Cycling Tour in Puglia

Explore by bicycle the UNESCO site of Alberobello in Puglia, and visit with local wine, olive oil, bread and cheese makers. Overnight in renovated farms, locally called masserie offering accommodations and food, and in trulli, typical conic-shape dwellings completely refurbished.

Visit with local wine, olive oil, bread and cheese makers and indulge on the local Mediterranean cuisine for a full immersion intp the southern Italian culture.

Come with us to discover this beautiful region: buon appetito and buon viaggio

See here for more info on Puglia region.

Dates & Pricing

Minimum of 8 participants, maximum of 14, with a maximum guide-to-guest ratio of 1 to 8

DATES (7 days)

May 14-20, 2022 | October 8-14, 2022

For more info and availability please contact us.

TOUR PRICE

Per person in double occupancy: from $4,090

Single Supplement: $690

In addition, we pledge to donate more than 1% of your trip price to food literacy and environmental non profit organizations

Tour Highlights

Discover the UNESCO site of the Trulli of Alberobello
Tastings of regional Slow Food Presidia and visits to local wine, olive oil, biscuit and cheese makers
Experience the authentic Mediterranean Diet through local traditional cuisine featuring fresh and seasonal ingredients and learn more about local recipes
Enjoy some of the best reds of Italy, Primitivo and Negroamaro grapes, two indigenous varieties of the Salento area
Relax in unique, elegant masserie, trulli and 4-star hotels
Delve into history, traditions and culture in this unique area of south of Italy
Exhilarating rides in the tranquil countryside inland, at times surrounded by century-old olive oil trees or a natural reserve by the sea

Cycling Level 1 – Antipasto (Appetizer)

What's Included

6 nights of accommodation in 4-star hotels or masserie and agriturismi
6 breakfasts, 2 lunches and 5 dinners with either a 3- or 4-course menu
Exploration of Lecce, Alberobello, Otranto, Ostuni, Mesagne, Locorotondo, Polignano a Mare and other quaint Pugliesi villages
1 visit and tasting to an olive oil producer; 1 visit & tasting to a pastry maker
Exhilarating rides in Salento area, Itria Valley, and Murgia Barese
1 cooking demo and 1 private boat ride
1 wine tasting and visit to local winemaker
1 mozzarella-making demo & tasting with a cheese maker
Live music & pizzica dance with folk group
Bike rental (see more info here) and Garmin Touring Edge unit (if you have one, bring yours and we’ll upload the routes onto your unit)
Comfortable transportation and assistance by 9-seat van for all travel on tour as cited in the itinerary
Refreshments, snacks, fruits and other local delicacies during our rides
2 bilingual, professional Tour Leaders
First group transfer from Brindisi and last group transfer to Bari airport
Local taxes and gratuities for luggage porters and restaurant servers during tour

What's Not Included

4 lunches and 1 dinner on your own
Alcoholic beverages at group dinners (including wine and spirits)
Round-trip airfare and expenses to/from the tour
E-bike, upon request and availability, with $100-200 surcharge depending on the type (see more info here)
Trip cancellation, baggage loss or travel delay insurance (this optional coverage is highly recommended and is not provided by Food.Stories.Travel.)
Gratuities for your Tour Leader
Personal expenses, such as, but not limited to, phone calls, laundry, emails, snacks, gifts

Itinerary

Optional Pre-Tour night in Salento
Day 1 & 2 – Salento, Otranto and Lecce

Cycling Route Info on day 1: Main Route: 22mi/480ft of elevation gain | Extra loop adds: 11mi/180ft

Cycling Route Info on day 2: Main Route 42mi/1100ft | Extra loop adds: 9mi/180ft or more!

Fly to Brindisi Airport and join us for a 45-mins group transfer to our accommodation for the next two nights: a masseria (an old fortified farm offering accommodation and food) in the Salento area. Check in and relax before meeting your guide for a light lunch and introduction to the tour. Later, we enjoy a warm up ride to the medieval village of Acaja with its Spanish fortress, then a walk in the local organic gardens featuring aloe vera, lavender, wheat, grapes, olives and much more! Top your day with a delicious dinner served at the masseria and with only local recipes and ingredients.

Highlights here include: the World Wildlife Fund managed Natural Reserve of Le Cesine by the sea featured on our extra loop; the white-washed sea town of Otranto with its Aragonese fortress and the cathedral dating back to 11th C.; the elegant city of Lecce, capital of Salento and famous for its Baroque buildings. In terms of local recipes, be sure not to miss the typical sandwich from Salento area called “puccia” (derived from the word pouch) sliced and stuffed with different local ingredients such as spinach, cheese and cured meat.
Day 3 & 4 – Salento to Mesagne and Ostuni

Cycling Route Info on day 3: Main Route: 39mi/600ft | Extra loop adds: 13mi/250ft or more!

Cycling Route Info on day 4: Main Route: 46mi/1300ft | Extra loop adds: 14mi/750ft or more!

Today we leave the Salento area, famous for its native grapes such as Negroamaro and Primitivo, which we’ve been enjoying in full-bodied earthy reds, and move inland, arriving at the charmingly walkable town of Mesagne, named for a local tribe, the Messapi, with a castle dating to the 11^th century. Mesagne became an important center in Roman times, given its location on the Appian way (one of the most important connections between Rome and southern Italy).

Highlights on these days include a visit and tasting to a pastry maker in Ceglie Messapica, a mozzarella-making demo and tasting with a local expert casaro (cheese-maker in Italian, and a visit to a local winery in Salice Salentino.

Unforgettable is also the loop ride and visit to the hilltop gem of Ostuni, which offers a collection of whitewashed structures that glitter when the sun strikes them, perched to afford views out over a seemingly endless sea of silvery olive trees and the sparkling Adriatic beyond. Inhabited since the Stone Age, it was built without a plan, as its labyrinthine web of streets clearly illustrates.

Our stay in this area allows us to immerse ourselves even deeper into the local culture through the folk music and dance called "pizzica," performed live by a local group over dinner!
Day 5 & 6 – Mesagne to Alberobello, Locorotondo and Polignano a Mare

Cycling Route Info on day 5: Main Route: 41mi/1950ft | Extra loop adds: 13mi/850ft or more!

Cycling Route Info on day 6: Main Route: 26mi/700ft | Extra loop adds: 14mi/750ft or more!

From Mesagne we ride to picturesque Alberobello, a UNESCO World Heritage Site quintessentially representing Puglia with its distinctive conic-shape dwellings called trulli. For two nights, we have the chance to overnight in our own trulli, (accommodation to be confirmed depending on availability) and enjoy a visit of the town museum, which is housed inside a series of conjoined trulli.

Our first dinner in Alberobello features a chef in action in his own restaurant sharing one of his favorite recipes on a cooking demo, while preparing the next course for us! On these days we also visit a multi-awarded olive oil producer to learn about one of the most important ingredients of the Mediterranean cuisine over a delicious tasting.

Another highlight here is a visit and lunch at the village of Locorotondo in beautiful Itria Valley, named one of “the most beautiful villages in Italy” (i borghi più belli d’Italia, a designation established in 2001 with the aim of preserving and maintaining villages of quality heritage), which shares Ostuni’s luminous whitewashed, perched position. The name of Locorotondo means “round place” in reference to its circular historic center.

We also stop along the coast at Polignano a Mare to enjoy a private boat ride, exploring the rugged coastline and its grottoes from the pristine blue sea. Then we celebrate over dinner in Alberobello the end of our journey through this charming region in south of Italy.
Day 7 – Bari Airport

To request the itinerary as a PDF or to ask us any questions please contact us today!