Puglia ( Italian) or Apuglia (English) is the heel of Italy’s boot and can claim to have the longest stretch of coastline in mainland Italy! An incredibly beautiful one at that.

The region produces a whopping 60% of all Italian olive oil, made possible by the 300 days of sunshine a year. In fact, the centuries old olive groves are so coveted that Puglia has had to introduce a law forbidding any tree to be dug up on Puglia soil. To top it all off, the majority of Puglia is an Italian tourist destination, so you are unlikely to meet other foreigners.

|Alberobello

I’ve included Alberobello because of its unusual houses, Trulli houses, but I get the feeling that this is a large tourist centre/Air BnB village/open air museum. In which case I’m not expecting too much other than a few interesting photos. Just to be clear, this is a UNESCO site worth seeing but also a tourist trap, so make sure you visit before the buses! Try and get a view from one of the roof top verandas for a panorama of the higgledy-piggeldy trulli.

Don’t limit yourself to just Alberobello, as the rest of the Itria Valley is bursting with examples of Trullo architecture. Other beautiful villages where you can find these cone houses include Martina Franca, Locorotondo and Cisternino. Martina Franca is a must if you also love Baroque architecture.

|Matera & Altamura

Matera and Altamura were perhaps my biggest surprises when researching where else to go in Italy! Funnily enough, Matera was used to film Mel Gibson’s film, Passion of Christ and Daniel Craig in No Time To Die.

I find it very hard to choose between them as they are equally impressive, but whichever town you go to, make sure to take a day trip to the other as well. It’s only a 20 minute drive between the two. Both are hilltop towns above a gorge, known for their cave dwellings cut in to the rock.

Some of the caves have been transformed in to Air BnBs, perfect if you’re looking for a more memorable or authentic experience. This is incredible considering that only 70 years ago Matera was a national embarssment due to its residents’ poor living conditions. Much of the town was forced to evacuate the cave dwellings, Sassi houses, as disease was rife due to low levels of sanitation. You can see for yourself how much the town has transformed, especially with the boost of recent tourism. It has been a protected UNESCO site since 1993.

I should also mention that Altamura is considered to make the best Foccacia bread in all of Italy! Grab a loaf and take a walk around these beautiful ancient cliffside towns.

|The Canyon of Puglia

If the ravines pouring from the edge of the town have caught your eye, explore them further by going deeper in to the La Murgia National Park and hiking ‘The Canyon of Puglia’. Gravina di Laterza is one of the largest canyons in Europe. The hike will take you past plunging ravines, cave complexes made in to churches and of course the Sassi cave houses the area is famous for.

|Polignano Al Mare

This beautiful coastal town on Italy’s Adriatic coast cannot be missed off a summer road trip through Italy. The crystal azure waters are a matter of local pride. You can find the local teenagers jumping from the rocks every day until sunset. Very jealous! The towering limestone cliffs surrounding the beach have allowed the town to host Red Bull Cliff Diving competitions!

Other than these enviable attractions, Polignano Al Mare is also world famous for two other reasons!.Firstly, the incredible restaurant, Grotta Palazzese, tucked away in to the cliffs of the town. I remember seeing this restaurant online when I was 15 and I couldn’t believe it existed! Since then I have dreamed of having a cocktail in that cave. Secondly, this is the home town of singer Domenico Modugno, who sang everyones’ go to impersonation of an Italian, Volare, Nel Blu Dipinto di Blu!

Read my Cinque Terre post to find other Italian seaside towns to explore

|Grotta Della Poesia

Lecce is a beautiful city but the main attraction by far is the Cave of Poetry, just outside of Lecce in Roca Vecchia village. In fact there are many coastal natural wonders between Lecce and Otranto making it perfect for a coast road trip. The Poetry Cave (apparently there is a second one, but I’m not sure how close) is more a natural pool within a collapsed cave just 10 meters from the sea. There are two possible explanations for this romantic name, either poets flocked here to write about the beautiful woman who swam in these crystal waters. Or far more logically, the Greeks named the pool ‘posit’ which means water source and since then it has been translated as ‘poesia’ in Italian.

To make the most of your time here, why not try swimming through a tunnel that connects the cave to the sea, apparently it is wide enough for little boats!

|Vieste

Not only is Vieste the perfect place to use as a base to explore Gargano’s coast but it is also a beautiful town (once you get in to the centre). Before you go and hire your kayak, make sure to check out the historic centre of the town and the hidden caves lurking around the beaches, some natural, some man-made. If the resort nature of Vieste starts to cramp you out, escape to the tiny medieval town of Vico Garganico. You won’t be sorry! It’s the perfect antidote to the lidos and tourist restaurants you’ll be fleeing in Vieste.

|Gargano Coastline

Hire a kayak and explore some more of the most beautiful natural wonders along the Gargano coast. Start with the natural arch of San Felice. Then move on to the large and small Grotta Sfondata just south of Vieste. These two grottos are like a smaller version of the Bengali cave in Portugal. They both have a small beach curving around the back of the cave and a collapsed roof that allows passersby to peer in to the water below their feet. Almost neighbouring these two caves is the Grotta Due Occhi (Cave of Two Eyes) which is again a partially collapsed sea cave that especially under moonlight gives the impression of two eyes gazing up to the sky.

|Veccho Del Ciolo Hike

Known as the best hike to see Puglia’s wild beauty spots. You can start the hike just around from Gagliano del Capo in a spectacular fjord hidden under Ponte Ciolo. From here you can choose two trails, one going around Gagliano Del Capo or the other to the Cipolliane Caves. Personally I want to see the caves. The caves are tucked away 30m above sea level. They used to be under water which lucky for us, means their walls are encrusted with beautiful shells. The gaping mouth of the cave gives visitors a stunning view out on to the Adriatic Ocean.

Read my Amalfi Coast: Path of The Gods post to find other coastal hikes in Italy

|Tremiti Islands

The Tremiti (Tremor) archipelago, in the Gargano National Park, floats just 13 miles off of the Puglia coastline. They can be reached by ferry from Vasto, Ortona, Termoli, Vieste or Rodi Garganico. The 3 islands (and 2 minuscule patches) are an enviable fusion of lush pine forests, impressive grottoes and tropical waters.

A hike to Grotta delle Viole on San Domino is a must! Though many choose to reach the grotto on a boat tour, the view of the grotto and the surrounding caves is far more impressive from above on the rocks. Not to mention, it makes for a fantastic photo. The Violet Grotto is named so because of the wild violets that carpet the cliffs in spring time.

Another great place to explore is Cala Matana Cove which is a popular swimming spot beneath the pines and the location of a rock that looks like an elephant drinking from the sea. Make sure you bring snorkeling gear with you as divers come from all over the world to explore this underwater paradise. If you’re lucky, you may even find the submerged statue of Padre Pio, who welcomes everyone with open arms.

Unfortunately, the islands haven’t always been such a welcoming paradise. In the 1930s, under the reign of Mussolini, the islands were used as a prison for homosexuals and political prisoners. Luckily, it was closed after 1 year. The islands history of internment stretches further back than that, to the times of Roman Emperor Augustus who imprisoned his granddaughter here for having an affair with a senator!

Although the two largest islands, San Domino and San Nicola are permanently inhabited, there are also some abandoned homes hidden around the islands which are interesting to explore. If you get fed up of sand between your toes, you can explore the fortified abbey on San Nicola, the Santa Maria A Mare.