Need to plan six days before Sorrento.

[Phyllis]

I forgot to add that we are renting a car, should we skip Trani?

 

[wco81]

I went in April and parking was kind of iffy, particularly around the center.

I wasn't sure where I could park.

I thought it was a nice place to walk around in good weather and during the day.

But Polignano is pretty unique so probably should be a higher priority if you haven't planned to visit already.

Both Trani and Polignano a Mare have better waterfront scenery than Bari.

I didn't know it when I visited but there is some fancy restaurant carved into the cliff at Polignano. Guess it offers some unique views.

Polignano was definitely harder to find parking.

 

[Tina]

Hi Phyllis your Puglia plan sounds good as it is so these are just some ideas
I love Trani, it's my favourite place in Italy but since you arrive in Bari I'd be tempted to spend a couple of nights there before picking up the car. The old city and the cathedrals are fantastic and since you arrive on a Monday it should be quiet.
Then you could stay based in Bari and explore by train, the train service up and down the coast is fast and modern and would allow you to see Polignano, Monopoli, Trani, Giovinazzo, Barletta. Or you could do all of that but base in Trani.
After, you pick up your hire car and drive to Matera.
This means you'd miss out on Ostuni, Alberobello and Valle d'Itria but perhaps keep them for a future trip? We visit Puglia a lot and a few days ago drove down through Valle d'Itria. Beautiful yes but when we visited in May 2022 everything was green, flowers everywhere, poppies, spectacular. I'd keep it for a spring trip.
But these are just ideas. Your original plan could work fine too .
These are my blog posts about Puglia, for more click on older posts at the bottom.

Slow Travel in Italy and Spain

A blog about travel, vacations and holidays in Italy and Spain with advice, tips and trip reports

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[Tina]

If you decide on Trani by car and want secure parking let me know and I'll tell you where we always park. On that coast car theft can be an issue.

 

[Phyllis]

We are in Matera, staying St Angelo, I managed to slip on wet pavement the first ten minutes, note, wear hiking shoes with great tread. Yesterday we did a 3 hour walking tour with Giovani, he was great, filled with a vast about of knowledge, more than we could have ever took in. We arrived at Bari airport 5 nights ago, we stayed two nights in Masseria Salinola, Contrada Salinola, 72017 Ostuni BR, we loved this Masseria and could have had many more days here. Do not miss their evening meal. Then we spent three nights outside of Lecce at Filippo de Raho - Agri Bio Relais. This is an incredible Masseria but we were the only guests, it would be great to have stayed with family or friends in the Summer to better use the facility, it was so gorgeous with an un heated pool. It is a short drive to Lecce but we really enjoyed coming back to their Chef who prepared a wonderful dinner and breakfast. We are glad we had our own car. Tomorrow we are diving to Sorrento to join a tour for a week. We really enjoyed driving around here with hardly any plans.

 

[wco81]

If you decide on Trani by car and want secure parking let me know and I'll tell you where we always park. On that coast car theft can be an issue.

I stayed at an Airbnb in central Bari which included underground parking. Did some day trips from there to Trani, Polignano a Mare and Matera.

I think I parked in the center of Trani and then hiked out to the waterfront.