Whitewashed hilltop towns, cone-roofed trulli among the olive trees and cliffs above water so clear you can see the bottom. Puglia, the heel of Italy’s boot, has many faces, which makes choosing where to sleep surprisingly tricky. Do you book a town by the sea, a masseria in the olive groves or a real trullo?
We spent just over three weeks looping through Puglia with two little kids in the back. It was around Christmas, when Alberobello and Monopoli were lit up with light shows. From Bari and Monopoli we headed through the Valle d’Itria and Lecce down to the southern tip at Santa Maria di Leuca, and crossed the border into Matera.
In this guide you’ll find out who each area suits, where we’d want to stay ourselves and which hotels, trulli and masserias stood out to us.
Where to stay in Puglia at a glance
Short on time? Here’s the best area for each type of traveller, plus the hotel we like most there.
- Best for first-timers and families: Monopoli (our pick: Palazzo Indelli)
- Best for sleeping in a trullo or masseria: the Valle d’Itria (our pick: Trulli Holiday Albergo Diffuso)
- Best for baroque streets and great food: Lecce (our pick: Palazzo Sant'Anna)
- Best for sandy beaches: Salento around Otranto and Torre dell’Orso (our pick: Masseria Rauccio)
- Best for a short stay without a car: Bari (our pick: Palazzo Calò)
- Best for a night in a cave: Matera (our pick: Hotel Sassi)
One base or two in Puglia?
Puglia is bigger than it looks on the map. Bari to Lecce takes almost two hours by car, and from Lecce it’s another hour to the southern tip at Santa Maria di Leuca. Try to see it all from one hotel and you’ll spend most of your holiday behind the wheel.
Our advice for a week or more: split your stay between two bases. In the north, stay near Monopoli or in the Valle d’Itria, with Polignano a Mare, Alberobello, Locorotondo and Ostuni all within half an hour to 45 minutes. In the south, pick Lecce or somewhere on the Salento coast for the baroque city, Otranto and the beaches. Add a night in Matera at the start or end of your trip, as it’s only about an hour’s drive from Bari.
We stayed at least a full day in almost every place, often two or three. With two small children that pace worked perfectly, because long drives are best kept short with little ones.
→ See our Puglia road trip itinerary for 10 days to 3 weeks
→ Discover the 20 best places to visit in Puglia
Do you need a car in Puglia?
Not for the towns. Bari, Polignano a Mare, Monopoli and Lecce sit on the same coastal railway line, and a train runs from Bari airport into the city. For a city break or a few days on the coast, you’ll manage fine without a car.
If you want to sleep in a trullo or masseria in the countryside, or try a different beach every day, a car is close to essential. Public transport outside the towns is limited, and the best masserias sit along country lanes between the olive trees. Most old town centres are closed to visitors’ cars, so park on the edge and walk the last bit.
Most international flights land in Bari or Brindisi, and both airports are the easiest places to pick up a hire car. We usually compare prices on Discover Cars, which shows all the rental companies at once.
Trullo, masseria or town hotel?
Puglia has places to sleep you won’t find anywhere else. A trullo is a round, whitewashed stone house with a conical roof of stacked stones, built without mortar. Alberobello has more than a thousand of them, and together they’re a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Inside they’re small and snug, often with beds tucked into alcoves in the thick walls.
A masseria is an old fortified farmhouse surrounded by olive groves. Many have been turned into hotels, from simple and rural to luxurious with a spa. They often come with a pool and a big garden, which is a treat with kids after a day out.
In the old towns you’ll sleep in a palazzo or an albergo diffuso, a hotel with rooms spread across different houses in the historic centre. Handy if you want to walk to dinner and leave the car parked.
Where to stay in Puglia: the 6 best areas
Below you’ll find what to expect from each area and the hotels we like best.
#1 Monopoli and Polignano a Mare: town, harbour and sea
Monopoli was one of the nicest surprises of our Puglia trip. The white old town sits right on the sea, with an old fishing harbour, small town beaches and a castle on the waterfront. When we were there around Christmas, light shows were projected onto the castle walls.
Polignano a Mare is ten minutes up the road, perched on the cliffs. The little cove of Lama Monachile might be the most famous picture of Puglia, with crystal-clear water between tall rock walls. The beach itself, a small pebbly bay, wasn’t very comfortable for us. With kids we’d sleep in Monopoli and visit Polignano for an afternoon or evening. Travelling as a couple and mainly there for the views? Then Polignano itself is a great choice.
#1 Palazzo Indelli overlooks Piazza Garibaldi, the lively square in the heart of Monopoli’s old town. The family rooms have two separate bedrooms, ideal when the kids go to bed before you do.
#2 Masseria Santa Teresa is an old masseria in the countryside between Monopoli and Alberobello, with an outdoor pool and a large garden. Monopoli’s beaches are about eight kilometres away, so you’ll need a car here.
#3 B&B Prestige is a small B&B in Polignano’s old town, a few minutes’ walk from Lama Monachile. There’s a quadruple room with two separate beds for the kids, and the clifftop viewpoints are just around the corner.
→ Discover the 12 best things to do in Monopoli
→ Discover the top 10 things to do in Polignano a Mare
#2 Valle d’Itria: sleep in a trullo or masseria
Between Alberobello, Locorotondo, Martina Franca and Ostuni lies the Valle d’Itria, a rolling landscape of olive trees, low dry-stone walls and scattered trulli. This is where you’ll find Puglia’s most unusual places to stay: your own trullo or a masseria with a pool. In Alberobello around Christmas, the whole village was decked out, with light projections on the trulli.
Locorotondo was one of the surprise finds of our route: a round, white town on a hill with views over the valley. Ostuni, the White City, is closest to the coast and has the widest choice of restaurants. Martina Franca and Cisternino are worth a visit, but we found the places to stay there less special.
#1 Trulli Holiday Albergo Diffuso rents out trulli spread across the centre of Alberobello, including in the Aia Piccola district. In the family trullo the kids sleep in the stone alcoves, and there’s a breakfast buffet waiting in the morning.
#2 Albergo Diffuso Sotto le Cummerse has apartments in old stone houses in Locorotondo’s historic centre. With a kitchenette and a suite for four you’re nicely independent, and in the evening it’s a short stroll to a restaurant.
#3 Coppola di Seta is a small countryside B&B about four kilometres from Locorotondo. There’s a pool and a three-bedroom apartment, perfect if you’re after plenty of space and quiet.
#4 Masseria Salinola sits just outside Ostuni, a few minutes’ drive from the White City. There are family rooms with four fixed beds and a pool, and the masseria is open all year round.
→ Discover Alberobello, Puglia’s trulli town
#3 Lecce: a baroque city with beaches within reach
Lecce is often called the Florence of the South, and you’ll see why as soon as you walk into the centre. Churches and palazzi in soft, honey-coloured limestone are everywhere, with the Basilica di Santa Croce as the showstopper.
Lecce is ideal for a city break or as a base for the south. You can walk everywhere, there are plenty of restaurants and Brindisi airport is just over half an hour away. For a beach day, take the car: the coast at Torre dell’Orso and Otranto is 30 to 45 minutes away.
#1 Palazzo Sant'Anna is a historic palazzo by Porta Rudiae, one of the old city gates. The family suite has a large double bed plus two single beds, and the squares of the centre are a few minutes’ walk away.
#2 Dimora Sant'Allegria is a budget-friendly option a few steps from Piazza Sant’Oronzo, Lecce’s main square. It has rooms for four, handy for popping back for an afternoon nap between sights.
#3 Masseria Rifisa AgriResort lies in the countryside near Caprarica di Lecce, about twenty minutes’ drive from the city. The outdoor pool is heated, so you can swim in spring and autumn too.
→ Discover the 16 best things to do in Lecce
#4 Salento: Puglia’s best beaches
Salento, the very tip of the heel, is where you’ll find Puglia’s best beaches. On the Adriatic coast lies Otranto, a walled town with a castle and a harbour, close to Baia dei Turchi and the old bauxite quarry with its green lake. At Torre dell’Orso two rock stacks rise from the sea, the Due Sorelle, and those cliffs were one of the surprise finds of our route.
On the Ionian side lies Gallipoli, whose old town sits on a small island linked to the new town by a bridge. Long sandy beaches stretch along the coast to the south. Right at the bottom is Santa Maria di Leuca, with a lighthouse, rocky shores and sea caves. It’s quieter there, but a bit far for daily beach days with small children.
With kids we’d choose Otranto or Torre dell’Orso, with sand on the doorstep and Lecce close by for a city day. Bear in mind it gets very busy in July and August, and many beach clubs and seasonal hotels close in winter.
#1 Masseria Rauccio lies a few kilometres outside Torre dell’Orso, surrounded by fields. After a morning on the sandy beach you’re soon back at the garden and pool, and the suites are roomy enough for a family.
#2 Masseria Fabrizio is two to three kilometres from Otranto and has studios with a kitchenette. Great when, after a beach day, you’d rather eat by the pool than hunt for a restaurant with tired kids.
#3 Victoria Palace Hotel & Zen Wellness is a practical beach base in Gallipoli, a few hundred metres from the first beaches at Lido San Giovanni. There are apartments for four, an outdoor pool and a breakfast buffet.
#4 Hotel Terminal sits on the seafront promenade of Santa Maria di Leuca, with its own beach club and a pool. With young children that saves a lot of lugging things around, as beach, pool and promenade are all in one place.
→ Discover the 12 best things to do in Otranto
→ Discover the 10 best things to do in Gallipoli
#5 Bari: handy for arrival and departure
Many trips through Puglia start and end in Bari. The old town, Bari Vecchia, is a maze of alleys where women make orecchiette on their doorsteps, with the Basilica di San Nicola as its highlight. It holds the relics of Saint Nicholas, the saint behind the Dutch Sinterklaas and, further down the line, Santa Claus.
One or two nights is plenty, especially at the start or end of your trip. You won’t need a car: the train gets you to the airport in about twenty minutes, and Polignano a Mare and Monopoli are easy day trips by train.
#1 Palazzo Calò is an aparthotel right in Bari Vecchia, a few minutes’ walk from the cathedral and the Basilica di San Nicola. The split-level studios give you more space than a regular hotel room, and breakfast is served in your room.
#2 BISCARDI Hotel is about a kilometre from the central station, handy if you’re continuing by train. The junior family suite has two single beds for the kids next to the parents’ bed.
→ Discover the 20 best things to do in Bari
#6 Matera: sleep in a cave
Matera lies just over the border in Basilicata, but it’s part of almost every Puglia trip. The Sassi, the ancient cave districts carved into the side of a ravine, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We also wandered around after dark, when the houses and churches against the rock face were lit up.
Stay at least one night so you can see the Sassi in the evening and early morning, once the day-trippers have gone. With small children a baby carrier is much easier than a pushchair, as the districts are all steps and steep alleys. If you’re driving, park outside the Sassi.
#1 Hotel Sassi is a cave hotel in the Sasso Barisano with views over the cave district. There are suites for four, and the upper town is about a five-minute walk.
#2 Locanda di San Martino Hotel & Thermae Romanae sits right in the Sassi, in a complex of old cave dwellings. The junior family suite is spacious, but the thermal baths are for adults only.
→ Discover the best places to visit in Matera
When is the best time to visit Puglia?
For a beach holiday, June and September are the best months. The sea is warm, everything is open and it’s not yet as crowded as in July and August, when half of Italy heads for the Salento coast. May and October are pleasant for the towns and villages, though the sea is still or already a bit chilly.
We were there around Christmas, and if swimming isn’t a priority, it’s a wonderful time to go. Alberobello was full of light projections, there were light shows on Monopoli’s castle, and many villages stage living nativity scenes, the presepi viventi. Many beach hotels, lidos and masserias do close in winter, though. Then choose Bari, Lecce, Matera or a village in the Valle d’Itria, where you’ll find hotels open all year.
In winter, check whether a masseria’s pool and restaurant are open. Masseria Salinola near Ostuni and Masseria Rifisa near Lecce both stay open in winter.
More tips for your trip to Puglia
Our tipStill looking? Browse all hotels in Puglia on Booking
Puglia is best explored by car. Rent a car at Bari airport with Discover Cars and compare the big rental companies in one go.
Prefer everything arranged? Browse Puglia tours on TourRadar.
No flight yet? Compare flights to Bari.
No car? Join a UNESCO tour to Alberobello and Matera from Bari on GetYourGuide.
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