Alternatives to Polignano a Mare: Apulia's villages and coves without the crush

Polignano a Mare has a problem: it is too beautiful to stay quiet. Between July and August the famous Lama Monachile becomes an orderly line of towels, the alleys of the old town are walked at a shuffle, and a coffee overlooking the cliffs takes patience. If you are looking for an alternative to Polignano a Mare that offers the same turquoise sea and the same balconies over the Adriatic but without the crush, Apulia has plenty: sometimes it is enough to move a few kilometres, other times to change coast entirely.

Monopoli

The simplest move is to head south, towards Monopoli. It is a real city, with an active fishing port and a fish market every morning, not a shop-window village. Its urban coves, like Cala Porta Vecchia beneath the castle walls, are small and rocky as in Polignano but far more secluded. Along the coast road open inlets such as Cala Incina and San Giovanni beach, where even in August you can breathe. Using Monopoli as a base costs less and still keeps you twenty minutes' drive from the famous cliffs, to go there at dawn when it is still empty.

A little further south, on the Fasano coast, is my favourite alternative for those who want to combine swimming and history. The ruins of Egnazia, off Savelletri, look directly onto the Adriatic: here you can literally swim over the submerged ancient Roman port, snorkelling among the blocks of the Messapian city lying on the sandy seabed. The surrounding coast alternates low cliffs and small coves sheltered from the winds, with crystal-clear waters and none of the crowds of a mass beach resort.

The Adriatic Salento

If instead the pull is that of a white village perched over the sea, it is best to head for the Adriatic Salento. At Otranto the fortified old town faces a sea of deep blue, and inside the cathedral awaits the mosaic floor with its enormous Tree of Life, a medieval masterpiece that alone is worth the journey. Otranto in summer is not deserted, but it has a breadth and depth that Polignano, by now reduced to a few much-photographed lanes, struggles to find.

On the Ionian side of the Salento the pace drops further still. At Ugento, a stone's throw from the beaches of Marina di Pescoluse, the Crypt of the Crocifisso is a sanctuary carved into the rock with Byzantine frescoes: the kind of stop that breaks up a day at the beach with something concrete to see. Moving inland, the Casale of Apigliano near Martano is a vanished medieval village among the olive trees, where the little church and the tombs remain: a taste of the Grecìa Salentina away from the queues. Further north, in the countryside of San Vito dei Normanni, the Crypt of San Biagio preserves a cycle of rock frescoes surprising for those who do not expect it.

The stone hinterland

There is then another Apulia, that of stone and inland, which works very well as a counterpoint to the crowded sea. Gravina in Puglia is a small city carved into the tuff: the Fondovito district, the ravine crossed by the aqueduct-bridge, the underground houses. Going down beneath Gravina you enter a maze of frescoed rock crypts that tells how people lived in the rock for centuries. It is an hour from the Bari coast, perfect for a cool day when the sun beats down too hard on the beach.

For those who really want to change the scenery, finally, there is the Apulian mountain of the Monti Dauni. Bovino, among the hills west of Foggia, lines up an ancient bridge, a Romanesque cathedral and a maze of stone alleys: hill air, milder temperatures and prices that have nothing to do with the riviera.

When to go

The decisive factor remains, more than the destination: the timing. For the whole Apulian Adriatic coast, May and June offer a sea already swimmable and minimal crowds, while September is probably the best month of all, with water still warm, tourists dwindling and prices dropping. By choosing the month well, even Polignano becomes livable again, and each of these alternatives becomes what you are really after: a lovely spot by the sea where you don't have to book your patch of shade.

Practical guides for Monopoli

• Where to stay in Monopoli
• What to see in Monopoli in 2 days
• Where to eat in Monopoli
• How to get to Monopoli