DAY 1 — Arrival
Upon arrival at Brindisi or Bari airport you will be welcomed by our local English speaking assistant and driver who will transfer you to your hotel situated in the heart of Lecce.
DAY 2 — Lecce and Gallipoli
After breakfast you will meet your guide for a walking tour of Lecce. Lecce is one of the most beautiful historic cities of southern Italy. The city with its well decorated ancient buildings offers many testimonies from its glorious past: Roman architecture blends with Baroque palaces and churches. Lecce even developed its own Baroque style: Barocco Leccese or Baroque from Lecce. Then, have a relaxing time after this walk and enjoy a wine aperitif at Palazzo Morisco where you will be welcomed by the owner of the palace. After this aperitif, taste local specialties for lunch in a local bistrot. In the afternoon, you will go to Gallipoli for a walking guided tour of the city and enjoy its bright colors for memorable pictures. The white city and its fortress are surrounded by a turquoise see where are floating small barks. You will have free time to discover its picturesque streets. On your way back to Lecce, you will stop for a visit of an ancient underground oil-mill and a wine cave. You will taste 3 kinds of wine coming with local products such as cheese or vegetables stored in oil. Once back in Lecce you will have gourmet dinner at hotel restaurant.
DAY 3 — Otranto and Santa Maria di Leuca
This morning after breakfast, together with your driver you will head towards Otranto. You will have a walking guided tour of the city followed by free time to enjoy this charming small city on your own. The city has between other nice buildings a cathedral with a gigantic mosaic floor built around 1165 and representing the tree of life of the monk Pantaleone. The tour continue with a demonstration of typical Apulian bakery products and lunch in a local bakery. After lunch we will proceed to Santa Maria di Leuca, the most southern point of Apulia, in the end of the heel of Italy. This small white fisher village was called in the past “finibus terrae” (the end of the world) for its position: from here, in fact, you will be able to enjoy a wonderful view. It is where the Adriatic Sea meets with the Ionian Sea.
DAY 4 — Cooking Class and Ostuni
After breakfast, walk shortly to go to the cooking school in the center of Lecce. You will take part in cooking class and have lunch at the cooking school. After lunch with your driver you will continue to Ostuni and check in at your hotel. You will spend the balance of the day at leisure. You can enjoy a relaxing walk in Ostuni, also called the white lady for the blinding light of its whitewashed buildings: do not miss the cathedral in Apulian Romanesque style with its beautiful rose-window and the stunning view on the Adriatic coast from which Ostuni is separated by an ocean of centuries-old olive trees. In the evening you will have dinner at Ostuni Palace.
DAY 5 — Ostuni, Olive Oil Tour - Alberobello
Today, you will meet your guide for a walking tour of Ostuni. You will visit the nice Apulian Romanesque cathedral and have free time to walk at your convenience through the small streets of the city. After the visit of Ostuni, meet your driver to go to an ancient fortified farm: near Ostuni. You will visit the olive-yard, the oil-mill, the private chapel and the museum of folk traditions. At the end of the visit you will taste 3 kinds of organic extra-virgin olive oil. Meet again your driver tand continue to visit another local farmhouse. You will have lunch here made of local specialties. After lunch, you will go to Alberobello. a small fairy-tale village known all over the world for its cone-shaped buildings and included into the list of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites. Meet your guide for a guided walking tour of Alberobello, and then enjoy a visit of the wine museum followed by a wine tasting.
DAY 6 — Polignano a mare and Bari
Meet your driver after breakfast to for your organic cheese factory in the countryside. At the end of the visit you will try some Mozzarella, Provola and other kind of local food. Continue to Polignano a Mare. This small village is very interesting to visit because of its houses are laid on cliffs above a turquoise sea. You will have free time to visit the village on your own and discover its small charming streets, coffees and restaurants. Continue to Bari where you will have a guided walking tour of the capital of Apulia. After the visit you will be transfered back to the hotel, balance of the day at leisure.
DAY 7 — Departure
After breakfast check-out and transfer to Bari or Brindisi airport with your English speaking assistant.
