Tourist Guide of Polignano a Mare

Submitted by Giampaolo Nanula on Fri, 2011-07-01 10:06

In Apulia Bari Surroundings Polignano a Mare Art and Culture Families and kids Food and Wine Love and Romance Nature and Outdoors

Polignano a Mare, situated in the province of Bari, is one of the most beautiful villages of the Adriatic coast. Surrounded by artistic features and crystal-clear sea, and excellent cuisine and the characteristic cone-shaped houses "trulli," the picturesque village of Apulia is to be seen.

Polignano a Mare is situated at round 36 km from Bari and is truly beautiful, with its ancient village perched on the spur of cliffs, overlooking the sea. In 2008, Polignano was awarded a Blue Flag, acknowledging its clean sea and quality tourist facilities.

The Ancient Village
Built on the spur of a cliff hanging between the sea and the bed of an ancient stream dug from the karstic terrain, Polignano was an impregnable village protected by a trench and high cliffs. The stream can be crossed by a bridge where the ancient gateway still remains which was once the drawbridge and only access to the historic centre. Polignano is a maze of lanes where visitors can enjoy getting lost in and take in the views from some of the terraces overlooking the sea.

Grottoes and Beaches
The cliffs hide many grottoes. The most famous of these is Grotta Palazzese, which is so spectacular the Bourbons would equip it for parties, marvelling their guests. Today the grotto is home to a restaurant of the same name.

To enjoy a swim in the town of Poligano is almost impossible; the best solution is to head towards the nearby village of San Vito, where at the entrance to an ancient abbey the reef is shallow. Another beautiful reef, however more difficult to access, is the reef which starts at Isola dell'Eremita, just outside Polignano which connects to the nearby Monopoli.

Ice cream
Tasting the delicious ice-creams is a great way of spending your summer evenings in Polignano. There are numerous places to buy ice-cream, however one of the most famous is Mago del Gelato (The Wizard of Ice-cream), situated opposite the entrance to the historic centre. The ice-cream parlour is decidedly in retro 1960s to 1980s style. Among popular flavors are hazelnut, liquorice, cream and plentiful crunchy toppings.

Domenico Modugno
On 9 January 1928, Domenico Modugno was born in Polignano, and is know all over the world as "Mr. Volare," singer of the famous Italian song. The relationship between himself and locals was not simple as he declared for many years he was from Sicily and not Apulia. To make peace with the locals and their most famous singer/songwriter, in August 1993 the last ever Modugno concert was held in Polignano, where a statue dedicated to him was erected along the seafront.

10 Things to See and Do
1. Visit the cathedral
2. Cross the bridge which accesses the ancient village
3. Visit the abbey of San Vito
4. Have dinner at Grotta Palazzese
5. Try out some liquorice, hazelnut or cream ice-cream with crunchy topping at Mago del Gelato
6. Spend a day in Alberobello, a village famous for its cone-shaped houses known as trulli
7. Take the cliff route between Poligano and Monopoli.
8. Admire the statue of Domenico Modugno
9. Take part in the annual diving competition
10. Spend a few days on the small beach of Lama Monachile

How to Get There
By air: Bari Palese airport is the nearest to Polignano a Mare and is well connected and located at around 49 km distance.
By car: Take the Bari A 14 motorway and head south along the "16 bis" highroad.
By train: Many local trains stop at Poligano and also trains operated by the Adriatic route (Direttrice Adriatica).
By bus: many private bus companies connect Polignano with Bari and nearby towns.