Cycling the Trulli Route: Puglia's Backroads Between Stone Walls and Ancient Olives

Puglia's trulli country by bicycle: far from the coastal crowds

Puglia has become one of Italy's most sought-after destinations, but tourism concentrates on the coast: Polignano, Ostuni, the Salento. The interior, just twenty kilometres from the sea, remains surprisingly quiet. The Ciclovia dei Trulli is a circular itinerary of 120 kilometres that crosses the heart of the Valle d'Itria and the Murge, among trulli scattered through the countryside, dry-stone walls tracing perfect geometries and centuries-old olive trees twisted into extraordinary shapes. It is the Puglia that mass tourism never sees, revealed only to those patient enough to pedal.

The route

Locorotondo – Alberobello – Noci (35 km)

You start from Locorotondo, one of the most beautiful borghi in the Valle d'Itria, with its circular historic centre and whitewashed houses. The road to Alberobello passes through the trulli countryside: here they are not a tourist attraction but homes still in use, scattered across the fields. At Alberobello the trulli district is well known, but step outside the Rione Monti and you find deserted lanes. You continue to Noci along secondary roads through olive groves and masserie, some abandoned and haunting in their decay.

Noci – Gioia del Colle – Altamura (40 km)

The wildest stretch climbs into the high Murge. You ascend gradually to 400 metres through a karst landscape of sinkholes, dolines and rocky outcrops. At Gioia del Colle the Norman-Swabian castle deserves a stop, as does the local mozzarella — different from the Campanian version: drier and more flavourful. At Altamura you arrive in the late afternoon, in time to buy the famous DOP bread baked in wood-fired ovens in the historic centre, and to visit the Frederician cathedral with its carved rose window.

Altamura – Gravina in Puglia – Santeramo (25 km)

From Altamura a short detour leads to Gravina in Puglia, a city carved into the tuff above a spectacular canyon. The Aqueduct Bridge, the cave churches and the Fondovito quarter are experiences that alone justify the journey. The route continues to Santeramo in Colle, through the roughest part of the Murge where falcons wheel over the garrigue.

Santeramo – Martina Franca – Locorotondo (20 km)

The final stretch descends gently into the Valle d'Itria. Martina Franca is one of southern Italy's most refined Baroque cities, with ornate palaces and an elegant main square. From here you return to Locorotondo along secondary roads crossing vineyards of Verdeca and Bianco d'Alessano, indigenous grape varieties that produce fresh, mineral white wines.

Practical information

Difficulty

A medium-difficulty route due to the elevation (approximately 1,200 metres spread over 120 km) and some short but steep climbs. Roads are paved but sometimes uneven. A gravel or touring bike with tyres of at least 28 mm is recommended. An e-bike is advisable in summer for the climbs during the hottest hours.

When to go

March to June and September to November. Spring is the best period: mild temperatures, flowering countryside and few crowds. Autumn brings the olive harvest and warm colours. Summer is feasible only if you set out at dawn and rest during the midday hours: the Puglian heat is serious.

What to bring

• Generous water supply (at least 2 litres): fountains are rare outside town centres
• Food for the Murge stretches where there are no services for 20 km
• High-factor sunscreen: shade is scarce
• A sturdy lock for visits to the borghi
• Cash for artisan shops and bakeries

Where to stay

Masserie converted into agriturismi are the most authentic experience, with prices that in low season remain accessible (40-70 euros per night with breakfast). At Locorotondo and Martina Franca there are B&Bs in the historic centres. At Altamura several places welcome cyclists with bike storage and a generous breakfast.

Where to eat

Puglian cuisine is one of Italy's richest and here it still costs very little. Fave e cicorie, orecchiette with turnip tops, Barese focaccia, burrata, Altamura bread, taralli with fennel. Every borgo has its rosticceria with fried panzerotti for one euro. Local wine — Primitivo, Negroamaro, Verdeca — is served by the jug in osterie for a few euros a litre.

How to get there and logistics

Locorotondo is reachable by train on the Ferrovie del Sud Est line from Bari (1 hour 20 minutes). The nearest airport is Bari Palese, with low-cost flights from across Europe. Several rental shops at Locorotondo, Alberobello and Martina Franca offer touring bikes, gravel bikes and e-bikes. For those who prefer an organised tour, some local agencies offer packages with luggage transfer between stages and agriturismo bookings. The provincial roads are generally safe, but during peak hours (7-9 and 17-19) traffic on the SP236 between Noci and Gioia del Colle can be heavy: prefer the secondary municipal roads.

Slow Puglia

The Ciclovia dei Trulli is not a race or a sporting feat. It is a way of entering the real Puglia — that of farmers who harvest olives by hand, bakers who knead bread at four in the morning, and women who lay out orecchiette on tables in front of their doors. Pedalling, with the warm wind carrying the scent of thyme and red earth, this land reveals itself with a generosity that no resort on the coast could ever match.