Discover Puglia

Puglia (aka Apulia), located at the southern extremity of Europe and in the centre of the Mediterranean, extending into the sea towards the East, has always been an ideal region for human settlement and an area of trade and cultural exchange because of its geographic position, its slightly sloping terrain and particularly pleasant climate.

Coveted by East and by West and easily accessible by sea or land, Puglia was inhabited in the historical period by the Illyrian populations of the Japigi, the Dauni, the Peucetii and the Messapi. The region was also the site of numerous Greek colonies, as well as being a Roman territory, and an ally of Hannibal against Rome.

Puglia suffered barbarian invasions and passed under the domination of Byzantium, obtaining independence only following the advent of the Longobards and subsequent Frankish domination.

Exposed to Saracen raids, Puglia rebelled against Byzanthium in the 11th century with the help of the Normans.

Throughout history, Puglia has been part of the Reign of Sicily, the Reign of Naples and the Reign of the Two Sicilies, all prior to Italian unity.

The history and culture of Puglia bear profound marks of the Greeks, the Romans, the Byzantines, the Arabs, the Normans, the Franks, the Spanish and other populations which left indelible traces of their presence.

Contact with many different ethnic groups and cultures has strewn the Puglian territory with archaeological findings, castles, towers, cathedrals, urban and rural buildings and other monuments built in a vast range of styles and reinterpreted by the peoples of Puglia, who created an authentic “stone culture” of their own.

The dialects, traditions and cultures which still today characterise the Apulian peoples seem to be reflected in the geomorphologic features of the areas they inhabit.

Profound historical-cultural and geographical-environmental diversities distinguish the areas of Capitanata, the Land of Bari, of Salento and the Ionic Land which compose the Puglian territory, and which correspond more or less to the present day provinces of Foggia, Bari, Brindisi, Lecce and Taranto; in fact, the area was long known as “the Apulias”, and in some foreign languages it is still designated with the plural.

That which the culture and knowledgeable hand of man has built, refined and shaped to his measure across the millennia, blends with the favourable climate, limpid sea, ever-present sunshine, sandy and rocky coastlines, verdant islands, characteristic grottoes and other beauties generously offered by nature on this land.

The kind southern character, the natural openness of the people, a truly typical cuisine, exquisite wines, religious and popular festivals, historical commemorations, cultural events and endless hospitality facilities, modern and diversified, create a particularly warm atmosphere and make Puglia the ideal vacationing spot.