Puglia, perfect for vacations, rapidly becoming one of the must-go holiday destinations, but still remains unspoilt. It has also become a popular relocation home for many ex-pats. Why? It is less expensive than Tuscany and other Italian hot spots. It’s about as far south you can go on the Italian mainland, and the climate reflects its location. Mild winters, although we do occasionally see a smattering of snow, spring comes early to Puglia. From April life outdoors begins again and goes on through to late November.
Reminiscent of Italy many years ago, the pace of life is still relatively slow, life is for living. What’s for lunch or dinner may be one of the most important conversations of the day. There are large cities where you may find a noisy night-life but the charm of Puglia is in the small villages and towns, the warmth of the locals and the warmth of the midday sun.
You’re not likely to find all-day breakfasts, fish and chips or roast dinners unless you are invited to eat at the home of an English ex-pat, that is. This is not Ibiza or Tenerife or other well-known tourist hot spots. Neither is it Monaco or the South of France. Off the beaten track, maybe a little shabby in places, Puglia is the sum of its amazing history and frequent invasions. Here you will find acres of peaceful olive groves, sandy beaches, rocky coastlines, amazing architecture, years of history, restaurants from the simple trattoria to the more up-market masseria (restored farmhouse) and excellent food and wine.
With so much to explore, here we have gathered together information about our much loved Puglia to help you plan and enjoy your vacation, or your new life, in la bella Puglia. We’ll help you discover beaches up and down both coastlines, sleepy villages, historic centres of Puglia cities and towns, places of interest and much much more.
No visit to Puglia is complete without a speciality tour designed by YLTour just for us. We encourage all our guests to take a tour to discover things about Puglia that they would not find alone. Several times a year we accompany friends and guests on a day out that has been designed to show…
Puglia and the Salento are fabulous destinations for long, lazy summer holidays but how about an autumn break? Try Puglia in October. Some of our regular summer guests who have become firm friends visit us every year for the last week of October. It’s become a holiday for us, after the end of the main summer…
In the olive groves, close to the small town of Torchiarolo, lies the ancient settlement of Valesio where the remains of a sturdy Messapian fortification, architectural feature and tombs can be seen. Taking the scenic route home from San Pietro Vernotico, through the olive groves that lie between San Pietro and Torchiarolo, we accidentally stumbled…
Puglia is a food lover’s paradise, so how about cooking in Puglia? While you are on holiday in Puglia you will undoubtedly experience the wonderful Pugliese cuisine, whether it’s in a pizzeria, a trattoria or a ristorante. Imagine learning to cook the traditional Pugliese recipes while you are on holiday in Puglia. Puglia cooking is…
March 8 is International Women’s Day, or simply Women’s Day – Festa della Donna. So how is it celebrated in Italy? Although Women’s Day started in the USA in 1909 when it was designated as a day to honour the garment workers’ strike in New York. It wasn’t until 1911. after a horrific fire in…
Cuddura del Salento – a traditional Easter cake served at the end of the main Easter meal, also given as a gift between lovers, in the shape of a heart, a rooster, a doll ….
If you are visiting Puglia, don’t miss out on a visit to Lecce. Voted one of the top ten cities to visit in 2010 by MSN Travel and Lonely Planet, Lecce should be on the top of your must-do list for your Puglia vacation. The first time we visited Puglia, back in 1999, we drove…
Brindisi is one of my favourite cities to visit. I love to be near water, preferably the sea and Brinidsi has a lovely esplanade, perfect for a stroll along the harbour edge. Even on the hottest days in July and August, it is a pleasant city ramble. There are plenty of coffee shops, bars and…
Some years ago we met an American who lives and works in Brindisi, he often complained that we don’t appreciate Brindisi and all it has to offer. So we asked him to give us the benefit of his experiences of Brindisi. So you’ve read the usual tourism sites for Brindisi and you’ve basically learned nothing…
At the center of the two seas that bathe the Puglia, a majestic ancient and hospitable city where art, legends and traditions are woven into a history spanning three thousand years Oria, a small town, nestling in the hills between the Adriatic and Ionian seas, more than three thousand years old – a town with…
The first week of December 2011 saw the sixth anniversary of our arrival in Puglia. Definitely a cause for celebration. It was a bright, sunny and warm December day as we set off for Mesagne. Why Mesagne? It does not feature very heavily in Puglia guides and is completely missing from the Lonely Planet’s “Puglia…
Why should you spend Easter in Puglia? The mild temperatures make it a perfect time to really get out and about and see Puglia. Explore the olive groves, the marine reserves, the beautiful historic town centres – think Ostuni, Otranto, Gallipoli, Bari, Monopoli; but also the less well known such as Oria or Mesagne and…
Bari should not be missed out when exploring Puglia, whether on vacation or if you are living in Puglia. In our early years of living in Puglia our experiences of Bari were extremely limited, just travelling between the main railway station and the airport either by bus or taxi. Either way, the views are not…
Torre Guaceto is a nature sanctuary and a marine reserve, a stretch of unspoilt coast where time seems to have stood still. The park covers an area of approximately 1000 hectares of land and 2000 hectares of sea, stretching along seven kilometres of the Adriatic coastline. The last man-made construction along this stretch of coast…
The Zinzulusa Grotto is probably the most well-known grotto located in the Castro area, on the road between Otranto and Santa Maria di Leuca, one of the top 10 most beautiful roads in Italy, on the south-eastern side of the Salento peninsula. Reached via a dramatic opening on a limestone cliff, towering above the crystal…
Whether you live in Puglia or are on vacation, you will soon discover that Puglia’s reputation for excellent food is well deserved. Eating vegetarian in Puglia, even if you are not vegetarian, is a delight. Local farmers’ markets in every town, small or large, all boast their own market day, or days, where you will…
Gallipoli is a great place to visit, stroll along the island town walls and find a fabulous place for lunch. Not to be confused with Gallipoli in Turkey where the Battle of Gallipoli took place during the first Wold War, the Gallipoli in Salento used to be an island and retains some of its faded…
Discover the White City of Ostuni, perched across three hills, shining out like a beacon over the Adriatic seal
Come and explore Monopoli, a beautiful medieval city on the Adriatic sea, soak up the history and charm and find one of the best restaurants for lunch
Arrive in Torchiarolo at the wrong time of day and you could be forgiven for thinking that it’s a ghost town. A maze of one-way streets, the houses appear to be closed up and there’s little life on the streets. But come back late in the afternoon and the streets will be full, mainly with the locals
We love this description of small towns in Puglia. It describes exactly the small towns near us and particularly reminds me of our town, Torchiarolo. Small towns are often overlooked by visitors. They shouldn’t be!
Searching for your perfect holiday villa in Puglia? Look no further. Check out our two owner-managed villas, both within easy reach of Brindisi airport, and ideally located for exploring the Salento and other parts of southern Puglia. Both villas have solar-heated swimming pools. Our rental rates are fully inclusive and you don’t pay the additional…
Mino, the Puglia Chef, cooks for our holiday villa guests on a regular basis and he also prepares his famous “Mino’s Meatballs” that are included in our Welcome Basket. Now you can get the recipe.
There’s no better way to find out if advertised Puglia boat trips stand up to expectations than to try it yourself. This one did … it is probably the best boat trip in Puglia that we have ever been on.
“Our beach” ….. a hop, skip and a jump from Casa Mare. A long narrow strip, with no amenities, between Torre San Gennaro and Lendinuso, with sandy bays either end. This beach is constantly changing, sometimes with long expanses of sand, sometimes a mixture of sand, shale and pebbles and sometimes with very high tides leaving only a thin band of stones at the very top of the beach.
Renting a bike in Puglia is a great way to explore the olive groves, countryside and seaside trails. Why not cycle around Casalabate or into Torchiarolo through the olive groves. It’s a great way to enjoy the countryside, get some exercise and fresh air.
Torre San Gennaro is a small holiday village popular with the local Italians. There is a nice sandy bay with the cafe-bar-pizzeria “Olindo” right on the beach. New Enjoy, cafe-bar/pizzeria is just across the square from the beach. The beach is sandy, safe for children and, as you walk south along the beach it is…
Lendinuso (also known as Lindinuso) is a small holiday village with a sandy bay, very popular with Italians in July and August. The beach varies from an uncommercialised sandy bay, running south through a holiday centre with pizzerias, fast food, ice-cream parlours etc to Bar Benny Lido. In the main season, the Bar Benny Lido…
Situated on the Adriatic coast, lies the small market town of Casalabate. Just a few miles south of Brindisi and with Lecce, the Florence of the South, to the south-west, Casalabate is a typical small market town. The population of Casalabate and a 7 kilometre radius is approximately 26000, however this is greatly increased in the summer months when Italians and non Italians alike arrive for their vacation.
Senza Stile on the outskirts of Torre San Gennaro is a perfect beach bar where you can get drinks, snacks and light meals. The owners explained their concept to us in a mixture of Italian and English.
Get a real feel for Puglia during your vacation, book an Artisan Market Tour and discover the real Puglia. You will experience the authentic local artistic traditions with visits to local artists and craftsmen in their studios. or visits to the artisans and craftsmen workshops.
In Puglia olives abound, not surprisingly local Puglia olive oil is everywhere, Olive oil is not a luxury. It is in every kitchen in Puglia and appears on the table at just about every meal. We are surrounded by olive groves
Opened in 1989, “Splash!” claims to be the most famous water and amusement park and a major success on the Pugliese coast – “one of the best amusement parks on the peninsula”. Boasting 78,000 square metres set in natural surroundings, you will find water amusements and swimming pools of various shapes and depth, together with many other attractions.
Fagolini are green beans, small and tender, akin to french beans. If I am honest am not a fan of beans, not much of a fan of green vegetables at all. I have to make myself eat green veg from time to time.
There is something very special about Otranto …… You will read this in many places. And there is something very special about Otranto for us. It’s the place we first visited back in 1998, when we first fell in love with Puglia, and the seeds of our dream were sown. Now we want to share Otranto with you.
One of our favourite places for a leisurely shopping trip, we can combine supermarket shopping with a stroll through the streets of San Pietro, stopping for a cappucino or a beer in one of the many cafe-bars. Unlike our other local towns, San Pietro does have a long street of shops. Start at one end as you enter San Pietro and stroll along the olive lined street. From designer clothes to jewellery, ceramic tiles and kitchens, newsagents, hardware shops, supermarket Crai, many cafe-bars and geletarias, hairdressers and barbers – something is sure to catch your eye.
Although Squinzano is as close to our Puglia villas as Torchiarolo we had nver really explored it (except for visits to the Cantina). A guest entry in the Villa Rosa guest book mentioning Squinzano prompted me to say to friends that we did not really know Squinzano very well. Our friend Mino, the Puglia Chef, is originally from Squinzano and his wife Val offered to show us around.
Two for the price of one! Marmalades made with Puglia lemons and pink grapefruit from our garden. I have tried a number of different recipes but these both work consistently well. Two for the price of one!
A wine tour while you are on holiday in Puglia is recommended. It is a great opportunity to taste, learn and to buy. Take a tour early in your holiday and buy wine for your Puglia vacation.
Puglia lemons are in a class of their own. Nothing like supermarket lemons back in the UK. As I write I can smell the perfume and visualise the colour of wonderful fresh Puglia lemons. Imagine yourself on a sunny morning in Puglia. Guests can stroll out into the garden and pick lemons that are almost…
From June to August the farmers’ markets in Puglia are piled high apricots. Delicious eaten fresh, they can be dried for winter use, or used to make a perfect Puglia fruit preserve.
Homemade Lemonade is a star in our Puglia Holiday Villa welcome baskets. It’s made from fresh Puglia lemons with just the right amount of sugar. Use the peel and make Limoncello at the same time.