Three days is enough to taste central Puglia without rushing, provided you accept that you will leave things out. This plan keeps Bari as a base for the first night, then moves along the coast and into the Itria Valley, mixing big sights with slow meals. It works with a rental car or with a mix of trains and one guided day, and you can swap days around to suit the weather.
Day one: Bari Vecchia, a class and the seafront
Start in the old town early, when the lanes are quiet and the pasta-makers of Strada Arco Basso are at work outside their doors. Visit the Basilica di San Nicola, then loop past the cathedral to the Castello Svevo, which takes about an hour. Lunch can be focaccia, panzerotti or a plate of orecchiette in the lanes. In the afternoon, book a hands-on orecchiette and focaccia class, which turns a meal into a skill you can take home. Finish with a walk along the seafront promenade as the light softens, and a late dinner, because restaurants here rarely fill before eight.
Day two: Polignano, Monopoli and the trulli
Take an early train or drive south along the coast. Polignano a Mare is at its best in the morning, with the cliff-top lookouts, the narrow old town and the sea caves, which you can see on a boat trip of about an hour and a half. Continue to Monopoli for a harbour lunch among the painted fishing boats and a stroll on the sea wall. In the late afternoon, head inland to Alberobello, where the conical trulli of the Rione Monti and the Aia Piccola district are calmer once the coaches leave. If you can, sleep in a trullo or nearby so that you see the town in the evening glow, when the lanes belong to the residents again.
Day three: choose your hill towns
The Itria Valley rewards a flexible morning. Locorotondo is a round white town with valley views and good local wine, Martina Franca is an elegant Baroque centre, and Ostuni is the dazzling White City on its hill, best at sunset. You can combine two of them without feeling hurried, and a countryside lunch at a masseria, with local cheese, vegetables and olive oil, makes a fitting finale. If you prefer a single major sight, replace the hill towns with Castel del Monte, the octagonal fortress of Frederick II, or with the Grotte di Castellana, which makes a good rainy-day alternative.
Getting around
Bari to Polignano a Mare and Monopoli is a short regional train ride, and a separate line crosses the valley to Alberobello, Locorotondo and Martina Franca. Trains are cheap and relaxed but the timetable thins out in the evening, and Ostuni and Castel del Monte are awkward without a car. A good compromise is to use trains on days one and two and to join a small group tour or hire a driver on day three. If you drive, avoid the limited traffic zones inside old towns, park outside the centre and expect narrow lanes.
Where to sleep
Spending all three nights in one place keeps things simple, and Bari or Polignano a Mare is the easiest if you rely on trains. If you have a car, split your stay: the first night in Bari Vecchia, the second in a trullo or a masseria, and the third in the hills. Book early for summer and for weekends, since small hotels here have few rooms and the best fill quickly.
Pace yourself
The biggest mistake is trying to see every town. Puglia is a region for lingering, and most days work best with one big sight, one long lunch and one unplanned stop. Lunch usually runs from about one, shops close in the early afternoon and dinner starts late, so build your plan around those rhythms rather than fighting them. In summer, sightsee in the morning and late afternoon and rest in the heat of the day, and in winter check opening days, since some restaurants and sights close for a day or more each week.
If you have a fourth day
Add Matera, which lies about an hour from Bari and deserves a full day of its own, or head south to Lecce for its golden Baroque streets. Both are rewarding, and both are easier with an early start. A shorter alternative is to add Trani, a pale cathedral town on the coast with a quiet harbour, which makes a relaxed half day by train.
Whatever you choose, leave space for an unplanned moment, a bakery queue, a conversation in a piazza or a swim from a rocky cove. That is often what people remember most about Puglia, long after the details of the itinerary have faded.
