Amber Road Tours

Amalfi Coast to Apulia

13 days/12 nights

• Day 1

  Late morning transfers from Naples train station and airport, where you will be met by your tour manager. Our first stop is for a fascinating afternoon guided tour through the streets of Pompeii, the ancient Roman city that remained buried for 1800 years underneath ash and stone from the eruption of Mt Vesuvius in 79 A.D.

  Transfer to the Hotel Villa Maria in Ravello (see map), one of the most beautiful villages in Italy. Our four night stay will begin with aperitifs and welcome dinner on the hotel balcony overlooking the stunning Amalfi Coast.

• Day 2

  Morning at leisure. Ravello, a noted resort during ancient Roman times and later part of the Amalfi Republic, has in the last few centuries been home to famous writers and composers. It has much to enjoy with its spectacular views, wonderful gardens, pedestrian only lanes and enormous town square.

  2pm departure for a boat cruise to famous Positano.

  Late afternoon return to Amalfi, the most intriguing city of this whole amazing coastline. Amalfi, with historical roots in the Fall of the Roman Empire, was a thriving maritime republic during the Medieval period. Our guided tour will take us through the tiny squares and alleyways, the Arsenal (medieval shipyard) and the Norman cathedral.
  Included seafood dinner at a local trattoria.

• Day 3

  Paestum, an ancient Greek and Roman town founded in 720 B.C., is home to three of the best preserved Greek temples in the Mediterranean. Paestum was abandoned during medieval times and its existence forgotten until the 18th century. Our local guide will walk us through the archeological complex and museum bringing this powerful town of Magna Graecia back to life.

  After a scenic drive back along the Amalfi Coast you'll have late afternoon and evening free in Ravello.

• Day 4

  Escorted morning coach ride along the coast to popular Sorrento.

  Alternatively you could take a boat trip to Capri; visit the neighboring towns of Minori where you can see the remains of an old Roman Villa or Vietri sul Mare, famous for its ceramics; hike through lemon grove covered hills or just relax and enjoy the beauty and charm of Ravello.

• Day 5

  Leaving the Tyrrhenian coast we will cross the Italian peninsula to the Adriatic Sea. Our first stop is at a trattoria where we will experience the unique local cuisine and wines.

  Afternoon guided visit to Castel del Monte, the enigmatic octagonal castle erected by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II in the 13th century.

  Transfer to Trani, in Puglia, a beautiful port town that was once the possession of Venice. You'll be staying at the Hotel Regia for two nights in the 18th century Palazzo Filisio, located between the cathedral and the port.

• Day 6

  Morning on your own to explore the port, the fish markets, the piazzas, gardens, shops and medieval lanes of Trani.

  Afternoon city tour with local guide, including a visit to a magnificent cathedral that even the church-weary can appreciate, dedicated to Saint Nicholas the Pilgrim.

• Day 7

  Guided visit to Barletta, including the fabulous Norman - Swabian - Angevin - Aragonese castle and the Colossus, a 16 foot tall bronze statue of a late Roman emperor that washed up on the shore of Barletta in the early 13th century.

  Afternoon transfer to the "Sassi" of Matera, a spectacular agglomeration of cave dwellings built into the soft tufa stone of deep ravines. Our hotel for the next two nights is the Locanda di San Martino located in the heart of the Sassi historic district.

• Day 8

  Inhabited since prehistoric times, there were 18,000 resident Sassi cave dwellers as recently as the 1950s when they were forcibly evacuated for inadequate sanitation. Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the area has been repopulated, the homes renovated, many transformed into elegant hotels and restaurants. This morning we will have a fascinating guided tour through these antique lanes including a visit to the Peasant Culture Museum.

  On the plateau about the gorge, just 100 meters from your hotel, the more modern Matera offers an architectural gem of a city center with open squares, fountains and inviting shops.

• Day 9

  Today our first stop is Manduria, where we'll visit a local winery for a tasting of their excellent "primitivo" wines and a visit to their Wine Culture Museum. Included light lunch.

  Afternoon transfer to the historic district of Gallipoli, once a Greek inhabited island on the Ionian Sea. Gallipoli means "beautiful city" and it is, with its sparkling port, beaches and the narrow winding streets of the Old Quarter.

  We'll be staying at the 19th century Palazzo Mosco Inn for two nights. Late afternoon you'll have time on your own to get lost in what is perhaps the most entertaining town on tour.
  Included seafood dinner at a portside restaurant.

• Day 10

  Early morning in the medieval town of Galatina to see the 14th century Santa Caterina d'Alessandria Cathedral where there are frescoes so vast and magnificent that you might imagine yourself to be in Assisi.

  Afternoon visit to the ancient Roman and Byzantine town of Otranto, the easternmost point on the Italian peninsula. Our guide will take us through the 1000 year old walled hamlet and the 11th century Norman cathedral with the best preserved mosaic floors in southern Italy.

  Optional pizza and primitivo wine dinner on the panoramic hotel roof terrace.

• Day 11

  Lecce presents an architectural feast. An ancient settlement of the Messapii tribes, it is the principal Baroque city of Puglia. Baroque, in architecture, is a theatrical style begun in late 16th century Italy as a statement of the power of the Catholic Church in response to the Protestant Reformation. This morning our local guide will bring this and more to light.

  After lunch we'll move on to Ostuni, the "White City" perched on a hill overlooking the Adriatic Sea. Inhabited at least since 1000 BC by native peoples, Ostuni was destroyed by Hannibal during the Punic wars, rebuilt by the Greeks, taken over by Romans, sacked by Gauls and revived during medieval times.

  Our hotel is the labyrinthine 13th century Hotel La Terra (two nights).

  Following a tasting of local products you'll have the evening on your own to further experience the wonderful local cuisine.

• Day 12

  At Alberobello there is a village of one thousand fairytale-like Trulli, round white houses with tall conical roofs. Our local guide will explain their mysterious origins and why people continue to build them.

  Afternoon visit to the Grotto del Trullo, a system of caverns carved out by an ancient underground river that created a subterranean world of startling beauty.

  Farewell dinner of local Apulian delicacies and last limoncello in Ostuni.

• Day 13

  Morning transfers to Brindisi airport and train station.