Pathways of Puglia

This is an interesting walk, the contrast between the coast and the plateau above quite striking. We an extra day in Lecce and enjoyed a visit to the wonderful Museo Sigismondo Castromediano, which displays ancient history as revealed by archeology in an amazing modern structure. Staff at the hotel recommended the Blu Notte for dinner and made us a reservation - excellent. Our accommodation all along the walk was lovely, each so different from the others, but equally warm in their welcome. Palazzo Mellacqua and Masseria Panareo have both been beautifully restored: we'd have loved to see a photo album showing how it was done. We were offered dinner at the Palazzo; Sonia's cooking is delicious and augers well for their restaurant, due to open shortly. We stayed an extra night in Santa Cesarea Terme, but our intended beach, hot springs, boat trip day was scuppered by a wild wind, so we had a quiet, pleasant day at the Est Hotel.  A great pleasure of walking holidays is chatting to people along the way - language is no barrier - and to our Inntravel parallel walkers, morning and evening, sharing our experiences. Another great journey with Inntravel, thank you.

We thought the hospitality and food at the Masseria Alcorico outstanding. We especially enjoyed the walk along the moors and down to the shore past the Tore Minervino on day 4; A very varied and enjoyable walk. Otranto is a treat.

I can't speak too highly of Inntravel's walking holidays. This was the second we have done. The walks were varied, reasonably easy terrain and breathtaking views. The accommodation delightfully varied and the meals were outstanding. We felt personally welcomed wherever we arrived. The travelling and transfers of both ourselves and our bags worked like clockwork. Walking through the countryside and staying in very comfortable farms and hotels gave us a chance to absorb the history and life of Puglia and its people in a way one never experiences from brief visits by car. And we feel very healthy after all that exercise! 

We arrived at the Palazzo Mellacqua on a wednesday when the only restaurant in that village was closed.  There were 12 of us on this Inntravel holiday (all booked separately in parties of 2 or 4 but we got talking to each other). One lady emailed the Palazzo Mellacqua the evening before and asked if they could provide a meal for us which they agreed to. Sonia and Emanuele cooked an amazing 4 course meal for 12 people at only 24 hours notice. 

This comment is made to commend them but also to suggest that the wording in the notes about the possibility of obtaining food there should be worded more strongly.

This couple were amazing. The welcome, the rooms, the food and their obvious wish to please their guests was incredible.

We thoroughly enjoyed Pathways of Puglia and would highly recommend this walking trip. We had an additional night in Lecce, which is definitely worth doing in order to fully explore the city. All six hotels were outstanding! The staff were very friendly, service was very good, the rooms and food provided were all excellent. The scenery along the walks is varied, with lots of limestone, little shade and stunning coastal sections. Do not miss the final walk around Otranto it is a complete contrast to all of the other walks, being through cultivated farmland with lots of shade and very green. Otranto is full of lively cafes, bars and restaurant and is a perfect end to Pathways of Puglia.

Thoroughly enjoyed the holiday, although we had unseasonal heat. The standard of the hotels is very good especially the Masserias.

Another great walking holiday in a lovely region of Italy.

This is a varied and hugely enjoyable holiday. It was a great way to discover the delights of Lecce, Otranto and the Puglian countryside and coast and to visit six very different hotels. The walks are fairly short and, apart from a couple of (very) short and tricky descents, not too demanding. The heat, even in late September was more of a challenge than the terrain. Highlights for us included: the welcome at the delightful Palazzo Mellaqua; the panoramic view from the pool at the Masseria Panareo; breakfast on the terrace at the Est Hotel; the stretches of walk close to the glittering Adriatic; the Byzantine basilica in Otranto; and the wine bar with master gin-blender, near the castle also in Otranto. Inntravel has put together a complicated itinerary that works really well. None of the walks took more than about four hours, leaving a lot of time to swim, sight-see or just enjoy the late summer sunshine. All in all a varied and delightful break.

This was our first holiday with Inntravel and it will not be our last. Puglia is a beautiful region of Italy - tranquil, friendly and colourful. It was quite warm weather for walking but the sea breezes made the conditions perfect. Starting the holiday with a day in Lecce and finishing it in Otranto added an extra dimension to the walking holiday. We loved it.

It was lovely to experience this part of Italy. The fields of dead olive trees was a bit depressing and the walks may be prettier in the spring. The final walk from Otranto was beautiful and well worth it.

A wonderful holiday in an unspoilt and very friendly part of Italy. The coastal stretches were breathtaking and provided plenty of opportunities to bathe in the warm and clear waters of the Adriatic. The distances allowed us plenty of time to relax as well as feel well exercised. Lecce was a charming and vibrant city and we were pleased to have added an extra day there at the start of the holiday. The tour of the city was very interesting and set in context the whole exploration of this part of Puglia. We just loved meeting the hotel owners and staff, but be sure to come prepared to speak Italian, to whatever level you can. You'll find some great tutors! The food was delicious and there's nothing like living al fresco.

The Pallazo Rollo was amazing and cocktails on the roof overlooking the camanile is a must. The staff here were great and the breakfast rooms were like being in a country house, quirky and lots of interesting pictures, photos and things. A real gem of a place and we were so glad that we were able to stay there 2 nights.

Sonia gives an amazing greeting at their family Palazzo. You feel like a long lost friend that Sonia wants to make comfortable in her home. A glass of wine in the courtyard was lovely and breakfast was great. A lovely stay here.

The Masseria Panareo was stunning. The setting is amazing and the infinity pool is spectacular, overlooking fields and olive groves with a view of the sea beyond. Dinner here is terrific with a wine selection to match and the dining room is stunning. A carefully and beautifully renovated set of buildings which were an unexpected treat after a day's walking. Staying here for 2 nights would be great. Not sure if you could have lunch there or what the walks around the Masseria would be like but it would be a great day for R&R and amazing food.

Another wonderful Inntravel holiday to a lovely unspoilt part of Italy. The sections of walking by the sea were beautiful, particularly the last stretch to Otranto, but in September the inland sections were somewhat dull and dusty. Having read other reviews it seems that in Spring the wildflowers make this so much better and it may be that May is a better month to visit.

Accommodation was good throughout, especially Massaria Panareo, and would recommend an extra night there. Would also recommend an extra night in Lecce which is a beautiful city.

A very rewarding trip. We very much enjoyed the landscape, culture and food. Arrangements were reliable and people we met were friendly and helpful. 

Restaurants we especially enjoyed:

Torre de Merlino & Alle due Corti, Lecce

La Pignata in Otranto

Stano in Matera

Wonderful holiday walking in the sunshine of history. Sad to see the sick olive trees but the air and the atmosphere while walking were outstanding. The Himalayas, yes, that's incredible, and the trek I took there quite an accomplishment, but this trip, pathways of Puglia, was so special, gentle walking and people, fresh air, the eye candy of the Mediterranean almost every day - good for the soul and all round heart warming - and no sleeping bags needed!

Our highlight was Masseria Alcorico and Palazzo Mellaqua. All the towns were beautiful and interesting. Santa Maria di Leuca was particularly beautiful. We found a bench in the shade half way up the steps to the lands end monument which was a great place to have our picnic. it averaged 33 degrees during our walks so I think it would be better to do this holiday a bit later.

Another well organised Inntravel holiday which enabled us to explore a quiet area of Puglia. Food and wine was almost without exception high quality and brilliant value for money. The walking was perhaps not as attractive as other Inntravel holidays we had experienced, but the relaxing pace of life and unspoilt countryside and towns made up for this. We wished we had not missed the wild flowers as that would probably have made all the difference.  We enjoyed exploring Lecce at the start, and Otranto was a lovely place to end the walk. The accommodation in both these places was nothing special although very well positioned. We enjoyed the high standard of  accommodation for our extra nights at Est hotel and the views and pool at Masseria Panareo.  It is a shame that Est does not have a pool as Santa Cesarea Terme town does not have a lot to offer and we wished we had eaten both nights at Est hotel rather then at the fish restaurant in town.
We booked our own accommodation in Brindisi at the end of the holiday as we were travelling on to Greece. We were pleasantly surprised at the interesting history, beautiful old buildings and outstanding archeological museum and would suggest adding this as an optional extra at the end of the holiday.

The standard of accommodation (apart from in Lecce) was a highlight for us and very welcome at the end of each day's walk.

Palazzo Rollo was an absolute highlight, the Masseria Panareo was also a higlight. The walk was pretty much what we had anticipated, but doing it in the early summer gave us amazing views of the wild flowers.

An excellent journey through Puglia, taking in some spectacular coastal routes. Accomodation and food wer always first class, and everyone was extremely friendly. Aside from a couple of tricky descents, these were relatively easier and shorter walks compared to some I have undertaken in the past, but this did mean a little more time to relax in the afternoons, particularly at the hotels with pools and hot tubs.

We thoroughly enjoyed visiting some of Puglia and look foward to visting the rest. Arriving at Masseria Panareo was amazing with views and perfect swimming pool after a long hot walk was very welcome. We are glad we chose to wear our walking boots rather than trainers as some of the paths were rocky and uneven.The picnics were very welcome and kept us going , the two meals that were included were lovely but it was also nice to find other places to eat - we bought a pizza and ate on our balcony one night !! All in all a good holiday and enjoyed all the walking and meeting fellow Inntravel guests.

Overall a lovely way of seeing a part of Italy we had never been to before. Lecce is a beautiful city and we were very glad we had an extra night there. Otranto is also a great place for a day's exploring - and the castle well worth a visit. We also had an extra night in Santa Cesarea Terme and while the Hotel Est was a lovely place to rest the town itself was VERY quiet with little to do. We just missed the full glory of the Spring flowers but the walks were generally still lovely with a good mix of country lanes and coastal paths. Mid June the weather was just about ok - but wouldn't want it any hotter!

Day 3 walk from Castiglione di Otranto to Santa Cesare Terme was delightful. It included a morning swim in the cove at Caia dell'Acquaviva, a drinks break at a wonderful cake shop overlooking the Marina at Castro, before walking up the stairs to the old Byzantine Cathedral. The panoramic view from the square in the old town is wonderful. 
Day 5 walk from Masseria Panareo to Otranto was the longest and most challenging walk. It was also the most enjoyable with the sea in close proximity for over half of the walk.

Loved the variety of this holiday from busy Lecce to the remote masseria Alcorico, felt like we had explored the area. Recommend you book Tenuta Linazza when at Palazzo Mellacqua. It's a food tasting experience so a set menu and you dine at one big table, great night out for 25 euros each. Recommend the extra night at Masseria Panareo. Also remind hotels about dietary requirements. We had 2 picnics wasted. Hope you like fish.

The accommodation and walking routes were wonderful. Felt confident that transfers would be on time and did not have any worries about the travel elements as it worked out just as it said in the guide notes. A lovely gentle adventure mapped out beautifully by Inntravel

A great way to explore this corner of Italy. In May the countryside was covered in wild flowers and the coastal scenery was stunning. For navigating, I would definitely recommend using the GPX files provided by Inntravel, as the paths can be overgrown and it's not always obvious where the route is. An extra day in Lecce is definitely worthwhile and we enjoyed the guided tour from the Tourist Office (15 euro for 2 hours), very worthwhile, so much detail. The hotel accommodation was all very good and the Palazzo Mellacqua was very special with the most welcoming of hosts. We had dinner at the Palazzo - do look at their menu, it is very good food. In Otranto we ate in the hotel on our first night, the food and drinks were very good and reasonably priced. We had 3 nights in Otranto and I loved sitting in the courtyard after our day out. We particularly enjoyed the Otranto Restaurant L'Ora di Mezzo in the old town.

Lecce is a beautiful city full of lovely architecture and lively bars and restaurants. Otranto is a wonderful final destination with a beautiful walled city, sociable vibe and lovely sea views. Arriving at the Est Hotel was like an Oasis in the dessert with beautiful rooms a friendly welcome and fantastic views of the sea. The variety of wildflowers seen on the various walks were outstanding.

Stunning views varied routes. Wild flowers were spectacular. All hotels very friendly - worth taking extra day at hotel Est if you can. Otranto is beautiful with plenty to see. One of our favourite Inntravel walks.

Recommend staying at least 2 nights in Lecce and 3 nights in Otranto. Going in May the wild flowers were stunning. Temperature was just right in May.

TIPS: Transfer direct from Lecce in taxi. Include warning on website re the two difficult descents. Although the stay was good you might want to consider moving the stay at Palazzo Mallacqua to somewhere bigger in the off season although as stated above the family run restaurant was excellent. Highlight walk was the final one - although the longest and had the challenging descent the views were breathtaking and Otranto was a lovely place to end our stay along with a fascinating hotel.

May was the perfect time to do this trip. The wildflowers were spectacular!

Highlights were the beautiful scenery and stunning fields full of wild flowers. The peace and quiet and simply time to escape the busy life at home to enjoy some much needed "us" time. We met some lovely people along the way, both Inntravel customers and not. This was the second time we have used Inntravel and it definitely won't be the last. Thank you.

We would recommend doing this lovely walk in early May so that you see the fields of wild flowers. It was easy walking apart from one very difficult climb down to the seafront and one quite difficult one. We enjoyed walking through small towns and villages where we could stop for coffee or ice cream. Ending up in Otranto was a plus as it was an interesting place to visit.  

We were thrilled by the wild flowers which were everywhere and very vibrant. We much enjoyed the walks which were well described and much enjoyed our swims and especially as we had the sea to ourselves! The hotels were great and the travel arrangements and details thereof excellent.

Our personal highlights were the wild flowers in May and the variety of towns (Lecce, Otranto, Santa Cesarea Terme were all so different).

This was our first holiday with Inntravel and are already looking at what others we might like to do in future. The accomodation was varied and all to a high standard. The transfers all worked very well and it was lovely to arrive at each stay with the bags waiting for us in our rooms. We found the walking notes were easy to follow if you read them carefully. The restaurant recommendations were all excellent. Going in late April/early May had the advantage of nice temperatures for walking but also the chance of rain, but that was beyond Inntravel's control! The itinerary was mostly away from the more visited parts of Puglia but that added to it's charm and made it feel more authentically Italian. It did mean we didn't spot one trullo though! We'd certainly recommend booking an extra night in Lecce so as to have a day to explore this lovely town. Our abiding memory of the holiday will be of the carpets of wild flowers in the limestone scenery - absolutely stunning!

Very enjoyable holiday with all the logistics taken care of seamlessl. Mostly happy with the accommodation. Meals and the picnic each day were great. The itinerary was well thought through. The notes were accurate and informative.

We enjoyed the whole experience. The short distances meant we had plenty of time to look at points of interest en route and stop to enjoy the rugged coastline. We were lucky to have good weather just about all the time. The carpets of wild flowers were beautiful and the colourful lizards and butterflies were a lovely distraction. 

Really enjoyed the variety of walks and places to stay, incredible food and very warm hospitality in each venue.

The daily walks were fascinating, beautiful and memorable every step of the way. We looked forward to what we'd encounter each day - such as running into a flock of sheep, or being on the very eastern most tip of Italy. We wished we had chosen a longer hike as it is a wonderful way to travel in harmony with the local culture and terrain.

Another enjoyable Inntravel holiday, thank you. Well organised, and an excellent choice of hotels. Our favourite walk was the one to Otranto as that was mainly in view of or along the coast, and the best meal was at Masseria Alcorico. If you wish to visit the churches in Lecce, buy a combined ticket from the Information point at the Duomo before setting out on the city walk. Overall the walking was not demanding, so plenty of time to relax. 

The walking alongside the Aegean sea is spectacular, and picnics meant we could stop anywhere, though you can only swim from a beach as you set off, and in Otranto, as the whole coastline is rocky, so we wished for more places with a pool.  We enjoyed the two Masseria, and the Est Hotel where roof terrace and food were very good. The walks look short but were taxing enough for us!

Peaceful walking in a beautiful part of Italy, with excellent accommodation and local cuisine and wine. 

We enjoyed this holiday very much, especially the towns visited along the way – Lecce, Santa Cesarea Terme and Otranto.  The sections of walking by the coast were beautiful, (albeit a bit too rocky underfoot at times to look up at the scenery!).  The inland sections were less so, although we can imagine that in Spring the wildflowers would give a very different sense of the landscape. There was more road walking than we’ve experienced on other Inntravel walks which was a disappointment.  Our best meals of the holiday were at Trattoria Vardaceli in Castiglione d’Otranto (lovely atmosphere, friendly staff, delicious food) and in Otranto at Terrazza San Pietro (a gem – great food and service at reasonable prices).  We booked our own accommodation in Lecce as the Inntravel hotel was full, and stayed at Mantatelure, and can 100% recommend it.

Beautiful coves to swim in en route. Pretty walks. Time to explore villages in the way and each destination too. 

The tour was great, well organised as ever by Inntravel, but the landscape is despoiled by the ghastly fate of all the olive trees. Hence I do not think it's a particularly attractive area to walk through. Also the linkages are not ideal - last year in Corfu we moved seamlessly from stay to stay, no buses and taxis but overall a great experience. Fellow Inntravellers were all great fun.

Highlights: glorious sparkling azure blue sea; periods of sublime tranquility on the coastal paths; the interesting limestone terrain; getting close to the geology and ecologhy of this area.

Otranto, while a worthwhile city to visit, is very much a tourist hotspot, particularly for Americans.  One day here was more than enough.  Lecce, on the other hand, while also a mecca for tourists to Puglia, has a charm and buzz all its own.

This part of Italy was like heaven to me - a beautiful paradise. I would have liked to sea swim but I was intimidated a little by rocky beaches and lack of privacy in them. Being age conscious I also felt terribly concerned about my age and what I looked like in a swimsuit! But that isn't the problem for Italy but it is for me. I liked the food very much and there wasn't too much pasta in the meals but lots of wonderful fish dishes, salads and vegetables.

My favourite accommodation was the Masseria Alcorico. The welcome was very friendly and the food amazing. The outside terrace was also very welcome after a hot day's walking. The owner did not speak much English but with a bit of help from google we managed to communicate. Although all the walking on this holiday was wonderful the gorge walk and onwards on day 2 was my favourite of the whole trip.

Luckily enough to arrive in Santa Cesarea Terme on the day of celebration of the local saint and the blessing of the town with a procession, carnival, music concert and firewok display. A great atmosphere plus the location of the hotel provided a great place to view the event.

A fantastic combination of coast and rural inland walking off the beaten track.  Highlights included the family run Masseria Alcorico and Palazzo Mellacqua.  And the two walks right by the sea.  Local dishes were a delight and consistently great - and people everywhere really friendly.  We also discovered the local iced coffee Caffe Leccese / Salentina which we found most days.  Recommended. A few days in Bari afterwards made a great addition to the holiday 

An extra day in Lecce is highly recommended. We couldn't fault the genuine hospitality and friendliness of all the staff in all the hotels where we stayed - they all went out of their way to ensure we had the best service and experience during our stay in Puglia.

It is hard to single out individual highlights as we thoroughly enjoyed the whole trip. Masseria Alcorico was a delight - lovely place, friendly hosts, great food and a good pool. At Palazzo Mellacqua we found the hosts and their daughter very engaging and provided a great meal at short notice. Masseria Panareo is a high class facility, although we felt a little like second class citizens as the Inntravel guests were told to eat earlier than those ordering a la carte (but the food was excellent).

The coastal walks provided continuous breathtaking views of rugged landmasses reaching into the blue sea. This was a high point. The walking itself was not particularly challenging. There truly is little shade on this hike and I highly recommend a long sleeve hooded rash guard. This will protect you from the sun and wind which have a very drying effect here. The lodging without exception was outstanding. We had already been in Italy for several days but we had our best dinner at the Masseria Alcorico. Excellent warm, genuine service as well. We were the only guests at Palazzo Mellacqua and were totally treated like family. Sonia and Emanuele and their daughter spent time getting to know us! We were their first American guests and were quite the novelty! We dined at their restaurant and found the portions HUGE and delicious. You will not go hungry here or at any of the other lodgings. The beautiful and modern Est Hotel truly deserves another day on this journey just to take in the hot springs and explore the town. We loved the fine ocean views here and were warmly greeted. We also dined at the hotel and found the food and service good. Now I don't know if this is a function of being American, but we in general found the hiking notes to be often confusing. We lost our way almost daily and had to use GPS to get to our destination. Hot and tired. We have travelled with you many times and found the notes to be excellent and clear. That was not the case this time. The final 2 nights in Otranto were fantastic. Rooftop lounges. Marine museum. Facinating. Also a warm welcome and the food at the restaurant was quite good. Excellent service. 

This holiday should be taken in spring, the wild meadows were alive with colour and butterflies were dancing around us, it was stunning.

We very much enjoyed the walking and the accommodation provided a good range of contrasting locations and experiences. It was a good time of year to enjoy the countryside. The flowers and wildlife were wonderful. The local food and wine was excellent and the breakfasts gave us a great start to the day. 

We loved this area and the walking was a delight with all the wild flowers in bloom. We were very fortunate with the weather and loved almost all of the places we stayed. We were a bit disappointed with Hotel Est and the beach etc and would definitely not stay an extra night there although the staff charming and helpful. We really enjoyed Masseria Alcorico and Panareo, excellent food and ambience at both & would happily have stayed extra day at either. We were very pleasantly surprised by the standard of accommodation everywhere.  

Highlight: Staying in the Torre at Masseria Alcorico, where they opened the pool especially for us and another group! The best walk was no. 5 - stunning and varied.  

Tip:  Buy large bottles of water when you get the opportunity - as there weren't many!

Smother yourself in insect repellent, particularly legs (we did and we were fine)!

Pathways of Puglia was a very happy route for us, even if the walking became progressively less as the week went on. The region is beautiful, the weather was gorgeous, the food of a very high standard and all our hosts charming and helpful. Top marks for everything except the written walk instructions which could be puzzling, were over-wordy, sometimes out of sequence and unclear. Fortunately we loved the wildflower-strewn countryside (great time of year, early May) and the shopping in Otranto!

Beautiful wild flowers added an awful lot to the walk we took in early May. We also loved the bee-eaters and the abundance of swifts in Lecce.

A very enjoyable walking holiday, providing a variety of beautiful scenery, including coastal stretches, quiet countryside and some time in larger historical towns and cities. The walking notes were excellent, but the reassurance provided by the gpx routes were very welcome and we would highly recommend them. Accommodation was also varied, from Masserias to friendly bed and breakfasts and city hotels.

It's hard to single out anywhere specifically as we enjoyed the whole trip immensely. What we loved were:

1) The peaceful walks among the olive groves and the endless wildflowers, poppies, thistles, cornflowers, dandelions and more. Everywhere was so colourful, it was like a Piet Oudolf landscape.

2) The coastal stretches and their dramatic views overlooking turquoise waters.

3) The charming hotels and their owners, who made us so welcome.

4) Lecce and its baroque charms and the walking tour you curated for us.

5) Our last dinner in Lecce at 3 Rane - a gourmet delight and so affordable for the quality.

INNTRAVEL NOTE: These customers added a further night in Lecce after our walk Pathways of Puglia

We really enjoyed springtime in Puglia. The weather was perfect for walking. The countryside was still fresh and green with an amazing array of wild flowers and the sea views never far away. We were made very welcome at all of the five very different, but equally excellent, overnight accommodations and found the regional delicacies and wines most acceptable. 

Favourite day was Day 3 even though the walk was shorter than planned. Castro is a lovely town and the route to Santa Cesarea Terme through flower filled countryside with views across the Adriatic to Albania and as far as Corfu was great. The Est Hotel was our favourite stop and we will most likely return for a longer stay.

Your correspondents hunch about the La Pignata restaurant in Otranto was well founded. It is very good value and the service and food were excellent. We ate there on both evenings. 

Another great holiday with Inntravel - highly recommend. This time there was a train strike in Italy and a landslide to negotiate and we were grateful to Inntravel for making rearrangements mid-holiday for us to circumvent these seamlessly! We stayed an extra few days in Otranta at the end which I highly recommend. If you travel in late April like us, be aware that even if it is hot and sunny all the hotel swimming pools will still be closed for winter and there are no sunbeds yet to hire on the beach in Otranta. 

Lecce restaurants recommendations:

I Latini

Via G. Palmieri, 46

73100 Lecce

Tel +39 0832 524578

www.ilatini.it

Not the cheapest place, but excellent meal for a special occasion and lovely staff.

'00' Doppiozero

Via Guglielmo Paladini, 2

Centro Storico

Tel +39 0832 521052

Very close to hotel. Big variety and great for a lunch snack or a full meal

La Cucina di Mamma Elvira

Via Maremonti, 33

73100 Lecce

Tel +39 331 5795127

www.mammaelvira.com

Highly recommend!

In Leuca where we were dropped off after the train down from Lecce, we found that all the many cafes and restaurants along the promenade were also shut up at the end of April. However, if you go one street back there is a really good patisserie called Martinucci where you can have lunch, cakes and ice cream before starting your walk to the Masseria Alcorico.

In Castiglione d'Otranto I recommend eating-in at the Palazzo Mellacqua which was very good.

We also ate in at the Est hotel in Santa Cesarea Terme - this is a bigger hotel with a full restaurant menu and looked better than anything else that we came across!

In Otranto there are very many restaurants (almost all fish) - all looked good. We recommend:

- Hotel Corte di Nettuno (where you are staying) has an excellent restaurant 

- Vicolo Matto

Via Ciatara, 13

Otranto

Tel 389 593 6251

www.vicolomatto-fishbar.it

Patronale

Via Padre Lorenzo Scupoli 15

Centro Storico

Otranto

Tel 377 3476374

So good we ate there twice!

I have wanted to visit Puglia for a good while and could think of no better time to have visted. The scenery is stunning and the walks along country tracks and the coast was made all the better by the profusion of glorious spring flowers, in the heat of the sun the smell rising from the gorse, wild thyme, clovers, wisteria was quite intoxicating. Fields of poppies, daisies, buttercups, tassle hyacinths, irises, and orchids to mention only a few were quite breathtaking, only spoilt by site of the dying olive groves, so sad to see such devastation especially when you realise the effect it must be having on the local economy in such a poor area of Italy. On the positive side it was heartwarming to see new disease resistant trees being planted though it will be a long time before they can replace the ancient gnarled stands.

Lecce and Ortranto are well worth a visit and we extended our stays in both these places to make the most of being able to spend more time exploring these historic cities. We also had additional nights during the middle of the planned itinery to further explore the countryside and not just pass through. We were perhaps a little early as in the smaller towns few places were open, though this did mean it was generally wonderfully quiet. I would recommend a visit to the Alimini Lakes and the Baia de Turchi, taxi there and follow the Salento way back, it was too long a day to walk it both ways as we did! From the Masseria Panareo we used All Trails to help us have a lovely circular tramp to the Torre Sant'Emiliano and up onto the limestone ridge above Porto Badisco and can recommend the Agriturismo "Gotta dei Cervi" for a beer, antipasta and a good salad under the shade of the pine trees rather than the busy central port restaurants.

A thoroughly recommended journey to a beautiful part of Italy with very warm and welcoming people.

The Est hotel was beautiful. I would recommend encouraging future bookers to consider an extra night there to break up the walk and as its location and rooms are so beautiful. Had the most delicious salentan coffee with almond syrup in Castro on the sea front. Sonia and Emanuele in the Palazzo with their engaging daughter Sofia were another highlight. 

Everything was organised very well, the accommodations were excellent and we really enjoyed pushing ourselves with the walks, an excellent first experience of a walking holiday! Looking forward to booking the next one.

The coastal routes were really nice and the scenery along these stretches was beautiful. Very enjoyable walks.

Time spent together is so important for us and I’m glad we trusted Inntravel to take care of all the details for our self-guided hiking trip to Puglia. This is an undiscovered part of Italy for us and from their detailed trip notes we soon realised the area was full of hidden gems. Their knowledge of the area afforded us quality accommodation and food. They are honest and true professionals and we thoroughly enjoyed the trip. You really have to go there!