Day 1
You should arrive at the airport to take your flight to Bari. On arrival you will be met and transferred to the international standard fourstar Hilton Garden Inn in Lecce for two nights with breakfast and dinner. This fine hotel is very modern in style, with the normal facilities you would expect of such a property, plus roof-top swimming pool and is just a short walk from the old town.

Day 2
Lecce dates from ancient Greek times, flourished under the Romans and boasts an amphitheatre which once held 20,000 people. The Normans built a castle here, but Lecce entered a Golden Age during the 16th century when it was embellished with a host of splendid Renaissance and Baroque churches, monuments and one of Europe’s highest bell towers completes a kaleidoscope of cultural wonders. Today Lecce is referred to as the ‘Florence of the South’ and with good reason as its architecture is outstanding and around every corner is a photo opportunity of real beauty. During our guided tour this morning you will see the pinnacle of this remarkable example of man’s creativity at the Sante Croce basilica. Its stunningly crafted detailed interior decoration and multi-coloured, marble columns are outstanding, as is its facade of highly intricate, carved stonework.

This afternoon you are free to explore as you wish. You will love just wandering where your feet take you, stumbling on the host of medieval palaces as you amble through the quiet cobbled streets leading to intimate little piazzas, lined with family restaurants serving the fabulous fresh food for which Apulia is noted. Along this theme, this evening we dine in an excellent restaurant, once an ancient Roman granary, serving superb local food in the true tradition of regional Italian cuisine.

Day 3
During our drive this morning, the view to the horizon is a carpet of olive trees occasionally studded with the occasional white-washed village underlining Apulia’s historic connections with Greece and North Africa. Progressing, the countryside becomes more undulating and open with patches of oak forest, bisected by dry-stone walls, incredibly scenic it is rather reminiscent of Tuscany. You’ll begin to notice the distinctive whitewashed stone huts with conical roofs dotted across this bucolic landscape; these are Trulli, traditional local houses unique to Apulia. Extraordinarily Alberobello, is completely comprised of Trulli and we explore this fascinating townscape, learning all about their construction and intriguing history. Many are adorned with large symbols, some religious, some pagan and some celestial: you really are stepping back in time.

This afternoon, we have a guided tour of Matera, a remarkable ancient town thought to be one of the first inhabited places in Italy. Originating as a prehistoric troglodyte settlement, astonishingly, even today people live in the same cave houses that their ancestors probably occupied thousands of years ago. An entire town is here, with churches, shops, workshops, all hewn from rock! It has oftenbeen used as set for biblical films including Mel Gibson’s ‘The Passion of the Christ’. Is there anywhere else where you can walk along a street which is the roof of the house below?

We stay two nights with breakfast and dinner at the nearby four-star Hilton Garden Inn, sister hotel and with similar facilities to that in Lecce, set in extensive landscaped gardens with a lovely pool benefiting from panoramic views over the rolling countryside.

Day 4
This morning we have a guided tour of nearby Bari’s old town, nestling beautifully on the Adriatic, a thriving walled port even before the Romans, capital of Byzantine Italy and as important as Venice during Norman times. There is much to see: an imposing medieval fortress dominates the old town and the massive Romanesque cathedral has some stunning 11th century frescos. Bari’s highlight is the Basilica di San Nicola, whose beautiful 900 year old vaulted crypt is the final resting place of Saint Nicholas – Patron Saint of Russia but better known to us as Father Christmas! Bari is an entrancing jumble of endless fascinating passages where you see fishermen mending nets, ladies hand-making pasta sat in colourful doorways whilst tailors bend over humming sewing machines and artisans are busy creating all kinds of wares.

The passages which twist through arches, into whitewashed courtyards and lead back out to the sea, were designed to confuse invaders and today are delightfully successful in giving visitors a true taste of southern Italy whilst having an unmistakable North African ambience. Consult a map, therefore exposing yourself as a visitor and you will be immediately surrounded by half a dozen people genuinely offering help, but in true Italian style, all will have wonderfully different opinions! Here and there are animated groups of men-folk loudly discussing the day’s news and it’s a great place to experience the traditionally communal laid back lifestyle of the locals. We return to our hotel this afternoon to relax before dinner.

Day 5
Leaving Matera, we have a guided tour of Castel del Monte, a grandiose 13th century castle built by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, standing white and imperious with commanding views across the coastal plain to the Adriatic Sea beyond and whose design was probably inspired by Jerusalem’s Dome of the Rock. Check your loose change: it is featured on the Italian issue one cent coin. We call at delightful Trani, an important port during medieval times with extensive trading networks and some lovely Romanesque architecture but most of all is today a picturesque fishing port. This afternoon, we pass lagoons where salt has been harvested since before the Romans, sleepy villages unchanged for centuries and Manfredonia, where the Crusaders embarkedfor the Holy Land. Then the countryside changes as we climb the deserted yet spectacular Gargano peninsular coastal road. The warm air is heavy with that unmistakable Mediterranean aroma of pine and wild flowers and we soon arrive in charming Vieste staying three nights with breakfast and dinner, at either the Palace Hotel Vieste or Hotel Degli Aranci, both ideally situated about 250 metres from the beach next to the atmospheric old town.

The Palace Hotel is the tasteful conversion of a 15th century noble’s house into a lovely classic hotel. With high ceilings and plaster coving throughout you have a wonderful atmosphere of yesteryear, coupled with the comforts of an elegant and modern four-star hotel. All rooms are individually decorated, spacious and of course airconditioned. There is a bar and restaurant, plus free use of the private beach with two sun beds and an umbrella per room.

The Hotel Degli Aranci is again four-star rated and has been the lifelong project of its professional owners and whilst a modern hotel, it generates a very homely feel due to the genuine warmth of its staff. The rooms are very nicely appointed, well maintained and air conditioned. Again there is free use of the hotel’s private beach plus two sun beds and an umbrella per room. Opening and closing dates of private beaches are under local authority control, generally from mid-May to September.

Day 6
Vieste, almost an apparition, is a beautiful village of white flat-roofed low buildings, dominated by its simple 13th century cathedral. It cascades down a sun-bleached limestone promontory surrounded on three sides by the azur-blue Adriatic. Originally Phoenician, but as you amble through its hap-hazard, maze of alleyways, surrounded by hallmarks of Apulia’s historical pedigree, you are hard pushed to decide where in the world you are; it really is a uniquely fascinating place.

Today is a free day to just relax, bury your head in a good book, perhaps enjoy a leisurely lunch of succulent local seafood or just wander through one of Italy’s most attractive coastal towns. As you feel the warm sunshine on your face and you deeply breathe in the fresh sea air, home will seem very far away! For something different you could take one of the many boat trips viewing the peninsular from the seaward aspect. The dramatic coastline features endless peaceful coves, bays and sheer, white cliffs carved into spectacular shapes, towering pillars, fragile arches and deep sea caves by the sea’s erosive power. The scintillating spectrum of colours is almost beyond belief as the light and water interact on their natural canvas in an ever-changing show.

Day 7
Much of the Gargano peninsula is a National Park and today we explore some of its treasures. The breathtaking coast road follows a series of cliffs with a green carpet of aromatic pine and oak forest shielding a kaleidoscope of colourful wild flowers to your left whilst the deep blue sea disappears to the horizon on your right. With noisy sea birds soaring on the currents above, below are the contorted shapes and needles of sun-kissed white limestone erupting from the sea, which all combined, creates a magnificent scene of outstanding natural beauty. We visit the delightful sleepy fishing port of Peschici before driving inland into the mysterious Foresta Umbra, a “Dark Forest” and natural wonderland of ancient trees and one of Europe’s finest orchid habitats. The road soars, twists and turns, as slivers of bright sunshine pierce the dense canopy, casting intriguing shadows on the forest floor below in a dazzling display.

Next we arrive at Monte Sant Angelo, a gorgeous hill-top village with superb 360 degree vistas of the surrounding forest. Here, the Archangel Michael appeared and in the 8th century an outstandingabbey was built. What appears to be medieval on the surface, as we descend, you notice the air cools and in the magnificent crypt below is an astonishing display of marble carvings and multi-coloured frescoes from the past 1,200 years. This was one of the most important of medieval pilgrimages visited by Popes, Monarchs and especially the Crusaders many of whom scratched messages of hope on the walls which can still be seen. We then return to Vieste mid afternoon.

Day 8
At the appropriate time you will be transferred to Bari airport for your flight home– don’t tell too many friends or the magic will be gone.