Apulia, Italy’s heel, embraced by both the Adriatic and Ionic seas, offers a wide range of touristic places to be visited.

In the inland areas you can find the bucolic countryside dominated by centuries-old olive trees, where you can admire the timeless fairy-tale beauty of trulli, the cone-shaped houses distinctive to Apulia. The capital of trulli is Alberobello, a charming town dotted with picturesque old farmhouses and enchanting country houses, where it seems that time has stopped.

The southern part of Apulia is the land of Salento, characterized by a wide variety of landscapes: with miles of coastline Salento is noteworthy for its white sandy beaches, cliffs, natural areas together with historical architectonical elements such as wonderful castles facing the sea but also picturesque towns as Gallipoli, Otranto and Santa Maria di Leuca. The inland is famous for its majestic baroque style churches and palazzi which were built during the 17th and 18th centuries. The center of Apulian Baroque is the city of Lecce with its elegant baroque palaces and churches constructed from warmly colored Lecce stone. For this reason, Lecce has been recognized as “The Florence of the South”. Lecce’s Basilica di Santa Croce boasts one of the finest floral facades in Europe. The city’s rich in Roman remains too, not least its amphitheatre and theatre—the best-preserved in Puglia.

Otranto is the easternmost point of Italy, connecting the Adriatic Sea with the Ionian Sea and separating Italy from Albania. This UNESCO site’s highlight is the 11th-century cathedral, the Aragonese Castle, and the Church of San Pietro with Byzantine frescoes. The day ends with a trip to the sea to lookout over the natural stacks of Torre Sant’Andrea and enjoy an evening dip in Otranto’s cerulean sea.

Gallipoli, meaning “the beautiful city”, is a white-washed walled city right at the bottom of Italy’s heel. Visit its Baroque cathedral, 14th-century castle, and an underground olive mill dating to the 17th-century Sant’Agata Cathedral. The walls and bastions sorrounding the old ton, built on an island and connected to the mainland by a bridge, have been built in the 15th century to fend off attacks from the pirates.

The town of Vieste clings modestly to a spectacular Gargano Promontory in nothern Apulia, a natural paradise of forests and beaches. It is called “The Pearl of Gargano”, a delightful blend of italian old charm and modern resort, with a bit of apulian magic. Vieste is strategically placed at the feet of Pizzomunno cliffs between two sweeping sandy beaches. A truly lovely sight is the lighthouse that protects sailors along the coast, standing on a tiny island just off the shore. The Arco di San Felice is reminiscent of Capri, a natural wind and water sculpted stone arch rising out of the water. The beautiful beach of San Lorenzo is one of the best, a hidden crescent bay tucked away among the rocks.

Altamura, the lioness of Apulia, is a well known art- and food-travel destinaton because of the world famous bread “Pane di Altamura” which gained the top quality label in 2003. Altamura is located in the heart of Apulia and best known for its cathedral, built between 1232 and 1242 by Frederick II of Swabia, and Museum of Archaeology. This impressive museum contains many artefacts from the region dating back up to 2500 years. Among the most famous archaeological remains there is “The Man of Altamura” which is a skeleton of an adult male whose skull has element of the Neanderthal population and forms of the Homo erectus. The town is also known for a traditional peasant dish made of stale bread – the so-called “cialledda”.