Puglia, also known as Apulia, is in the south of Italy; the heel of Italy’s boot. The region is not one of Italy’s traditional tourist destinations, but it is becoming increasingly popular as travellers discover the area’s varied attractions: baroque towns, whitewashed trullo houses, olive trees and orchards, blue sea and beaches, plenty of sunshine and excellent cuisine. The region is divided into six provinces: Bari (which is the regional capital), Brindisi, Foggia, Lecce, Taranto and the recentlyconstituted province of Barletta-Andria-Trani. The area around Lecce and the southern part is called the Salento. Puglia borders the regions of Campania, Molise and Basilicata. The region has endured difficult times and saw a lot of emigration as Pugliesi headed north or abroad to seek their fortune. Puglia’s big ports, Bari, Brindisi and Taranto are dominated by industries and modern residential tower blocks and builinding sites. Much of the region’s countryside is covered by olive trees.
Arrivals
Puglia
Province of Bari
2.995.202
582.570
279.902
964.578
1.348.544
1.283.570
4.477.548
Attendance 12.529.265
Province of Taranto
Province of BarlettaAndria Trani
813.524
239.771
114.857
4.180.888
997.167
241.548
Province of Province of Province of Brindisi Foggia Lecce
Bari, the capital of Puglia, is a bustling, wellknown port and university city. It is also an off-the-beaten-path destination boasting spectacular gems as the protected marine area and wildlife reserve Torre Guaceto, an hour’s drive south of Bari. The reserve includes a stretch of coast six kilometers long, characterized by typical Mediterranean landscape ranging from the sea to sand dunes, Mediterranean scrub and marshes, bordered by centuries-old olive trees. The Pontifical Basilica di San Nicola is a church in Bari, southern Italy, that holds wide religious significance throughout Europe and the Christian world. The Teatro Petruzzelli is the largest theatre of the city of Bari and the fourth Italian theatre for its size.
The most important cities in province of Bari are Bari, Alberobello, Castellana Grotte e Polignano a Mare. • Alberobello is also known as the Trulli Town, it was named a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1996. A «Trullo» is a small limestone house with conic roof, they are typical of Alberobello.
• Castellana Grotte is a city where there are some caves from which they take their name. The «Grotte di Castellana» began to form about 90 million years ago and it is one of the most important attractions of Puglia and natural heritage of inestimable value to Italy.
Brindisi is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Historically, the city has played an important role in trade and culture, due to its strategic position on the Italian Peninsula and its natural port on the Adriatic Sea. The city remains a major port for trade with Greece and the Middle East. Its industries include agriculture, chemical works, and the generation of electricity. Much of the hinterland is occupied by the Murge that, in the northern area, meet the Valle d'Itria, known as Terra dei Trulli. Cultivated fields alternate, in a mosaic of colors, with wide expanses of trees, vineyards and colourful orchards, interrupted only by roads and sporadic clearings. Ancient villages dominated by defensive fortresses and watchtowers tell the story linked to Frederick II of Swabia and the Angevin domination, but there are still more ancient testimonies related to the presence of the messapi in prehistoric times.
The most important cities are Brindisi and Ostuni. Ostuni is also called the White City because of the low houses and narrow streets chcaracterized by limeston rocks.
Foggia stands in the center of the Tavoliere delle Puglie, between the Celone torrent and the Cervaro river. The territory is located in a flat area with an altitude between 19 meters and 310 meters.
The name of the city derives from the Latin "foveae", a cistern in which wheat was stored. After the unit of Italy, Foggia became an important road and railway junction, between Northern and Southern Italy.
The most important cities are Foggia, Vieste and Isole Tremiti. •  Vieste is a town, comune and former Catholic bishopric in the province of Foggia, in the Apulia region of southeast Italy. A marine resort in Gargano, Vieste has received Blue Flags for the purity of its waters from the Foundation for Environmental Education. The area covered by the comune is included in the Gargano National Park.
•  Isole Tremiti are an archipelago in the Adriatic Sea, north of the Gargano Peninsula. The islands are now an important tourist attraction because of the clear waters surrounding them. Up to 100,000 visitors come to the islands in the summer season.
Lecce is also best known as a Baroque city. Due to the many Baroque monuments which can be found here. It boasts a marvelous historical centre, numerous churches and squares. One of the most striking aspects of Lecce, is the Lecce stone which has been used to construct buildings of the old town. Furthermore is definitely a place to indulge in some delicious typical dishes, such as the ÂŤrustico lecceseÂť.
Salento is most southern part of Puglia, home to small and charming towns as Gallipoli, Otranto, Lecce, Santa Maria di Leuca. Some of the best beaches in Puglia, and even in Italy, can be found on the Salento Peninsula. The most important cities are Lecce, Otranto, Porto Cesareo and Gallipoli.
•  Otranto is a town and comune in the province of Lecce, in a fertile region once famous for its breed of horses. It is located on the east coast of the Salento peninsula. The port is small and has little trade. The lighthouse Faro della PalascÏa, at approximately 5 kilometres southeast of Otranto, marks the most easterly point of the Italian mainland. The district between this promontory and Otranto is thickly populated and very fertile.
Taranto is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto and is an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base. It is the third-largest continental city of Southern Italy: according to 2011 population census, it has a population of 200,154. Taranto is an important commercial and military port. It has well-developed steel and iron foundries, oil refineries, chemical works, some shipyards for building warships, and food-processing factories.
The most important cities are Taranto and Martina Franca Martina Franca, or only Martina, is a town and municipality in the province of Taranto, Apulia, southern Italy. It is the second most populated town of the province after Taranto, and has a population of 49,086. Since 1975, the town has hosted the annual summer opera festival, the Festival della Valle d'Itria.
Barletta is a city and a province together with Andria and Trani of Apulia (Barletta-Andria-Trani) , in south eastern Italy. Its population is around 94.700 citizens. The city's territory belongs to the Valle dell'Ofanto.The Ofanto river crosses the countryside and forms the border between the territory of Barletta and Margherita di Savoia.
Andria is the fourth-largest municipality in the Apulia region and the largest municipality of the new Province of BarlettaAndria-Trani, effective as of June 2009. It is known for the 13th-century Castel del Monte.
Trani is the capital, along with Barletta and Andria, of the province of Barletta-AndriaTrani, in Puglia. The city, also known as "the pearl of the Adriatic", is famous for the Romanesque Cathedral that overlooks the sea, included in the list of "Italian wonders", as well as for the production of a particular type of marble (stone di Trani) and Moscato wine. Seat of the Court, in the past it was the capital of the province of Terra di Bari and subsequently the seat of the Corte d'appello delle Puglie.
The city overlooks the Adriatic Sea for a coastline, between the municipalities of Trani, to the north, and Molfetta, to the south. The most ancient part of the city dates back to the Middle Ages and is surrounded by walls. Outside the ancient city walls, Bisceglie is a beautiful display of churches, convents, palaces, villas and farmhouses, while in the countryside are preserved evidence of a rich past, such as the dolmen Frisari, della Chianca and Albarosa, the prehistoric findings of the Grotta di Santa Croce, the traces of the Via Traiana. The city is characterized by a Mediterranean climate with mild continental winters humid and hot summers. The thermal excursions are contained by the mitigating action of the Adriatic. However, the city in the winter months is often influenced by cold currents of north-eastern origin, which sporadically determine snowfall.