Day 1
Where: Matera
Terrain: City visit
Hike: 2 Hrs
Meals: L, D
Your guide will meet you at the Bari airport and transfer you to your hotel in Matera, the timeless and enchanting city of Sassi (cave houses carved out of stone) and a UNESCO World Heritage site. Matera was also the next European Capital of Culture (2019) and is thought to be the oldest continuously inhabited city in Europe, dating back to the Paleolithic era. We’ll have a light lunch and glass of wine while we review the tour program. For an introduction to the Sassi we’ll first visit Casa Noha, a property of the Italian National Trust, and then take a walking tour with a local guide. You’ll then have time to explore the narrow alleyways, uneven stone staircases and cave churches on your own.
Hotel: Sextantio Le Grotte della Civita
Day 2
Where: Matera and Alberobello
Terrain: Hilly with stairs
Hike: 3 Hrs
Meals: B, L, D
Today's route will take us along a charming panoramic trail, rich in spectacular natural and architectural views, frescoes and cave churches. After breakfast, we’ll start our hike walking through two of the Sassi districts: the Sasso Barisano and Caveoso. The Caveoso neighborhood is old and less developed. In the 1950s the Italian government relocated many people to the modern part of town, but some remained and people still live there today. From there we’ll reach Porta Pistola and depart the old town. We will follow a path down to the ravine and up onto the other side of the small canyon until we reach the foothills of Murgia Timone in the Natural Park of the Chiese Rupestri of Matera. From here the view on the Sassi is amazing!
We’ll transfer to Alberobello in the late afternoon and visit Cantina Albea, a winery and museum of farming traditions and winemaking. We’ll sample some of their best wines, such as Primitive and Locorotondo. After you’ll have free time to explore this town that is home to over 1000 trulli, conical-shaped houses,a UNESCO site.
Hotel: Trullidea Resort
Day 3
Where: Martina Franca, Locorotondo, and Regional Natural Park Dune Costiere
Terrain: Rolling
Hike: 3.5 Hrs
Meals: B, L, D
After breakfast, we will take a private transfer to the baroque town of Martina Franca where we will taste a superb regional product: the capocollo of Martina Franca (a cold cut), a Slow Food Presidium.
The capocollo is washed in cooked wine and smoked with local oak and herbs, then aged. Those with a sweet tooth will not be disappointed: the bocconotto (a filled pastry) from Martina is one of the most famous delicacies of the Valle d’Itria.
From Martina Franca another short transfer will take us to the village of Locorotondo, a village whose name reflects the characteristic shape of its historic center: a set of white houses arranged in concentric rings. After a Locorotondo DOC wine tasting, we’ll have lunch at a Slow Food trattoria.
After lunch, we will start walking down the eastern slopes of the Itria Valley and continue our journey on the edge of the Dune Costiere Regional Natural Park, one of the most interesting protected areas of southern Italy because of its many natural habitats and historically important sites. We’ll spend the night at a masseria, a fortified farmhouse that produces olive oil.
Hotel: Masseria il Frantoio
Day 4
Where: Ostuni
Terrain: Hilly
Hike:4 or 6 Hrs
Meals: B, L, D
After leaving our Masseria we will walk into the countryside through the fertile farmlands where the simple and tasty products that end up on the dinner tables of local restaurants are grown.
From there we will walk up the high plain, Selva di Fasano, by carefully choosing our path: through the forest, climbing slowly towards the ancient village “La Terra (The Earth)“, the highest and most characteristic hill of Ostuni, with views of endless rows of olive trees in the Valle d’Itria countryside and of the Adriatic Sea. From here you can head to the hotel, or try an interesting and challenging detour to the Sanctuary of San Biagio, the most completerocky settlement of Ostuni. The afternoon is free to get lost in this medieval, walled and whitewashed city, one of Puglia’s prettiest and home to many olive wood artisans. You can also opt for a visit to the Archaeological Park of Santa Maria di Agnano, where the exceptional discovery of a young woman of the Paleolithic era took place.
Dinner is at one of our favorite restaurants in Ostuni.
Hotel: Ostuni Palace
Day 5
Where: Lecce
Terrain: Flat
Hike: 1.5 Hrs
Meals: B, L, D
After breakfast, we will follow a short, almost entirely dirt path to reach an ancient masseria, Masseria Brancati, whose above-ground construction dates back to the X or XI centuries. We’ll taste the olive oil made here from nearby monumental olive trees and visit the underground mill from Roman times.
In the afternoon we will transfer to Lecce where we will have a walking tour of the baroque historical center. The architecture of the city is so distinct that it is known by its own name: barocco leccese, and it features ornately carved facades on churches and palazzi.
Hotel: Palazzo Rollo
Day 6
Where: Otranto
Terrain: Rolling
Hike: 3.5 Hrs
Meals: B, L, D
We’ll take an early private transfer to the town of Otranto where we will visit majestic Cathedral of Santa Maria Annunziata. The cathedral has a colorful Moorish design on the ceiling, but the most impressive feature is the mosaic tile on the floor that depicts the Tree of Life. It’s one of the most important mosaics in all of Italy. The Tree of Life is said to reflect the journey of humans from the Fall to Salvation, the battle between good and evil that defines our earthly present and spiritual future.
Leaving Otranto behind, we’ll experience the beautiful unspoiled landscapes described by Maria Corti in her masterpiece Otranto. You can admire the stunning lunar landscape around the blue lake and reflect on the past while viewing the ruins of the Abbey of Casole. We will reach the Palascia lighthouse, the easternmost point in Italy, and on a clear day when the north wind blows hard the mountains of Albania, 70 km away, can be seen. Overnight stay at a farmhouse agriturismo.
Hotel: Masseria Panareo
Day 7
Where: Porto Badisco
Terrain: Rolling
Hike: 3 Hrs
Meals: B, L, D
In the morning we will reach The Costantine Foundation, a farm promoter of various social activities ranging from biodynamic agriculture to handicraft production of rare fabrics.
After the visit another short transfer will take us to the Botanical Garden La Cutura, the most outstanding private collection in Salento with succulents from five continents.
Then we will go to the sea, to Porto Badisco, a site inextricably linked to the Neolithic Grotta dei Cervi (Cave of the Deer). We’ll try the local specialty, sea urchins, at one of the popular restaurants. After lunch we’ll work off all of that good food going up a gentle hill back to our farm.
Our farewell dinner tonight will feature folkloric music and the chance to try to dance and play the tamburello, a typical instrument of the Salento musical tradition. A perfect, festive end to our Magnifica journey in this part of southern Italy!
Hotel: Masseria Panareo
Day 8
Where: Transfer
Terrain: Departure
Hike: None
Meals: B
After breakfast private transfer to the Bari airport. Guides can help you with your travel plans to make sure you will have a safe trip home.
