
Tour · 7 nights · with Explore Worldwide
A week-long small-group escorted tour with Explore Worldwide through Puglia’s limestone plateau, ancient towns and the unique trulli houses of the Itria Valley, combining gentle walks with regional food and wine tastings.
Highlights
Altamura’s DOP protected bread and wood-fired bakery visit
Walk around the Pulo di Altamura giant sinkhole
Guided visit to Castel del Monte citadel
Exploration of Matera’s ancient Sassi quarter
Tasting of local cheeses, wines and olive oils
This gentle walking holiday with Explore Worldwide follows a route through Puglia’s quieter landscapes and historic towns, beginning in Altamura with its large, DOP-protected bread baked in wood-fired ovens. The itinerary includes hands-on cooking with local pasta shapes and a walk around the giant sinkhole in Alta Murgia National Park, where caves and abandoned farms tell a long human story.
Journeys
Later days bring a more varied terrain, including a climb around Castel del Monte’s 13th-century citadel, followed by a stroll in Matera’s Sassi quarter—stone dwellings carved into a gorge with roughly 5,000 years of habitation. The pace slows in the baroque town of Cisternino with its characteristic butcher shops, and finishes with a gentle wander through the trulli of Alberobello and the fishing alleys of Monopoli.
Cheese, wine and olive oil visits punctuate the walking days, adding local colour and tastes. The tour includes a mixture of guided walks and free time to retreat to quiet corners or simply watch life go by. The modest distances and friendly groups make it an unhurried way to see some of southern Italy’s lesser-visited landscapes and towns.
Itinerary
Altamura
Castel del Monte
Matera
Cisternino
Monopoli
When to go
Lowest price each month, per person.
Explore Worldwide confirms exact dates, availability and prices when you book.
Need to know
For full details of what’s included, check with Explore Worldwide. See the full details on their site
The operator
Small-group adventures, walking and wildlife
Small groups with local leaders, and a fondness for the places at the end of the road. Trips are graded so you know how active they are.
You book with Explore Worldwide directly. They confirm your place, take payment, and look after you from the moment you leave home; Atlas & Passage’s part ends when you click through.
New to Italy? Our Italy guide has the practical essentials: money, plugs, visas and when to go.

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Alberobello
These are the places the trip visits, in order. Explore Worldwide publishes the day-by-day itinerary on its own site.