A bike ride into gastronomic tastes of Salento

Welcome to Lecce! Today you get your bike with GPS navigator and take part in a short briefing about your exciting holiday route.

You'll bike along a flat route enjoying interesting cultural and natural sights. After visiting Acaya, a fortified city with a big castle, you'll plunge down to “Le Cesine”, a WWF protected area, crossing point for many migratory bird species. Then, you proceed towards the coast, along the ruins of Roca Vecchia, an ancient Bronze age city, and ‘Alimini’ Lakes.

Biking for some other kilometres, you'll reach Otranto, where enchanting narrow alleys reveal wonders at every corner: St. Peter church, Byzantine frescoes, the amazing walk along the ramparts overlooking the sea and the cathedral with its paved mosaic, a sort of figurative Middle Age encyclopedia. Dinner based on seafood in one of the best restaurants of the town.

Enjoy an exploration of the beautiful city of Otranto and its surroundings. Biking along the little river “Idro”, which means “water” and gives the name to the city, we arrive in Casamassella, where old looms are still being used in “Le Costantine” foundation.

After a guided tour we move toward Giurdignano, passing through a Bronze age megalithic park enclosing enormous stones (“dolmen” and “menhir”), till arriving to “La Cutura” botanic garden. Here ‘Toto’ will lead us through his incredible plants collection, unique in Europe thanks to its cactus species. In the late morning you'll enjoy a wine and cheese tasting in a wine cellar. Return to Otranto and free dinner in the historic centre.

Optional: it is possible to enjoy a horse riding in the morning or in the afternoon.

It's time to bike along the wildest Salento coastal stretch. Today, you'll visit ‘Palacìa’ lighthouse, the easternmost point of Italy, and a little red lake located in a disused bauxite quarry. Then you'll carry on riding along the coast: nestled among the cliffs above the sea, this road is a huge balcony that looks onto Otranto Strait. If we're luck we will be able to see the mountains of Albania and Greece. It is also possible to visit ‘Zinzulusa’ cave, going down nearly 200 feet into the earth bowels.

En route, we admire some terraces and dry walls, the ingenious devices of peasants to get arable land in barren and impervious areas. After crossing the bridge over the “ciolo”, a small canyon rich in rare flora carved by the waters, we reach Santa Maria di Leuca to visit the sanctuary, following the ancient pilgrims footsteps. Dinner based on seafood in a renowned restaurant.

Today we'll discover Leuca Cape, the southern part of Apulia, visiting an astonishing defense tower situated in the centre of a small village, an ancient mill, dug into the rock, and then an enigmatic funerary monument made by huge stones (its name “centopietre”, means “hundred stones”), coming from Vereto, an ancient pre-Roman town situated nearby.

Then, we also visit Leuca piccola ('little Leuca'), an important pilgrimage station. Biking along alleys studded by olive groves and dry stone walls you'll reach a farmhouse, where you'll enjoy a tasting of organic products. Afterwards, you'll move on to Ugento to visit its archaeological museum. Overnight in a beautiful Masseria (farmhouse) overlooking the sea - dinner served in masseria. 

In the morning you’ll proceed again to the ionic coast of St. Andrew’s island and Punta Pizzo natural park, and then to Gallipoli, where we could enjoy an aperitif on a terrace overlooking the sea. This small and picturesque fisherman village is located on an island, it strikes due to its light, its alleys and its fish market. After enjoying a delicious ice cream, we ride toward the San Mauro church: one of the hidden gem of this country, hosting an ancient Byzantine frescoes cycle.

At the end, we can enjoying the sunset cycling to Santa Caterina, a calm village on the borders of Porto Selvaggio Natural Park. In the afternoon optional kayaking in the Park of Porto Selvaggio. Dinner is served in Villa or in a nearby restaurant (depending on the size of the group). 

Today we'll have the chance to discover the city of Gallipoli and its surroundings. First of all, we'll reach Sannicola to explore and enjoy its underground oil mill, then Tuglie, popular thanks to its amazing “rural culture museum”. Afterwards, we continue to Galatone to discover its stunning Baroque old town and the Norman castle of Fulcignano.

In the afternoon we reach Galatina where we can admire the church of Santa Caterina, totally painted with frescoes in Giottesco style, and finally enjoy and get lose in the beautiful historical center of the town. Finally, stop in the vinery "Santi Dimitri", to deepen our knowledge about the process of obtaining oil and wine. Furthermore, we can take part in a wine-cheese tasting here. 

The last day of our trip is dedicated to the discovery of the main sights setting on the route from Gallipoli to Lecce: we'll pass many 19^th century fortified farmhouse and villas. We stop in Nardò to visit its decadent Baroque style historic center and then in Copertino to explore its impressive Norman castle and listen to stories about 'the hopi of flights'.

Before reaching Lecce, we'll visit a handicraft traditional pottery, at the Martina brothers, skillful keepers of this ancient art.

Arrival in the city in the late afternoon: bikes drop off. Today we'll enjoy our last dinner in one of the best restaurants of the town.

End of services, after breakfast at the hotel.