APULIA: nature, tradition and culture

A guide to learn how to experience and love Apulia

Apulia: an amazing travel in a region marked by a winding nature which appears as a one thousand colors mosaic. Ancient traditions meet the flavour of the land. A plot of art, history and culture joint to the beauty and the naturalness of the places let the tourist experience a rich holiday falling in love with this territory. Crystal clear sea, breathtaking coasts, immense secular olive-groves, caves and gravine, trulli and farms, churches and ancient villages: from Salento to Gargano they are the ingredients of a fascinating adventure.

Salento: land of sun, sea and ancient traditions

Salento

The Salento is characterized by important old town centres such as the one of Gallipoli, Ostuni, Martina Franca, Lecce, Taranto, Manduria, Nardò, Francavilla Fontana, Oria, Otranto, Grottaglie. They are marked by numerous rocky churches and Basilian crypts frescoed with holy imagines and used as places of worship during the Middle Ages. We can admire valuable Roman cathedrals and experience ancient rituals and traditions as well as appreciate precious handmade products realized by ancient peoples such as the Messapi who had inhabited these territories for centuries. The Salento is famous all over the world for its Baroque which developed at the end of the 16th century.

Gargano: rich nature, cliffs and beaches, seafaring villages and holy site

Gargano

Gargano: a mountain rich of charm, a world where the clock seems to have stopped. Ancient maritime centres alternate with indented coastlines sheer to the sea and large woods full of firs, beeches and Turkey oaks. It could be considered a real patrimony thanks to its historical, natural and spiritual richness. A land where we can see the signs of a millenarian history and appreciate its natural, historical and religious heritage.

Valle D'Itria: an immense artistic and naturalistic treasure of the territory

Trulli e Valle D'Itria

Among the provinces of Bari, Taranto and Brindisi develops the karstic Valle d’Itria: a sweet land characterized by numerous dry walls where the olive trees alternate with oak tree woods and the view is enriched by the cone-shaped roofs of the trulli. Here we find some of the most beautiful and typical villages of the region, deep in this natural masterpiece, such as Martina Franca, Alberobello, Locorotondo and Cisternino, which surely awaken the tourist’s interest.

Rituals and traditions

Riti e Tradizioni

Padre Pio
San Michele, Monte Sant'Angelo

The sanctuary of Padre Pio calls devotees from all over the world

Numerous devotees visit the 16th century convent of the Cappuccini, where Padre Pio had lived for 50 years. The new church dedicated to San Pio has been built to give hospitality to thousands of pilgrims that every year come to honor the memory of Padre Pio from Pietrelcina.

An evocative sanctuary in the Archangel’s cave

The old town centre develops around the Archangel’s Cave built between 490 and 493 A.D., following the apparitions of St. Michael the Archangel to San Lorenzo Maiorano, bishop of Siponto.

Weather Puglia

Meteo Puglia
Useful information for tourists

Useful information for tourists in Apulia

  • Language:

    Italian

    Currency:

    Euro

    International code:

    0039

    Travel document:

    Identity card for community citizens; passport for extra-community tourists

  • Useful numbers:

    • Carabinieri 112
    • State Police 113
    • Firemen 115
    • Finance Police 117
    • First Aid 118
  • How to reach Apulia:

    By plane

    Bari Airport: Karol Wojtyla. Brindisi Airport: Papola Casale. Foggia Airport: Gino Lisa

    By train

    Trenitalia links the main Italian cities of Apulia

    On highway

    A14 from Bologna through Foggia and Bari to Taranto

    A16 from Napoli; in Canosa it converges with A14.

The Baroque in Lecce, architectonic expression of the 16th century

Basilica di Santa Croce

In 1539 emperor Carlo V chooses the city of Lecce as the chief town of Apulia making it a real building yard. This prosperous period is deeply linked with the famous architectural phenomenon called the Baroque of Lecce.

Secular olive-groves with crooked trunks appearing as real natural sculptures.

Secular olive-groves

Symbol of the flora of the whole region is the olive tree, which characterizes the territory from the Tavoliere to the end of the Salento with immense fields.

Secular olive-groves

The olive trees with their beauty and charm, given by their secular crooked trunks, embody the history of Apulia thanks to their millenarian presence on the territory. They are the oldest and largest group of millenarian vegetal specimens in the world.

Self- vegetation and animal species in Apulia.

Horse of the Murgia

A huge number of biotopes of vegetable and animal species characterizes the region, even if only the 7% of the territory has been declared protected area. The Apulian self-vegetation is marked by woods, the Mediterranean maquis and the so-called ganga (rocky pasture).

Pink flamingos in the salt marshes of Margherita di Savoia

The region shows two national parks: the Gargano National Park with many areas and reserves and the lakes of Lesina and Varano, and the Alta Murgia National Park.