Puglia

Bari

Four hours from Rome on a Frecciargento and worth every minute. Bari is the gateway to Puglia's trulli, whitewashed hill towns and a coastline most visitors never reach.

Arriving

Stations

Bari Centrale

National services on the main platforms; the private Ferrovie del Sud Est and Ferrotramviaria lines leave from separate halls.

From the airport

Karol Wojtyła has a rail link to Bari Centrale — the Ferrotramviaria line, about 20 minutes. Not covered by the pass.

Onward

Connections

To	Fastest	Operator	Reservation	Frequency
Rome	3h 55m	Frecciargento	€13	6 per day
Naples	3h 20m	Intercity	€3	5 per day
Lecce	1h 25m	Regionale	None	Hourly
Milan	7h 45m	Frecciarossa	€13	2 per day

Puglia's best towns sit on private lines the pass does not cover. Budget a few euro a day for local tickets and use the pass for the long haul in and out.

See

Worth your time

Bari Vecchia
The old town, where orecchiette are still rolled on tables in the street.
Basilica di San Nicola
Romanesque, and a pilgrimage site for the Orthodox world.
Lungomare
One of Italy's great seafront walks, especially in the evening.
Teatro Petruzzelli
Burnt down, rebuilt, and back in full operatic use.

Eat

What to order

Orecchiette con cime di rapa
The regional dish, bitter greens and anchovy.
Focaccia barese
Tomato and olive, thick, oily and correct.
Raw seafood at the port
A local habit. Approach with confidence or not at all.

Day trips

Where the trains go from here

Alberobello

Trulli town, on the private Sud Est line — the pass is not valid, tickets are a few euro.

Polignano a Mare

30 minutes regional, pass valid, a beach in a cleft between cliffs.

Matera

Cave city in Basilicata. No national rail link; the Appia bus takes 90 minutes.

Book ahead

Tickets and tours in Bari

The sights below sell timed entry that genuinely runs out. Booking links are affiliate links.

Day tripFrom €60

Alberobello and the trulli

The private rail line is slow and infrequent; a half-day tour from Bari is usually the better use of time.

Check availability

Bookshelf

Read on the way to Bari

Three books that make the window, and the city at the end of it, more interesting. Links are Amazon affiliate links and cost you nothing extra.

The Sea and Sardinia

D. H. Lawrence

Southern crossings and short tempers. The right register for Puglia.

Bitter Almonds

Mary Taylor Simeti

Southern Italian kitchens and the women who ran them.

Puglia: The Definitive Guide

Various

Trulli, Matera and the branch lines that reach them.

More titles on the full city bookshelf or the Italian bookshelf.

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