Puglia Cycling Tour

This is Bike Basilicata's classic, easiest and best-selling tour: a self-guided hotel-to-hotel ride from the Sassi of Matera in Basilicata to the Baroque city of Lecce in Puglia. Over six riding days of 45 to 70 km on easy, rolling terrain, it crosses the Murgia plateau, the Itria Valley and both coasts of the Salento peninsula.

After a briefing and bike delivery in Matera, the route heads via Gioia del Colle and Noci to Alberobello for a night in a trullo or restored farmhouse, then through Locorotondo and Cisternino to Ostuni, the White Town. Quiet country lanes lead south to Francavilla Fontana, Oria's 13th-century castle and a night in a masseria.

The final stages skirt the Ionian coast past Porto Selvaggio to Gallipoli, cross to the cliffs and small bays of Otranto, and finish in Lecce with its puccia and pasticciotto. A guided version also runs on set dates.

Highlights

• The Sassi of Matera
• The trulli of Alberobello
• Ostuni, the White Town
• Gallipoli, the "Beautiful City"
• Otranto, the gate to the East
• Lecce, the Baroque gem

Surface and Terrain
Quiet country lanes and secondary roads on easy, rolling hills, with coastal stretches through Salento. Stages of 45 to 70 km take 3 to 6 hours.

Weather
Mediterranean climate. Ideal in spring and pleasant in autumn, with mild to warm days. Not recommended in August, when heat can be intense.

Suitable for
Riders comfortable with 45 to 70 km days on easy, rolling terrain over six riding days. Rated Easy to Moderate by the operator; a good first multi-day tour.