Apulia

Bicycle tour through the valley Valle d’Itria, which belongs to one of the most beautiful cultured landscapes of the south. The next destination stage is Ostuni, the “white town” with beautiful view to the Sea.

From Ostuni you cycle through olive groves, vineyards and fruit orchards to Avetrana, one of most historic small towns along the old Via Appia. This old roman road lead from Rome, via Taranto and Oria to Brindisi in former times. Today only a few parts are still preserved as Via Appia Antica.

You leave Avetrana and after a short while you reach the sea. After a detour to the “Torre Colimena” you continue along the coastal road with its numerous defence towers to Porto Cesareo. Your tour brings you along the Ionian coast to Gallipoli.

This “Kale Polis” (beautiful town) of Greek origin is a real urban surprise on the Ionian Sea. Discover a maze of small streets and thoroughfares in this town, where also a number of churches and an ancient museum wait for your visit. Very interesting to see also the omnipresent fishermen, thus completing the scenery of a town, that belonged to Europe’s most important exporter of lamp-oil in the 17th and 18th century.

Today we reach the southernmost point of the Salento and the watershed to the Ionian Sea at Santa Maria di Leuca. Being a well-known place of pilgrimage the church is quite famous. Around the centennial a number of villas were built, which form an interesting architectonic highlight because of their absurd and fantastic stiles. Here eccentric “fin-de-siècle” lovers settled, to enjoy the remoteness of this area.

The next part of our tour follows the southern coast of the Adriatic Sea unto the Messapian town Otranto. This place has a reputation of being an art-historical jewel in between a lovely landscape. The old town is surrounded by a mighty wall, remarkable here the castle Habsburg. On the way to Otranto you can visit the famous Grotta Zinzulusa – the only one of a number of coastal grottos, which is open to public. Also an interesting stop-over forms the thermal resort Santa Cesarea, known for hydro-therapeutics and radioactive moor therapeutics.

Further on you follow the Adriatic coast; through uncountable olive-groves you reach Lecce. Lecce, the capital of the Salento, is a picturesque town, overwhelming with the beauty of buildings and churches. Next to Naples, Lecce is a baroque metropolis of the South, even creating the own terminus of “Lecce-Baroque”. Here about 30 churches and an uncountable number of palaces are waiting to be discovered. Not to forget the amphitheatre and the roman theatre, both constructed under Caesar Augustus, and worth a visit.

Individual arrival and overnight. Alberobello is a unique and inimitable city as it is the only urban settlement of the so-called trulli (cone buildings) in the whole world. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1996.

You will cycle through the countryside to Ostuni, which is reputed as annarchitectural jewel, and is commonly referred to as “the White Town” for its white walls and its typically white-painted architecture.

Today you will leave Ostuni and the Murge hills behind you and will start cycling on the Salento plain, characterized by green and red colours, given by its olive trees and its red soil. Along the way you will have the chance to visit Oria, with its beautiful historical centre and the castle built by emperor Federico II. Today’s destination is the Manduria area, the capital of the Primitivo grapes.

From now on you will head towards the seaside, which will accompany your bike tour between ancient coastal towers and fine sand. You will now reach Porto Cesareo, where we suggest to enjoy a good fish-based lunch. Rolling south, our destination will be the Greek Kale Polis, today’s Gallipoli, with one of the most beautiful historic centres of Salento. Enjoy a stroll in its streets and the views of the sea that surrounds it.

Today we reach the southernmost point of the Salento and the watershed to the Ionian Sea at Santa Maria di Leuca. Being a well-known place of pilgrimage the church is quite famous. Around the centennial a number of villas were built, which form an interesting architectonic highlight because of their absurd and fantastic stiles. Here eccentric “fin-de-siècle” lovers settled, to enjoy the remoteness of this area.

Today you will cycle northwards along the Adriatic coast to Otranto, the most eastern point of Italy where you can visit the beautiful Cathedral and the great Aragonese Castle.

Riding along the Alimini Lakes and their unique Mediterranean bush you will enter Lecce. Thanks to its Baroque style, it has earned the nickname of Florence of the South.