Peschici
Peschici's medieval hilltop castle stands sentinel over the town's port, and inside there is a fascinating Museum of Torture with life-sized replicas of…
Must-see attractions in Puglia, Basilicata & Calabria
Otranto
The origins of this cross-shaped Byzantine church are uncertain, but some think they may be as remote as the 5th century. The present structure seems to…
Gallipoli
This is only one of some 35 olive presses buried in the tufa rock below the town. It was here, between the 16th and early 19th centuries, that local…
Museo dei Brettii e degli Enotri
Cosenza
This archaeological museum displays finds from the Bronze Age Enotri culture, and the Brettii people who founded Cosenza in the 4th century BC. The…
Lecce
Dedicated to Lecce's former patron saint and modelled on Rome's Basilica di Sant'Andrea della Valle, this church was completed in 1639. Inside you'll find…
Promontorio del Gargano
Dating to the last (Augustan) days of the Roman Republic, Lucera's amphitheatre was built for gladiatorial combat and accommodated up to 18,000 people…
Puglia
The third of the Isole Tremiti, Capraia (named after the wild caper plant) is uninhabited. Birdlife is plentiful, with impressive flocks of seagulls…
Calabria
Those interested in the ecosystem and wildlife of the Pollino National Park should check out this 'diffuse museum' in the medieval hilltown of Morano…
Bari
Check out this repurposed heritage building for an ever-changing series of interesting and innovative cultural and art displays, part of the nexus of…
Museo Speleologico Franco Anelli
Valle d’Itria
This cave museum connected to the famous Grotte di Castellana exhibits geological specimens and delves deeply into the speleological world. It's named for…
Cosenza
This gallery focuses on southern Italian painting from the 16th century to the present day, including Renaissance-baroque works from the Neapolitan school…
Chiesa di Santa Maria di Idris
Matera
Dug into the Idris rock, this church has an unprepossessing facade, but the narrow corridor communicating with the recessed church of San Giovanni in…
Cosenza
Cosenza's 12th-century cathedral, devastated by earthquakes, was rebuilt in restrained baroque style in the 18th century. In a chapel off the north aisle…
Puglia
Housed in the neoclassical Palazzo Jatta in Ruvo, some 30km from Bari, this museum displays a collection of several hundred archaeological finds, mainly…
Matera
The only church in the sassi not dug into the tufa rock, Chiesa di San Pietro Caveoso was originally built in 1300 and has a 17th-century Romanesque…
Lecce
Facing Lecce's cathedral is the arched arcade loggia of the 15th-century Palazzo Vescovile, one-time residence of Neapolitan royalty and one of Lecce's…
Basilicata
The ruins of Venosa's Roman colony of Venusia, founded in the 3rd century BC and birthplace of the poet Horace, can be accessed using your Museo…
Matera
This impressive collection includes local Neolithic finds and some remarkable Greek pottery, such as the Cratere Mascheroni, a huge urn more than 1m high.
Bari
Roger the Norman originally built this castle in the 12th century over the ruins of a Byzantine structure. Later, Frederick II of Swabia built over the…
Bari
This beautiful piazza is fronted by the Sedile, the headquarters of Bari's Council of Nobles. In the square's northeast corner is the Colonna della…
Brindisi
This 16th-century Renaissance-style palace is named for the two different families who owned it. The building is of interest because it houses the huge…
Basilicata
The symbol of Maratea, visible from multiple vantage points along the coast, this 22m-high statue of Christ faces inland towards the Basilica di San…
Matera
Situated on a hill near the town centre, this 15th-century castle was left unfinished after the unpopular Count Tramontano, seemingly unaware that high…
Martina Franca
Built over an existing castle in 1668, this imposing baroque palace has had a multitude of functions over the years, and is now the office of the civic…
Brindisi
After the Romans, the next big event to hit Brindisi was the Crusades during the 12th and 13th centuries. The Porta dei Cavalieri Templari, an exotic…
Promontorio del Gargano
There is a small centro visitatori (visitors centre) in the middle of Foresta Umbra that houses a museum and nature centre with fossils, photographs, and…
Lecce
Two Roman columns once marked the end of the Appian Way in Brindisi. When one of them crumbled in 1582 some of the pieces were rescued and subsequently…
Brindisi
This 12th-century cathedral was substantially remodelled after an earthquake in 1743. You can see how the original Romanesque structure may have looked by…
Lecce
This 18th-century seminary, designed by famous Leccese architect and sculptor Giuseppe Cino, today houses a library of old books and a museum dedicated to…
Lecce
The main city gate, Porta Napoli, was erected in 1548 in anticipation of a state visit from Charles V. It's a typically bombastic effort by Gian dell…
Calabria
An imposing fortress surmounting the headland commanding Scilla, this castle has at times been a lighthouse and a monastery. It houses a luntre, the…
Promontorio del Gargano
At the highest point of Monte Sant'Angelo is this rugged fastness, first built by Orso I, who later became Doge of Venice, in the 9th century. One 10th…
Calabria
Visible from the Praia a Mare seafront is an intriguing rocky chunk off the coast, the Isola di Dino. The tourist office has information on the island's…
Parco Archeologico e Naturale di Arignano
Ostuni
Many of the finds at Ostuni's Museo di Civiltà Preclassiche della Murgia come from this cave and Palaeolithic burial ground, which doesn't offer much in…
Ostuni
Dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, Ostuni's dramatic 15th-century cathedral has an unusual Gothic-Romanesque-Byzantine facade with a frilly…
Museo Nazionale dell’Alta Val d’Agri
Basilicata
This modestly interesting museum charts the history of the high valley of Agri, and the nearby Roman town of Grumentum in particular. Artefacts including…
Cosenza
Cosenza's doughty castle, begun by the Saracens, augmented by the Normans and left in disarray by several earthquakes, has benefited from extensive…
Matera
Centred on the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, this 16th-century monastic complex in Sasso Barisano was built by the monks of the Order of the…
Lecce
Exhibiting artefacts revealed during the excavation of the adjacent Roman theatre, this museum also has displays recreating classical Roman life,…
Taranto
This 6th-century BC Doric temple is one of the few visible remains of the once-great Greek colony of Taras. The last two surviving columns and the…
