Abruzzo, Puglia & Matera

The tour starts at 2.30pm on Sunday 15 September, at Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport, Rome.

The tour ends at c.11.00am on Monday 30 September, at Bari Karol Wojtyła Airport, Bari.

Meet your tour leader at Rome’s Fiumicino Airport in the early afternoon for a coach transfer to the Abruzzo region, where we settle into our unique accommodation in the medieval village of Santo Stefano di Sessanio, high in the Apennine mountains. Now given new life as home to a design hotel, this spectacular location in the Gran Sasso National Park will serve as our base for the next two nights. After time to freshen up, enjoy a welcome dinner at the accommodation where you will be treated to a range of local recipes all made using fresh food grown in the neighbouring fields. Overnight Santo Stefano (D)

In the morning we take a trip up to Campo Imperatore at the foot of the Gran Sasso massif, a glacial high plain and site of the hotel from which Mussolini was snatched by German paratroopers in 1943. We then explore one of Italy’s most spectacular castles at Calascio where we enjoy a traditional lunch before descending to explore the Roman ghost town of Peltuinum below. Please note that part of the excursion today involves walking over uneven surfaces and therefore it may not be possible for all guests to undertake this segment. Overnight Santo Stefano (B, L)

Departing Santo Stefano this morning we travel to the village of Bominaco to visit today’s highlight, the magnificent 13th century fresco cycle within what was once a Benedictine monastery. The original Abbey was founded by Charlemagne in the 8th century AD on the site of a former pagan temple and the current structure now combines graphic biblical narratives with astrological calendars and the phases of the moon. Lunch nearby in a local restaurant. We then continue onwards to Sulmona, the so called ‘City of Love’ and birthplace of the celebrated Roman poet Ovid. After checking in we take a tour of this elegant provincial capital nestling at the foot of the majestic Maiella mountain range. Overnight Sulmona (B, L)

This morning is market day in Sulmona. After a brief visit to the local market, we travel to the Roman ruins of Corfinium, the original capital of the Italic people in the 1st Century BC. We then proceed to the remarkable Abbazia di Santo Spirito di Morrone, an abbey complex founded by followers of Abruzzo’s favourite Saint, 13th century Pope Celestine V, and used during the war as a repository for British prisoners of war. Tonight we will enjoy dinner in a local restaurant. Overnight Sulmona (B, D)

Today we go to the hilltown of Cocullo, renowned for its spring snake festival and guild of snake charmers – an unusual blending of folklore and faith. We then travel through spectacular country along the gorge of the river Sagittario to visit the hidden gem of Scanno, pausing to admire the turquoise water of the two lakes on the way. We will return to Sulmona early afternoon, with time to enjoy the town’s impressive passeggiata before free time in the evening for dinner. Overnight Sulmona (B)

Departing the Abruzzo, we travel south to the Puglia region, pausing for lunch at a seaside town before heading on to our destination at Giovinazzo. This picturesque harbour town is renowned for its wonderful majestic square, maybe one of the most beautiful in Puglia and is unique in Italy due to its particular trapezium shape. On arrival, we make our way to our hotel, housed in an impressive converted 13th-century monastery, spectacularly located on the seafront. We enjoy a leisurely stroll around the Old Town, followed by the evening at leisure. Overnight Giovinazzo (B, L)

This morning we make our way along Puglia’s Adriatic coast to the elegant seaside town of Trani. Here we enjoy a guided walking tour, exploring the harmonious limestone architecture, impressive Swabian fortress and majestic Norman cathedral built directly on the waterfront. Following free time for lunch we proceed to the neighbouring town of Barletta to view the Colossus, an enormous bronze statue of an Eastern Roman Emperor, nearly three times life size. Returning to our hotel, the evening is at leisure. Overnight Giovinazzo (B)

In the 13th century, Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II gave orders to build an extraordinary octagonal structure now known as Castel del Monte. It was the inspiration for Umberto Eco’s murder mystery novel, ‘The Name of the Rose’ and its original purpose is still debated. After a guided tour of this national monument, we have lunch in the vicinity and then proceed to charming Bitonto, home to another great Norman cathedral, the largest in southern Italy. On returning to our hotel, the evening is at leisure. Overnight Giovinazzo (B, L)

Departing Giovinazzo, we make our way to the town of Monopoli whose whitewashed houses contrast perfectly with turquoise waters lapping at the walls. In nearby Polignano a Mare where the old town is sited dramatically directly on the cliff tops we have free time for lunch before continuing on to our destination near Ostuni. In the evening we have a welcome dinner at our accommodation – a fortified estate known as a Masseria – surrounded by ancient olive groves with some trees over 2,000-years-old. Overnight Ostuni (B, D)

After a relaxed start this morning we take a guided tour through the maze of narrow alleyways in the Old Town of Ostuni, where the ubiquitous limewash used on the houses has led to its appellation The White Town. Here we admire Romanesque and Baroque buildings and view the striking remains of a 28,000-year-old paleolithic woman, ‘The Lady from Ostuni’. Afterwards the evening and night are at leisure – the perfect chance to unwind with a refreshing dip or a delicious aperitivo by the hotel pool. Overnight Ostuni (B)

The eye-catching conical stone structures known as “trulli” have rightly become the most famous visual image of Puglia and today we go to the picturesque heart of trullo territory, pausing to admire an amazing collection of local plants at a botanical garden on the way. After a visit to one of Puglia’s prettiest towns, Locorotondo, there is free time for lunch and individual sightseeing before continuing to the elegantly baroque town of Martina Franca for a guided tour. The evening is at leisure. Overnight Ostuni (B)

This morning we set out with a local guide to explore Lecce, the crown jewel of the Mezzogiorno which is often described as the Florence of the south. There is a fine range of monuments to visit, including Roman ruins and the exuberant 16th and 17th-century architecture spread throughout the town. It is this for which Lecce is most notable; an expressive and highly decorative incarnation of the Southern Baroque genre replete with gargoyles, asparagus columns and cavorting gremlins. In the afternoon, we explore the ancient art of papier-mâché production, a phenomenon mastered by the skilled craftsmen of Lecce, before returning to our accommodation where we have an apericena accompanying a demonstration of and lesson in the traditional “Pizzica-pizzica” dance. Overnight Ostuni (B, A)

Departing Ostuni today, we travel to the region of Basilicata via the historic city of Taranto, founded in the 8th century BC and once a major centre of Magna Graecia. We stop to view the many artefacts recovered from the surrounding sites and tombs in the region at the National Archaeological Museum, one of the most comprehensive in Italy. After lunch in a local restaurant, we head inland to our last accommodation, an “albergo diffuso” at Matera, with the evening at leisure. Overnight Matera (B, L)

Today we enjoy a walking tour of Matera. This troglodyte city with its fascinating rupestrian churches has been inhabited since paleolithic times and was declared European capital of culture in 2019. Known as the “sassi” – the Italian word for stones – it is dramatically situated on the slopes of intersecting ravines whose naturally occurring caves were progressively expanded into living spaces through the centuries of classical and medieval times by the local population. These days the underground residences are being reinhabited and provide a range of interesting accommodation options. The afternoon and evening are at leisure, with optional visits to an underground heated spa if requested. Overnight Matera (B)

The continuous presence of human activity in the territory of Matera is not just limited to the famous Sassi but was also present in the surrounding valleys. Within one of these ravines lies the rupestrian Chapel of the Original Sin, famous for its beguilingly beautiful frescoes. Commissioned by Basilian monks in the 8th century AD, its narrative pictorial cycle features some of the oldest Christian paintings in existence. After the visit there we enjoy a wine-tasting before returning for free time in Matera for lunch. In the afternoon you may join an optional visit to the Carlo Levi l museum. Levi was the author of the Italian classic ‘Christ stopped at Eboli’ which brought Matera to the world’s attention. We will conclude our tour with a farewell dinner in a local restaurant this evening. Overnight Matera (B, WT, D)

This morning we transfer by coach from Matera to Bari Airport, where the tour ends. (B)