Places to see in Puglia

Church treasure and Puglian painting in the bishop's palace beside the cathedral, small and quiet. The indoor option on a coast that has almost none, and useful in the middle of a summer afternoon when everything outside is shut and too hot to walk.

Monopoli's cathedral, baroque and much larger than the town around it suggests, a few streets back from a working fishing harbour. Free. Monopoli is the least self-conscious of the coastal towns here and the easiest to spend an evening in.

The terrace at the edge of Ostuni looking out over the olive plain to the sea — the view that explains why the town is white and why it is where it is. Free, and the natural end of a walk up through the old quarter. Best in the evening.

The view back at Locorotondo from the valley road — a circular white town on a low hill, which is exactly what its name says. The Itria valley around it is the trulli country, and driving between these towns is the actual activity in this part of Puglia.