Puglia and Basilicata: Italy’s Sparkling South

After a delicious breakfast of Apulian delicacies this morning, you’ll spend some time seeing Lecce in the company of locals. During the visit, your guides will draw on their intimate knowledge of the city to create an informal itinerary that’s tailored to you, punctuated by coffee or an aperitif to allow you to soak up Lecce’s atmosphere at a relaxed pace. You’ll have the rest of the day to explore solo, whether that means visiting the old Roman amphitheatre, marvelling at the frescoes of the Chiesa dei Santi Niccolò e Cataldo, or taking in more of the city’s incredible Baroque buildings: the rebuilt Catedral de la Asunción de Santa María; the Basilica di Santa Croce; and the Basilica del Rosario e di San Giovanni Battista. If you’re particularly interested in Lecce’s Baroque architecture, we can arrange for you to take a private tour of some of the city’s most emblematic buildings.

Today, you’ll drive for around one hour and 45 minutes until you reach the historic town of Bernalda where you’ll spend two nights in a 19th-century building in the midst of a beautiful garden. When you arrive, grab a drink and a slice of pizza at the Coppola family’s Cinecittà Bar, whose tables look out onto the main square. Spend the afternoon relaxing by your hotel pool, or take a trip down to the beach, just 15 minutes away by car.

We’ll arrange for you to visit the fascinating Sassi limestone caves of Matera today, around a 45-minute drive away. These troglodyte churches and dwellings have been inhabited since antiquity, and following a full restoration, they are now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. This private tour of the Sassi leads you through the hermitages, monasteries and houses where Byzantine monks settled in the High Middle Ages. Needless to say, this region has a truly special atmosphere, one that has been recognised by several filmmakers including Pasolini who shot some of The Gospel According to St. Matthew here in the caves, and Cary Joji Fukunaga, whose No Time to Die is set in Matera.

Your next and final stop is Savelletri di Fasano, which takes just over an hour and a half to reach by car. When you arrive at your home for the next two nights, head down to the private beach, take a stroll through the manicured gardens or lounge by the large swimming pool. When you get peckish, enjoy a meal of Apulian cuisine crafted with local ingredients at the hotel restaurant.

This charming town on the Adriatic is home to a fishing port, a marina and beaches, the perfect place to spend your penultimate day in southern Italy. Spend your day lounging by the water or strolling through the shady streets of Fasano’s old town which lead to sunny squares, and your evening indulging in an aperitif by the water and a delicious seafood dinner at the harbour. The Egnazia archaeological park is also not far from here, a chance to learn more about life in this ancient city of the Messapii. However you decide to spend your last day, carve out some time to sample a panzerotto (local calzone), some focaccia Barese or a few pettole, delicious donuts that can be sweet or savoury.