These itineraries are built with the experienced traveler in mind. Detailed route notes, exceptional lodging and fabulous restaurant suggestions along with available airport transfers and luggage shuttles offer easy logistics and accentuate the fun. We give you the freedom to choose as little or as much service as you would like with these adventures. We have time tested itineraries we are confident show you the real Puglia, and at the same time we are happy to design a journey completely based upon your preferences. No other company in Southern Italy offers as much freedom for the self driven traveler.
We are not a tour company.
We are not a travel agency.
We are experience dealers!
7 Day Cycling Premier 2009
Southern Visions is the only cycling company based in Puglia to offer fully guided cycling programs. We live and breathe Puglia 365 days a year! In the off season we are in the streets of Puglia discovering new routes, meeting new local guides and dining at the most authentic establishments in the region. We have intimate knowledge of the roads, the people, the food, the wine, the history and the best kept secrets of Puglia. Since our operations are here in Puglia we operate at a substantial cost savings and pass the savings on to you.
pre●mier
–adjective (
first in rank; chief; leading)
At Southern Visions we believe this definition of premier equates to excellence in service, lodging, cycling, cuisine, and experience. We do not take lightly that our elite travelers want to experience Puglia from a perspective impossible to attain only five years ago. The recent conversions of ancient Masserias into the epitome of luxury and service allows us to offer an unmatched journey into the best of Puglia both rustic and sublime on a daily basis, then retreat each afternoon to the welcoming arms of time honored hospitality and unique luxury. Our Premier biking programs anticipate the needs of our guests, have built in flexibility to go off script when applicable, and offer a rare immersive experience into the soul of Puglia. An in depth view of our program and amenities is one click away (Price and link to itinerary)
PUGLIA:
From the fertile and verdant Itria valley, home of the oldest olive trees in Italy to the shimmering Adriatic coast of the Salento, Puglia is home to some of the freshest meats, cheeses, vegetables and seafood on the planet traditionally prepared only steps from the crystalline sea or in the middle of a vineyard. Puglia is a virtually undiscovered gem for cycling. Actually, the Pugliese people have been avid cyclists for years and only now are foreign legs pedaling along some of Italy’s best kept secrets. We will ride across lands inhabited at one time by Greeks, Romans, Saracens, Normans, and Bourbons. Life moves at a unique pace in Puglia with politeness and formality still a priority and the traditional cuisine now being paired with some of the world’s most fabulous modern wines. This journey covers the beautiful hilltop towns of Conversano, Cisternino, and Ostuni whose Greek influence is apparent in their whitewashed exteriors and whose Italian heart and soul is felt with every friendly invitation and each bite of artisanal cuisine and continues southward to the amazing cliffs of the Salento diving into the shimmering blue Adriatic to the port city of Otranto and culminating in the musically baroque architecture of Lecce. The landscape is highlighted by seemingly deserted roads through ancient olive groves covered with blankets of poppies and surrounded by meticulously built little walls of stone.
Puglia at times is like a lunar landscape freshly planted with the best flora the earth could offer a colony of moon dwelling foodies. In Puglia it is at times easy to hear the voices of the past echoing off the inner chambers of the amazing conically roofed trulli where you are invited to discover your own spiritual journey through this jewel of the Italian Mezzogiorno!
We are not a tour company.
We are not a travel agency.
We are experience dealers!
We are local. We are authentic. We are more substance for less money.
We are Flexible. We are hospitable.
We are Puglia
Southern Visions is the only cycling company based in Puglia to offer fully guided cycling programs. We live and breathe Puglia 365 days a year! In the off season we are in the streets of Puglia discovering new routes, meeting new local guides and dining at the most authentic establishments in the region. We have intimate knowledge of the roads, the people, the food, the wine, the history and the best kept secrets of Puglia. Since our operations are here in Puglia we operate at a substantial cost savings and pass the savings on to you.
cas●u●al
–adjective (Happening by chance; fortuitous: a casual meeting)
At Southern Visions we believe this definition of casual best applies to the fortuitous meeting of two beautiful regions; Basilicata and Puglia. Casual also means an absence of formality, and rather than oblige our guests to choose only one path, we offer you the chance to select as many or as few components of our casual guided cycling as you would like. Our unique 3+4+3 program offers the flexibility of a guided program with options in Matera and it’s ancient and mysterious Sassi, Northern Puglia’s gorgeous Itria Valley with its stunning hill towns and mystic trulli, and the dramatic coastlines of the Salento finished by the breathtaking architecture of Lecce. (pictures of all 3)
We offer our guests a chance to choose:
Matera+Itria (3 days + 4 days) $ (click to see itinerary)
Itria + Salento (4 days + 3 days) $ (click to see itinerary)
All 3 Matera+Itria+Salento for the amazing 3+4+3 price of $ (click to see Itinerary
Basilicata:
Basilicata is one of Italy’s last frontiers for the traveler who enjoys undiscovered beauty and unspoiled landscapes. Led by the indigenous beauty of Matera and its Sassi, Basilicata is only now really being seen with through the eyes of tourism. Southern Visions has sought out only those vendors capable of delivering the kind of services you have come to expect from the leader in southern Italian travel. We will call Matera home for the amazing beginning to cycling in Southern Italy. From the mysterious Sassi it is easy to see the cross section of life with what was once an ancient culture and that now promises renewed life and a certain and palpable change in the spirits of our guests in Basilicata. Our rides will carry us to lands that at times may seem completely undiscovered where we will encounter people whose lives have maintained a commitment to the earth while the rest of humanity has committed to silicon and cyberspace. Basilicata is a living study in anthropology, gastronomy, geography, and good living. Join us here and you will be forever changed.
Puglia:
From the fertile and verdant Itria valley, home to the oldest olive trees in Italy to the shimmering Adriatic and some of the freshest seafood on the planet traditionally prepared only steps from the crystalline sea; this is Puglia and a virtually undiscovered gem for cycling. Actually, the Pugliese people have been avid cyclists for years and only now are foreign legs pedaling along some of Italy’s best kept secrets. We will ride across lands inhabited at one time by Greeks, Romans, Saracens, Normans, Bourbons. Life moves at a unique pace in Puglia with politeness and formality still a priority and the traditional cuisine is now being paired with some of the world’s most fabulous modern wines. This journey covers the beautiful hilltop towns of Conversano, Cisternino, and Ostuni whose Greek influence is apparent in their whitewashed exteriors and whose Italian heart and soul is felt with every friendly invitation and each bite of artisanal cuisine and continues southward to the amazing cliffs of the Salento diving into the shimmering blue Adriatic to the port city of Otranto and culminating in the musically baroque architecture of Lecce. The landscape is highlighted by seemingly deserted roads through ancient olive groves covered with blankets of poppies and surrounded by meticulously built little walls of stone.
Puglia at times is like a lunar landscape freshly planted with the best flora the earth could offer a moon colony. In Puglia it is at times easy to hear the voices of the past echoing off the inner chambers of the amazing conically roofed trulli where you are invited to discover your own spiritual journey through the jewel of the Mezzogiorno!
Unquestionably the finest and lightest road bikes available for use in Southern Italy. These singularly designed bikes were built and equipped according to our very versatile trip specifications. We are confident you will be thrilled with our equipment!
