Puglia villa holidays,
your questions answered

Fly into Bari (BRI) for Polignano a Mare, Monopoli, Alberobello and the Valle d'Itria, or Brindisi (BDS) for Ostuni, Lecce and the Salento. Both are 30 to 60 minutes from most of our villas. Most US travelers connect through Rome, Milan or another European hub.

About an hour by plane, roughly 4 hours by high-speed train from Rome to Bari, or 4 hours 30 minutes to 5 hours by car.

Yes. Apulia is the English name for Puglia, the region in the "heel" of Italy's boot, on the Adriatic and Ionian seas. It is not part of Sicily and is about 3 hours 30 minutes to 4 hours by car from the Amalfi Coast.

Yes. The towns are spread out, most villas and masserie are in the countryside, and local buses are infrequent. Driving is easy on the open roads, but historic centres such as Ostuni, Lecce and Polignano are ZTL zones (restricted traffic areas), so park outside them. US drivers need an International Driving Permit with their license.

Partly. The coastal line links Bari, Polignano a Mare, Monopoli, Fasano, Ostuni, Brindisi and Lecce, and a slower local line serves Alberobello, Locorotondo and Martina Franca. It works for town-to-town trips, but not for reaching a countryside villa.

Our Puglia villas run from €9,450 a week (Villa Brezzablu in Ceglie Messapica, sleeps 12) to €53,335 a week (Villa Leonda in Castellana Grotte). Villa Coki in Locorotondo sleeps 10 from €9,830, and Villa Hiera near Cisternino sleeps 16 from €16,425.

Puglia is still good value compared with Tuscany, Lake Como or the Amalfi Coast. Villa Brezzablu sleeps 12 from €9,450 a week, about €110 per person per night, with a pool.

For a first visit, the Valle d'Itria (Ostuni, Cisternino, Locorotondo, Ceglie Messapica). It is central, close to the trulli and the white towns, and 20 to 30 minutes from the beaches. Polignano a Mare and Monopoli suit a holiday by the sea, and Lecce and the Salento suit baroque architecture and the best sandy beaches further south. Most of our Puglia villas are in the Valle d'Itria and along the coast.

A masseria is a fortified farmhouse, many of them several hundred years old, surrounded by olive groves. Restored masserie are some of Puglia's most beautiful places to stay, often with a pool in the courtyard or the grounds.

May, June, September and early October. The weather is warm and stable and the sea is good for swimming. July is busy but works well; August is hot, crowded and the most expensive month.

Yes. The sea is swimmable from late May to mid-October, and early October is often lovely, with empty beaches.

A week from one villa covers the Valle d'Itria, Alberobello, Polignano and a beach day or two. With ten days you can add Lecce, the Salento and Matera.

For a quiet trip, yes. October to December is the olive harvest, the towns are calm and the weather is mild. Many beach clubs and seasonal restaurants close, so it is a food-and-towns trip rather than a beach one.

Puglia is known for the trulli of Alberobello, whitewashed hill towns such as Ostuni, the baroque centre of Lecce, cliff-top Polignano a Mare, its masserie, and its food: orecchiette with turnip tops, burrata, focaccia barese, olive oil and Primitivo and Negroamaro wines.

Ostuni, Lecce, Polignano a Mare, Alberobello, Monopoli, Martina Franca, Locorotondo, Cisternino and Otranto. Most are within an hour of each other.

Matera's cave town (the Sassi), just over the border in Basilicata, about an hour from Alberobello; the caves at Castellana Grotte; Lecce, about an hour from Ostuni; and boat days along the Adriatic from Monopoli or Polignano.

Puglia is smaller and flatter, the driving is easier and one villa can be your base for the whole week. Sicily is bigger and more varied (Etna, Greek temples, baroque towns) but usually needs longer drives or two bases. For a first, relaxed villa week, Puglia is the simpler choice.

Yes. Puglia is safe for visitors, including at night in the towns. Take normal care with valuables in cars and at busy beaches.