Nothing Shall Keep Me From My Adventure In Puglia!

After the turmoil from the hurricane in the North East (USA)  and multiple delays I arrived in Italy this week to be faced with a train strike that might delay my adventure in Puglia that our travel friend Yle has created.  www.yltour.com

Last year Yle listened to my 'dream ' trip to Italy and created a day that offered me all the experiences I asked for.   So there was no hesitation when I asked Yle to help me create a short adventure that takes me to places I could not find on my own.   And as a solo traveler it is often difficult for me to experience all the adventures I would like.

 

After years of doing all my own travel planning it is time to ask an expert for help.   Yle will give me suggestions and detailed directions.  More importantly, I  will gain entrance into places I have never been on any of the 15+ trips Home to Italy.

We are still fine tuning my adventure for December but here is a basic outline:

         Yle has arranged an apartment in Lecce a few minutes from the center of town and the train station.  This allows me to join in the daily live of Lecce and offers easy access to daily train trips.

Here I can cook if I wish and perhaps invite new 'friends' over.

Day One: 
Language lessons:

Ashort re introduction to conversational Italian.     Since i only speak Italian once a year while on my yearly Home to Italy adventure,  it will be helpful to have a tutor to work with me on my language skills.    I have already been told on this trip that i 'speak Italian con una bambina'.   Not very supportive.

Yle has planned a detailed walking tour of Lecce for me to begin my photo adventure.   Lecce has wonderful carved stone facades that stop you in your tracks, crannying your neck to see the soaring peaks of a church or the pediment on a palace.   

The walking tour includes stops at shops selling local hand/craft and art products.

Yle gives me suggestions on places for lunch OR where I can find items for a picnic and a good place to have a picnic.    

Day 2:  Language lesson for skills on train travel since I shall be off on the local train later today.

 Day trip to Ostuni, a stop in Alberobella and Martina Franca if there is time.   Wonderful photo opportunities and perhaps some visits to local artists.

Yle has supplied me with the details on ticket purchase and train schedule.  Off I go, will I find my way back?

Day 3:  Language lesson will cover simple shopping skills

A tour of the local markets for fresh foods.  Yle has told me about her program for cooking, shopping and eating healthy foods that improve your life, health and I hope weight!  So this week I shall follow her outline in addition to walking miles each day, let's see what the result is.

Eating in Italy and losing weight usually do not appear in the same sentence.

Yle and I are working on a number of other events I might take part in:   a painting lesson, visiting a local olive farm, wine tasting, learning how artist carve the beautiful stone that is native to Lecce, a visti with some of the 'mature residents in town, experiencing the local hair dresser.   I have many Italian events I wish to try.

Yle has fantastic cooking lessons available, however cooking is not on my list of fun events, I hope she can find me an opportunity to 'eat with a family' while I am in Lecce.  

If not I think a restaurant tour would be fun......  

Each day includes an opportunity to practice Italian, photography the daily life of Puglia and enjoy outstanding towns and cities.  How could this be any better?   Well to have 5 days instead of 3!

 Check back with Yle and Lee to see where we traveled, who we met and what we saw!

What next? After 40 yeas of flying....

I am NOT going to Disney World!

Although I usually post under my Home To Italy blog, Agnes and Amy deserve to be in the Solo Travel site even it I met them on my current trip Home To Italy.

After changing my travel plans, which included a return sail on the Queen Mary, because of hurricane Sandy I found the only non stop flight available to me was to Zurich and then train Home To Italy.

I met Agnes at the door to the jet as I boarded the dreaded overnight flight to Zurich.   For the past 3 years I have used FF miles for half of each adventure so that I could sail east or west, depending on the solo deal offered.

Agnes, who I later chatted with at length, was wearing a corsage and I asked if it was her Birthday.   She replied, no but this was her last flight after a 40 year career as a flight attendant!   Even on her last flight she offered a smile to everyone in the steerage class and chatted with passengers she meets regularly on her transatlantic crossing.  

The FIRST thing that came to my mind when she said she was retiring was the commercials that ask:  “what are you going to do now?” and the response is I am going to Disney World.   So when Agnes agreed to chat with me later in the flight when passengers had been fed and put to ‘bed’, this was the first comment I made.

Agnes did not hesitate and replied, “I am NOT going to Disney World”.   This began our chat about working with the airlines for 4 decades, the places she had visited, the changes in the career that found her after she took an au pair position in NYC in her early 20’s.  See later the slogans airlines used since the 1960’s.  She was frank and outspoken.  This was her last day flying the ….skys…..and I am only using her first name, so the chance of retaliation was slim.

But what was far more interesting to me was how she viewed the next chapter of her life…..   As I travel solo I sometimes meet other ‘next life’ travelers.   Often we only scratch the surface into each others’ lives:  why are you traveling here, why are you traveling solo.     One of their first thoughts are that you must be gay to be traveling alone.  Agnes confirmed this too.   Even though her job constantly sends her off solo..      I loved her (Agnes’) spirit of adventure.  We went over her bucket list and some were USA based sites and others international sites she wanted to revisit.   She has a list of mountains she wants to ski!

All this points out to me again that I may travel solo but I am not as adventurous as many of the thousands of others out there living every day to the max. 

Such good words to live by.  So congrats Agnes.   I hope you read this and tell me where you are next and what you find there…..

Cape Hatteras an alternative hotel

As a constant solo traveler I continue to seek sources of alternative housing

 

As a 'mature' solo traveler, I no longer enjoy tent camping or low end motels in order to afford the multiple trips I take.       Over the past year I have been searching for alternatives to chain hotels and the road side motels prevalent in the USA.

 

 On one of these trips I stayed in a new cabin offered by the KOA campgrounds.  Large enough to accommodate 4+ the cabin had a full bath, mini kitchen, TV and  wireless Internet.    At the same cost as most of the hotels on the Outer Banks, NC  this was a very comfortable alternative.     The cabin was only a few yards from the beach and you could hear the waves crashing during the night.

There was a second opportunity to visit this location again last week while driving North along the coast. This time I wanted to try staying in an AirStream, a silver cylinder on wheels. I had never been inside one of the historic designs and was surprised how spacious it was.   I suppose with a family of 4 it could be a tight fit.
The only room that was difficult to negotiate was the airplane sized bathroom.   But still fun for an overnight stay.  According to one of the web sites for AirStream enthusiasts, these tubes were called Silver Wheels, back in the day.


I was amazed at the compact kitchen with everything I needed: microwave, cook top, coffee pot, fridge

There were two flat screen TV's and WiFi internet



 

 

Just a short walk to the beach.  This day there was a HUGE storm and the sand was underwater!

In the 1950s a family would go road tripping with a caper attached to the family car.    Cars in the 1950s were as big as boats and could easily drag an air stream behind them on the nation’s highways .  Read the story on the history of the airstream at  http://www.airstream.com/company/history/

I have an ongoing project to travel as much as possible for a daily cost of $100 or less if possible.   This often forces me to travel off season,  ski areas in the summer, beach areas in the fall or winter. 
But I do not mind the crowds and Americans on vacations are not very tolerant of solo travelers.  
My stay with KOA at Cape Hatteras met my goals and exceeded my expectations.  

So why not try a night in a soup can on your next travel adventure?
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another solo friendly travel offer

After years of being considered a travel group without importance, solo travelers are now seeing offers almost weekly!

Below is a PR anncement for NO SOLO SUPPLEMENTS for 2013 with Interanitoanl Expeditions.

Keep the offers coming!

International Expeditions Waives Single Supplement Fee on Every 2013 Amazon and Galapagos Cruise

Tapping into the growing solo travel market, natural travel expert International Expeditions is offering cabins with no single supplement fee on every 2013 Galapagos Islands and Amazon River cruise departure.

• 

Guests enjoy rainforest walks on the Amazon river cruise

I loved the excellent staff, small group size and no single supplement for this Amazon cruise. I often travel alone and that is a determining factor.

Helena, Ala. (PRWEB) September 20, 2012

Tapping into the growing solo travel market, nature travel expert International Expeditions is offering cabins with no single supplement fees on all 2013 Amazon and Galapagos small-ship cruises.

“We have seen growing numbers of single travelers looking for safe, escorted travel to the world’s wildlife-rich regions, and in 2012 solo travelers have made up 21 percent of all passengers in the Amazon and Galapagos,“ said IE President Van Perry. “IE has made every effort to make our journeys open and inclusive for all travelers, and that includes keeping single supplements as low as possible and waiving the fees on cabins throughout the year – not just at the last minute.”

These statistics echo a report released in May 2012 by TUI North American Specialist, a collection of adventure tour companies, which stated that solo travelers accounted for 22 percent of the business for those adventure companies, up two percent over last year.

Aboard IE’s pioneering journey into the headwaters of the Amazon River, guests travel aboard a classically styled riverboat, the 24-guest Aquamarina, enjoying numerous wildlife sightings. Daily outings on this small-ship adventure take travelers deep into the Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve to spot diverse wildlife, hike into the rainforest, and even fish for piranha. During excursions into the narrow river tributaries, guests may spot more than 100 kinds of birds, pink and gray river dolphins, sloths, giant otters and nocturnal animals such as caimans and capybaras.

“I loved the excellent staff, small group size and no single supplement for this cruise,” said Amazon River cruise guest Justin Child of Valencia, Calif. “I often travel alone and that is a determining factor.”

Amazon expedition passengers also spend time with Ribereños in remote river villages, handing out school supplies to children and meeting with a local shaman. Ensuring a high level of authenticity, IE varies the villages guests visit during their Amazon expedition.

2013 rates for the 10-day Amazon River cruises start at $3,898 and include pre-cruise accommodations, complimentary onboard laundry, all excursions, most meals, transfers and tips to porters and waiters for included meals.

On the 10-day Galapagos Islands cruise, International Expeditions’ 32-guest yacht M/V Evolution navigates to captivating islands, where the small group size allows for easy access to the wildlife and far more personal attention than guests find aboard large cruise ships. Onboard, guests sail in comfort with spacious accommodations, fine cuisine and a host of amenities including an observation deck (perfect for whale watching) and canopied bar, plus complimentary snorkeling equipment, wetsuits and kayaks.

In addition to daily snorkeling and hiking, other highlights include a visit to the Charles Darwin Research Center, famous for its tortoise breeding programs; an exploration of Santiago Island, a haven for finches, doves and Galapagos hawks; and a sailing to iconic Kicker Rock.

Highly trained Galapagos naturalist guides enhance travelers’ experiences by sharing their in-depth knowledge and bringing guests within inches of giant tortoises, blue-footed boobies, sea lions, penguins and other animals.

Prices for the Galapagos Islands cruises start at $5,098 in 2013, and include pre- and post-cruise accommodations, all excursions, most meals, transfers and tips to porters and waiters for included meals.

For more information or a brochure on 2013 journeys, call International Expeditions at  1-800-234-9620 or visithttp://www.IEtravel.com.

About International Expeditions

Celebrating 33 years of nature travel, International Expeditions specializes in small-group journeys to Earth’s most exhilarating destinations. A pioneer of environmentally responsible travel, IE is committed to preserving natural habitats and improving the welfare of the people and communities it visits. International Expeditions has been named to Travel + Leisure’s list of “World’s Best” tour operators & safari outfitters for seven years and to National Geographic ADVENTURE magazine’s list of “Best Adventure Travel Companies on Earth.”

Can solo travel be affordable?

You hardly can pick up a travel magazine or Sunday travel section in the remaining newspapers, and NOT see Solo Travel mentioned.     Traveling alone still brands you as doing something odd or different.

So now that solo travel has become the new target market, when will travel service providers take us seriously?   Just as I planned to blast all the travel providers for pricing my trips at 50% to 100% more than other travelers,  I receive emails all week advertising no solo supplement on cruises for 2012!   Wow.


An article in The Australian newspaper in NSW, Australia listed several ships that are offering attractive rates for solo travelers and even which companies will create more solo cabins for future guests.  Travel.     Recently Cunard offered several of their transatlantic crossings an European cruises without any solo supplement.     Even without a supplement many of the upscale ships may not fit in your budget.  Or like me, you prefer a number of trips each year, not just one grand adventure.    Other solo sales.bit.ly/Qhk3oY   www.advtvl.com/OfferDetail.asp?sid=18887&PriceId...

I just finished the last issue of Budget Travel magazine. Their special deals section lists great prices for trips all over the world.    However, even in the summer 2012 issues there were many of the special trips with solo supplements.

How do you handle the solo supplement when you travel?


UPDATE:   I just saw this on line, NO SOLO SUPPLEMENT!
 

Why UniworldDestinationsPlan Your CruiseBefore You GoAfter

Your CruiseConnectBrochure

Home /Value-Packed Savings /Value-Packed Savings

Value-Packed Savings

EUROPE |RUSSIA |EGYPT |CHINA |VIETNAM AND CAMBODIA

               

Single Supplement Waived Savings

Solo travelers can cruise at no additional charge as Uniworld waives single supplements

on select 2013 departures.

Book and deposit at time of reservation to take advantage of these savings.

 Click here to view applicable dates.

 Request A QuoteDisclaimer

 

Itineraries           Available Departures

Springtime Tulips & the Rhine (2013)       Mar 27

European Serenade (2013)          Mar 29

Portugal, Spain & the Douro River Valley (2013) Aug 15

Tulips & Windmills (2013)              Mar 23, 25

Enchanting Danube (2013)           Mar 24, 31

European Jewels (2013)                Jul 14

Paris & Normandy (2013)              Mar 15, 22

Burgundy & Provence (2013)      Mar 24, 31

Grand France (2013)       Mar 15

Venice & the Po River (2013)      Apr 7, 14, Jul 21

 

 

Solo and Safe not Sorry

For solo travelers one ever present concern can be safety.

Short or long trips, local or long distance, when you travel solo there is no one to notice if you do not return on time from a day of exploring or an evening meal.   Many travelers buy trip insurance to cover the unexpected, but how do you answer the questions SafeCheckin.com posses?

       If you go out alone and something bad happens, will someone notice you're missing?

          Realizing you are missing, will anyone know where to start looking?

 



Solo travels may need to be more careful that those in two's or larger groups.   SafeCheckin makes some interesting points:

"You do not need to be in the wilderness or out alone to go "missing"! It can happen on a date, a road trip, out for a run, taking a bike ride, or any activity. It happens EVERYDAY to individuals who least expect it."

Children, students, elderly, if you are traveling solo, on a date with a new 'friend' you may benefit from having someone watching our back.    This is fee memebership.  

When you leave for a trip or an outing, members will tell SafeCheckIn when ther are expected to return

The member will email or text SafeCheckIn when they return.
What i like BEST is what the company does if you do NOT check back in: 

• If the member becomes overdue, SafeCheckIn will attempt first to call the individual by cell phone. If we cannot reach the member, SafeCheckIn will begin to notify and inform the member's primary contacts of the member's overdue status

If you are hiking or walking, have car trouble in a remote area and no cell service, off on a solo adventrue, having someone checking if you do NOT return can give you additional peace of mind.
http://www.safecheckin.com

 

I am waiting for SafeCheckIn to expand to countries

 outside the USA......  

Solo Fares on Cunard: Single Occupancy Rates! It is about time.....

Cunard is Breaking Waves with  Single Occupancy Rates!

For all my fellow solo travelers who have the time and funds to travel by ship, or what other travelers call cruises, the BEST NEWS was sent to me today. 

As a former Cunard passenger, I just received notice that there are SINGLE OCCUPANCY RATES on several of their trans Atlantic and New England cruises.

Here is the email......   Just be sure to leave one cabin for me!

There are other sailing dates and destinations offered.

Now what must be done to encourage other cruise lines to offer NO SOLO SUPPLEMENTS?

 

It is Time!

Solo Travel with a Purpose

I have been using a new mantra this year:

Be a Traveler NOT a tourist
Learn something new,
Find a new adventure
Experience the local life
In 2008, after many years of trying to do or see everything in the  2 or 3 weeks a year my 24/7 job allowed, I finally took a sabbatical.

I had been dreaming of moving to Italy for part of the year for a long time.   All my vacations to Italy were wonderful.  My business trips were "interesting" but allowed me to see new parts of Italy.
But would I enjoy living there?   I am an Italian American but would real Italians accept me?  How do you manage in a town where you do not know anyone and do not speak the language fluently?
But it was now or never and I closed my business, obtained a dog sitter and took off for Sorrento for 3 months.  I know I would not have enjoyed or on some days survived this adventure without my weeks at Sorrento Lingue.    For all of you who already travel solo, I won't comment on solo travel, but long term travel opened a new door to my travel adventures.     
During my months in Italy "living as an Italian, not a tourist"  I searched for ways to enrich my days.
I spent hours exploring the towns along the sea.  Walking with a view of the sea was an endless pleasure.   But I still looked for a way to fit in, to participate,  not just another member of the expats organizations.

Tina, a former student at Sorrento Lingue, found a GREAT solution.        She did volunteer work!  See her story below.

Solo Mature Travel is Increasing!

       Travel  is NOT only for the young or what I call the 'ark' people, 

                  those that go 2 by 2.                          You can go great places solo......

LEARN SOMETHING NEW........TRY SOMETHING DIFFERENT.....

                           BE A TRAVELER NOT A TOURIST

PRESS RELEASE

May 1, 2012, 12:23 p.m. EDT

Overseas Adventure Travel Concurs with Older Americans Month 2012 Theme: "Never Too Old to Play"

More than 50,000 Americans 50+ Choose Soft Adventure Travel

BOSTON, May 1, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- As the U.S. celebrates Older Americans Month, beginning today, with the theme, "Never Too Old To Play," Alan E. Lewis, Chairman and CEO of Overseas Adventure Travel, offers the following insights into the soft adventure travel preferences of the 50+ market, including top 10 travel destinations for 2012.

"How older Americans travel today is far different from just a generation ago, when coaches would shuttle older travelers through five countries in 10 days to see the sights," said Lewis. "At OAT, today's traveler is healthy, physically fit, and off the bus -- eager to explore remote destinations, interact with local people, and engage in cultural activities. And close to 3 in 4 of OAT's 50,000 travelers are female (70%) -- up from 2 in 3 (60%) just 10 years ago, with one-third of them traveling solo."

According to the 2010 U.S. Census, there are more than 94 million Americans older than 50. Travel is the number one pastime for Americans over 50 [Immersion Active 2010], accounting for four leisure trips per year and making up 57 percent of all leisure travelers [Travel Industry Association 2012]. Today, more than 40% of Americans are single [2012 U.S. Census] with more than 35 million having taken a vacation by themselves in the past three years [Travel Industry Association 2012].

Meet for a meal all over the World

Wish I had found this site sooner, but thanks to a popular blogger, Grey, I now have an option for eating solo while traveling the world......

Invite for a Bite

When traveling on business or pleasure does the fear of eating alone in a restaurant keep you from traveling solo?


You can book travel, find hotels, navigate the train system if not the bus routes alone, but sitting 
in a restaurant is the equivalent to a root canal!


Now a woman has found a solution to our problem!   You can request a companion to meet you for a bite!    


The full story below!

Don't eat alone: INVITE FOR A BITE

Invite For A Bite is a new online social network for women who don't want to eat alone. Wherever they are in the world - traveling solo for business or pleasure, or home alone on a Saturday night - Invite For A Bite helps women get together with other women for a meal and a great time.

The Inspiration

Invite For A Bite came about after founder Cressida Howard heard a programme on BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour. A group of women were talking about how they loved traveling alone. But they all agreed on one thing: they hated eating alone.

“It's a problem I've had myself in the past,” says Cressida, who has spent time traveling and teaching in Spain and Japan. “Most women aren't comfortable going into a bar or restaurant on their own, especially in the evenings when they're surrounded by romantic couples, or drunk men with not very romantic intentions! I thought, wouldn't it be great if there was a website where women who didn't want to eat alone could hook up with one another and have fun eating together. That's when I decided to create Invite For A Bite.”

Although the inspiration for Invite For A Bite came from solving a problem for female travelers, women can also use the site to meet people in their own town. “Maybe you're new to a town,” says Cressida, “or you've lived there all your life and want to meet new people. Invite For A Bite can help you do that. It could be over a meal in a restaurant, at your house, or a picnic in the park. Eating together is a really relaxed way to get to know people. When you think about it, it's the oldest social network there is. We're just giving it a 21st century twist!”

How It Works

Women go on the site and create an invite to meet and eat, or accept one that someone else has created. Then they meet up and eat together. They can use the site whether they're at home or traveling thousands of miles away. “It's as easy as falling off a log. . . after a glass of wine!” says Cressida. “We're also happy if women use the site to meet for activities that don't involve eating. It's as much about the fun as the food.'

Growing Trend

The number of ‘social discovery’ websites that encourage users to go online to meet offline is growing. Invite For A Bite is at the forefront of a growing trend in online social dining networks that enable users to meet new people over food. It's the first to cater specifically for women.

About Invite For A Bite's Founder

Cressida Howard is a jazz piano teacher from Cheltenham, England. She describes herself as a reformed ‘technomoron’. She created the site with the help of two friends, web developer George Farron and web designer Kayleigh Witts-Thomas. “When I told my family and friends I was starting an online social network they thought it was hilarious. But they really liked the idea of the site, and I believed in it so much that I wasn't going to be put off by my own lack of knowledge. I've certainly learnt a lot in the last year!”

Launched: March 8^th 2012

see the web site:  http://inviteforabite.com/about.

“Invite For A Bite was inspired by a radio program I heard on BBC Woman's Hour. A group of female travelers were talking about how much they loved traveling alone. But they all agreed on one thing: they hated eating alone. I thought, ‘Wow, wouldn't it be great if there was a website where women who didn't want to eat alone could hook up with one another and eat together?’

Invite For A Bite solves the problem of what to do when you don't want to eat alone. Wherever you are in the world.

You might be traveling for business or pleasure. Or you might not be traveling at all! On Invite For A Bite you can meet people who live in your own town, as well as those traveling through. It doesn't matter if the ‘bite’ is a three-course meal in Amsterdam or a packet of peanuts at your local cinema. In fact, we're perfectly happy if you use the site to meet and not eat. It's as much about the fun as the food! All you have to do is create an invite and see who's up for joining you.

So wherever you are or wherever you're going, Invite For A Bite is here to help you: to find people to eat with, to have a great time.

Good health and happiness to you!”

Cressida Howard

Founder of Invite For A Bite

Solo Travel for Mature travelers........

Solo is not Single travel,  as you have read in countless blogs, magazine articles and on line.  Not a mission to find Mr or Ms Right..... Solo travel is to experience EVERYTHING or to just relax and do only what you want to do.

My last trip with 'a travel companion' was a nightmare.    Other solo travelers may have a 'Steve" story or have just found that solo travel is "freeing", "expanding" and something they prefer.     I vowed never to waste vacation time again.      

Now that my trips are often 30 day adventures, Solo Travel is the perfect solution.   When possible I try to rent an apartment in a central location and take day trips to other towns or villages.   Changing towns every few days is exhausting and only allows you to see the "tourist attractions" but rarely to meet the locals or understand what is special about each place you visit.   Some of the most insightful  days I have spent were looking for replacement shoelaces in Spoletto", using the post office in Florence or  chatting with a local jewelry artist about computers!

I have tried to become a traveler, not just a tourist.   To try to learn something about the people and place I am visiting the solution for me, was to do theme travel:   discover something new, learn a new skill or explore something different.

The harbor view from Sorrento Lingue

My best adventure was enrolling in  Sorrento Lingue school in Sorrento Italy during a 3 month sabbatical I took to see if I could consider living in Italy long term.     That in itself was an adventure.  Be sure to view a post on Sorrento Lingues' program for 50+ students on http://www.hometoitaly.com.

Meet Yle and begin your dream

This year I discovered Yle in Lecce, Italy.
The creator of this wonderful travel concierge service can make your dream vacation or adventure a reality.


I had advertised to find an Italian grandmother so I could learn how to make pasta.  I wanted to recreate the Italian American experience of learning the traditional skills every Italian grandmother teaches.
Yle found me Nonna Vata and I spent a day learning to make pasta!     She makes wishes come true and dream a reality.

Women of all ages, if you would like to visit beautiful Puglia, Italy, it is important to know that you won't be alone here. 
Travelling Solo to Puglia can be fun and a memorable experience.
We will assist you in tailoring the trip you have always dreamed of:  accommodation, transportation, cooking classes, bike tours, wine tasting, tours by classic car, walking tours and much more. 
You will meet many Puglia natives and experience magic moments just like a local and always in good company!


From the moment you arrive you'll be with welcoming locals and discover with them this lovely southern Italian destination. We are ALWAYS happy to welcome young or mature travelers.  
You will find this travelling experience fun, challenging and unique.   You'll meet people, discover beautiful and inspiring areas,  eat out,  enjoy your evenings with your new local friends, take pictures all the time, cook with local mums and grandmas, savor  authentic gelato or pizza, visit food markets and join your new local friends for a coffee in a book shop or by the ocean.


We will be by your side and help you discover the beauty of Puglia...still having enough time to relax.      Every detail of your tour will be taken care of and you won't need to worry. From the very first arrival at the airport we will be happy to welcome you and ensure you enjoy your stay here with us. 


Tours are fully escorted by Puglia native guides.    We will be able to customize a tour just for YOU and fit in with your budget and requirements, creating lifelong memories. 


Don't be a tourist, be our FRIEND! Tours available: all year round. 
 Are you ready?!!         Come on, have a great adventure with us..we cannot wait to meet YOU! 


Contact: Ylenia
 info@yltourcongressi.com