Brindisi Italy

[Vineyard View]

We are looking at an itinerary with Brindisi as a port stop. I have read that this is a city worth exploring without wandering on an excursion. I have also read that maybe not so much. I am wondering if anyone could comment who has been to this port?  The excursions show going to Lecce as an option that looks lovely. It is approximately 30 min drive. Does anyone know if it is easy to catch a cab in both directions?  
 

Additional excursion options include Ostuni and Alberobello, both a further distance. I really dislike two city excursions in one day. You never get much time in either. 

[marazul]

10 minutes ago, Vineyard View said:

We are looking at an itinerary with Brindisi as a port stop. I have read that this is a city worth exploring without wandering on an excursion. I have also read that maybe not so much. I am wondering if anyone could comment who has been to this port?  The excursions show going to Lecce as an option that looks lovely. It is approximately 30 min drive. Does anyone know if it is easy to catch a cab in both directions?  
 

Additional excursion options include Ostuni and Alberobello, both a further distance. I really dislike two city excursions in one day. You never get much time in either. 

Brindisi and Lecce are good size cities with the typical cathedrals, ruins, etc.. Go to Ostuni and Alberobello. They are unique. We used a private guide and added other places like Locorotondo.  I believe he is still available.  Look up my posts on the SB board for details. 

[Vineyard View]

I will do that. We truly enjoy using private guides. Thanks again marazul. I sincerely appreciate it. 

[cruisemom42]

I'm going to disagree with marazul (shocking!!) for once.

 

I thought Lecce (ancient Roman Lupiae) was really a special place. The warm, creamy stone that was used to create so many buildings in the Centro during the Baroque period lends itself to architectural detail and the collective effect is lovely. There is also, unusually, a Roman amphitheatre smack in the middle of the Centro (as well as scattered other Roman bits and pieces around the town). 

 

Lecce does lend itself to most of a day exploring, as opposed to the (much) smaller towns of Alberobello and Ostuni. I feel Alberobello is overtouristed now and it was not as interesting as I thought it would be seeing the Trulli houses. But then I tend to like larger towns and cities better...

 

It is easy to go between Lecce and Brindisi on the frequent regional trains. I went to Lecce on a walking tour included in my cruise in the morning and then in the afternoon I stayed behind in the city and did further exploring of the Roman sites on my own, taking the train back at the end of the day.

 

Brindisi (ancient Roman Brundisium) was quite important to the Romans as it was the end of the famous Appian Way from Rome and the point for setting sail to Greece and beyond. To mark its importance, the Romans placed two columns to mark the end of the road (literally). One of these collapsed in the Middle Ages but one still stands at the top of a monumental staircase near the port. I was quite excited to see this site, imagining how many Romans must have been happy to see these columns on their return from the treacherous seas, and later on how they were the last sight of land for so many medieval Christians setting off for the Holy Land, when Brindisi still remained a major jumping off point for such pilgrimages.

 

If you decide to visit Lecce I would be happy to share my notes with you (mostly dealing with the Roman era but some history as well). 

Edited June 23, 2023 by cruisemom42

[marazul]

3 hours ago, Vineyard View said:

I will do that. We truly enjoy using private guides. Thanks again marazul. I sincerely appreciate it. 

Alessandro Perrone

https://pugliaexperience.wordpress.com/

 

We wrote to him and he sent us about 10 suggested itineraries of various places and cities in the area (including Lecce 😉).  We picked this one:

 

tour 6
martina franca (baroque city), noci, alberobello, locorotondo (a quaint hamlet with a unique circular layout), ostuni
it's similar to the tour nr 5 but without polignano a mare and with martina franca and locorotondo 
  https://pugliaexperience.wordpress.com/2016/03/08/charming-valle-ditria/  
in martina franca it's also possible to visit a dairy to see the cheese making process of mozzarella and to taste some cheese (mozzarella, caciocavallo, etc.) and capocollo di martina (a pork meat cold cut, slow food presidia).

 

The "tasting" was big enough for a lunch!

Edited June 23, 2023 by marazul

[marazul]

2 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

I'm going to disagree with marazul (shocking!!) for once.

Nooooooo! 😵🤣

[Vineyard View]

Boy.  Now I am confused! Thank you both again. I will research all this further. I am just in initial research phase to really be sure this is the right itinerary for us. This is all so helpful

[edinburgher]

22 hours ago, Vineyard View said:

We are looking at an itinerary with Brindisi as a port stop. I have read that this is a city worth exploring without wandering on an excursion. I have also read that maybe not so much. I am wondering if anyone could comment who has been to this port?  The excursions show going to Lecce as an option that looks lovely. It is approximately 30 min drive. Does anyone know if it is easy to catch a cab in both directions?  
 

Additional excursion options include Ostuni and Alberobello, both a further distance. I really dislike two city excursions in one day. You never get much time in either. 

VV, you will know by now that we are mostly DIY /independent visitors who thoroughly research destinations to find the most interesting (to us) ways to spend our time ashore.  I found this old post of mine which was in response to a previous thread about Brindisi although Ii have slightly adapted it to suit your own question.

 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

.

Brindisi is not so much a"destination port"as a" gateway port," with a really good selection of places to visit in the surrounding area, some closer than others.

 

Alberobello   is all about seeing trulli,   We didn't do that as we had seen them numerous times on tv shows and didn't think there would be anything new for us.  We did hear other pax saying afterwards that their shorex was a little boring as "if you have seen one, you have seen them all".  and "one house with a pointy roof is much like any other"

 

Other pax went to Lecce and enjoyed that shorex, thinking the town was worth the visit..  There is much about Lecce online and you could read about it  to help you decide whether that could be combined with the trulli as it has a lot to offer.   it is also quite an easy DIY outing.  From what we have read, also the comments above, Lecce  would be for us a really interesting town to visit and we would have made this option our #1 choice  and happily gone there independently had we not been tempted by a shorex which for us is fairly rare as we only take these if the journeys are outwith our comfort zone distance or are too complicated using public transport or a taxi share should we find others. Having said that, our research usually begins by looking at the shorex to read about what might be possible in the area as a shorex  if not suited to DIY.

 

Immediately spotted a shorex to MATERA, on offer,a truly unique town which has featured in many major films as some scenes were shot there  (including Passion of the Christ, Ben Hur and a few James Bond films among others)and which we had seen in a tv documentary, so we opted for that one and it didn't disappoint. It was definitely a unque experience to visit this UNESCO site especially as  there is nowhere else in the world like it.  And for once, we didn't even escape the group and guide but stayed with them, and that in itself is unusual for us.

 

Do read about MATERA online, also look at images, because if it is an option as a shorex, I would recommend you at the very least give it serious consideration..  I think the distance is a little too far for a private tour, at least for us, but ohers have different time/distance limits.

Edited June 24, 2023 by edinburgher

[Vineyard View]

Good morning edinburgher! Yes, we do have similar travel tastes in ports. 
 

I just looked at excursion options. No Matera offered. I did a quick Google search and yes, it looks very interesting. And that you did a tour, and actually stuck with it says a lot. So far Lecce, Truli houses, Ostuni, and Aberobello are the only offered. I will keep this in mind if it appears, but I doubt that it will. 
 

As always, I appreciate your insights and experience. Thank you. 

[edinburgher]

1 hour ago, Vineyard View said:

Good morning edinburgher! Yes, we do have similar travel tastes in ports. 
 

I just looked at excursion options. No Matera offered. I did a quick Google search and yes, it looks very interesting. And that you did a tour, and actually stuck with it says a lot. So far Lecce, Truli houses, Ostuni, and Aberobello are the only offered. I will keep this in mind if it appears, but I doubt that it will. 
 

As always, I appreciate your insights and experience. Thank you. 

VV thanks for having an online peek at Matera. Tthe description of the shorex with our cruiseline wasn't especially tempting, but having seen it on tv we sort of knew what to expect and booked it.

 

.From the above four options you listed, trulli houses and Alberobella are probably one and the same,  and living where you do, maybe vineyards and/or wine tasting around Ostuni won't be anything new to you unless there is more to the tour than that. (Those (probably unwanted) comments may make it easier for you to decide- or not!)

 

We stayed with the guide in Matera as some buildings were locked unless in a tour group with a guide and we wanted to see inside  them. A rock church, and a typical home being examples.  It is one of our "stand out" memories although we have many.

 

When we watched JB No Time to Die, we immediately recognised one of the car chase scenes filmed in Matera.

Edited June 24, 2023 by edinburgher

[Vineyard View]

DH and I were just discussing this week how fortunate we are with all the wineries in our backyard, and that there are still so many we have not been to. Terrible problem to have. That said, we do enjoy tasting wine in regions we travel - and probably because of where we live, maybe not so much so with 45 other people on a bus on a tour. 
 

I think we have a couple of options here that I will explore further. I need to do some more homework. Right now I am at that ‘making sure this is the right itinerary for next year’ phase in the planning process. It’s booked, but there is another that I am viewing as well. Thank you again. 

Edited June 24, 2023 by Vineyard View

[cruisemom42]

If you're considering Matera, it's almost two hours from Brindisi (I know VV doesn't like long coach rides). I did a short tour of the region on one of my visits to Italy and saw it then. 

 

If you do go there, I would highly recommend that you read the book Christ Stopped at Eboli written by Carlo Levi in the 1940s. Levi, a physician, was exiled to this region (Basilicata) by Mussolini's govt for about a decade and he details how poverty stricken it was, literally having been forgotten for centuries. The people felt they had even been forgotten by Christ (hence the book title, apparently he never made it all the way to Basilicata!)

 

Although Matera wasn't where Levi was based, it was used to stand in when they made a movie based on the book.

 

 

[bennybear]

I’m going to jump in to the discussion as we have spent several weeks in the area.  
Lecce is an absolutely beautiful city that is a bit off the radar.  We really enjoyed wandering around there.  We also had the good fortune to stay in a Trulli in Noci and to visit Marina Franca and Alberobello and Ostuni.   Truly an unforgettable experience.   We also stayed near Matera and it is also worth the visit.   So unfortunately you are only limited by time and choice.   I am sure you will be happy on any of these tours but if the drive is two hours each way I think I’d opt for Lecce. Photos of Lecce, Noci, and then Matera 

Edited June 24, 2023 by bennybear

[Vineyard View]

Thank you for further information. I honestly do not see us taking a 2 hr bus ride each way. We chanced it on our trip last month and it reminded us of why we won’t/don’t do that with ship excursions. I know we would love to experience these further destinations for their uniqueness and charm, but maybe not on this trip. I am really glad that I asked on this board. You all really did help me determine what will likely be best for us. I will, however, check further into the private guide before finalizing this decision. 
thanks to lol of you. 

[edinburgher]

7 hours ago, Vineyard View said:

Thank you for further information. I honestly do not see us taking a 2 hr bus ride each way

It is far, but sometimes for something special it is worth considering.

 

It was long to get to Cairo from the port, also to Meteora from Volos, and to Shanghai and HMC/Saigon on our second visit when we didn't sail upriver and dock right in the heart of HMC as we had done on our first visit.  There have also been a few others across the years.  We use the journey TO the destination as an opportunity to view from the coach as we usually snooze the entire journey back and see nothing!

 

 

Edited June 25, 2023 by edinburgher

[edinburgher]

18 hours ago, bennybear said:

’m going to jump in to the discussion as we have spent several weeks in the area.  
Lecce is an absolutely beautiful city that is a bit off the radar.  We really enjoyed wandering around there.  We also had the good fortune to stay in a Trulli in Noci and to visit Marina Franca and Alberobello and Ostuni.   Truly an unforgettable experience.   We also stayed near Matera and it is also worth the visit.   So unfortunately you are only limited by time and choice.   I am sure you will be happy on any of these tours but if the drive is two hours each way I think I’d opt for Lecce. Photos of Lecce, Noci, and then Matera 

Bennybear, that would have been a lovely trip.  We were very impressed with the sightseeing opportunities in Puglia, a lovely mix of inland and seaside.  Also seeing ithe area appearing more often in tv programmes so its popularity appears to be increasing.

[Vineyard View]

3 hours ago, edinburgher said:

It is far, but sometimes for something special it is worth considering.

 

It was long to get to Cairo from the port, also to Meteora from Volos, and to Shanghai and HMC/Saigon on our second visit when we didn't sail upriver and dock right in the heart of HMC as we had done on our first visit.  There have also been a few others across the years.  We use the journey TO the destination as an opportunity to view from the coach as we usually snooze the entire journey back and see nothing!

 

 

Very true. I would agree. Our only time in hiring private guides that was a big mistake was Cairo. Nightmare getting back, but that’s another story. So I have been convinced that looking into all this further, and maybe considering an excursion. Or a private. Thanks all again. 
 

I love all the pictures shared here too!  Thanks again! 

[jshli]

Does anyone know if there are taxis waiting at the port?