, and the food was delicious.
ALBEROBELLO
After 2.5 days in Matera we were curious to see more of Puglia and set out for Alberobello. A leisurely 1-hour drive through Puglia’s beautiful Valle d’Itria countryside of centuries old farmland and whitewashed villages - which is not the same as Tuscany by the way.
Alberobello is also a UNESCO World Heritage site for its Trulli houses, mushroom shaped dwellings. “Trulli,” are stone huts with distinctive conical roofs. Forgive me, but it reminded me of the Smurf village. It was like Disney came to life.
These houses are iconic in the region of Puglia. Alberobello is filled with about 1,500 Trulli houses, making the town a unique place to visit. Many of these houses in the centre of town are shops, cafes and restaurants, but go a bit further out and many of these houses are still used as regular homes by residents. You can even stay in one!
It was definitely a must see place on our tour. We had a good wander around with a lovely lunch on a grape vine covered terrace.
However, Alberobello is not a secret to those visiting Puglia. It was un Bain de Foule (bath of people) full of tourists and touristy shops. We found it quite overwhelming after our leisurely boho stay in Matera.
We decided to press on to the coast at Polignano a Mare to tip our toes in the turquoise waters of the Adriatic Sea.
POLIGNANO A MARE
The towns on Puglia’s coast are unique again, built right into the rocky cliffs directly above the sea. It seems to defy gravity. There is something mystical about looking out a window that drops directly to the sea.
Polignano a Mare is super stylish. We wondered if the chic restoration and decor masters from Matera had also been here. Beautiful hotels, stylish restaurants and convivial squares.
On a wander through the streets of ancient sun-bleached architecture you come to several small courtyards, that open up to the sea. Many with small terraced restaurants to enjoy a meal or a drink above the sea. We stopped at one of these for lunch, while being serenaded by a small band with acoustic guitar. Magical.
In the middle of the town surrounded by centuries of buildings built on top of each other, there is a beach, Cala Porto. It is quite dramatic. A perfect place to spend a lazy afternoon with casual dips in the sea.
WHERE TO EAT
The hot spot, we learned during our stay, is a restaurant built into the rock above the sea called Grotta Palazzese restaurant.
It looked amazing (see photo!) but sadly we learned about it too late. It was so in demand that they were asking a non-refundable guarantee on your meal - no matter what you ordered - on booking for the night of.
We decided that we were not willing to pay to eat - after all we were in Italy where its hard to find a bad meal.
However, if you go it’s worth checking in advance for a reservation. They may not have this pay to eat restriction at all times of the year.
WHERE TO STAY
IN TOWN: Dei Serafini
In our search for hotels in Polignano a Mare we found Dei Serafini which is a lovely boutique BnB overlooking the sea. A great location for discovering the heart of Polignano a Mare.
OUT OF TOWN: Masseri al Torri
For something more off the beaten track we found, Masseri al Torri, a beautifully renovated boutique style farmhouse which looked absolutely stunning - if you are looking to be away from the crowds.
We opted to stay in town this time. But we have Masseri al Torri on our list for a next visit.
PUGLIA BY NIGHT
Puglia is equally as enchanting at night as it is in the day - beautifully lit up with much to discover under the stars.
A week’s worth of sweet surprises are waiting for you if you decide to follow this tour of Puglia.
If its not on your list already, Puglia is the perfect destination for slow living, rustic local cuisine, historic architecture and, crystal clear blue Adriatic sea - off the beaten track!
We are planning to return with still so much more to see: Lecce, the “Florence of the south”: a honey-stoned masterpiece of 17th-century architecture; and the coastal drive to the southeastern tip of Salento, from Otranto along the white clifftops to the southern point of Santa Maria di Leuca, with little villages, secluded beaches and coves.
Share your favourite spots in Puglia in the comments!
“Enjoy the adventure, embrace the mystery”
Ciao!
Jade
Lewon
Med
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