Cycling Puglia & Matera

Excellent tour through the heel of Italy's boot. Beautiful scenery cycling on country lanes, coastlines and walled cities. Delicious food and wine along the way.

A great trip with some beautiful scenery and stunning towns. Cycling on some of the days was quite tough given the weight of the bikes combined with the undulating terrain and Puglian heat (end May 2022). Great tour guide Antonio and driver Piero could not have been better. Very good standard of accommodation.

Beautiful countryside, just the right amount of challenging hills, and amazing food and drinks - what more could you ask for? This trip is so well planned to see the best that Puglia has to offer. Matera is a must see (we spent a couple extra nights there and HIGHLY recommend it if you can), but the real gem here is the countryside full of olive groves, old farmhouses, small towns, and beautiful sea views. Our personal favorite parts were the small towns we stopped in daily for a cappuccino breaks - you won't see these places from a bus. Our group leader (Manny) made the trip unforgettable - he kept a good pace, told us just the right amount of history about the area, and made sure we well fed and taken care of. While we didn't require van support - we always knew he was there if needed - and brought fresh snacks (and water) daily to all our stops. Of course the highlight for us was staying at Maseria Bosco (day 4) - the old farmhouse was the perfect place to stay for the evening, surrounded by olive groves, and the restaurant was amazing. Thanks to all the recommendations and support from Exodus before our trip - we got engaged this night, they went above and beyond to make it perfect!

A varied week of cycling terrains offering an insight into Puglia. The locals were the friendliest yet and their food spectacular and inexpensive.

Thank you Exodus for an excellent first cycling holiday. I loved every minute... even the ‘undulations’ !!! I had not cycled more than 15miles in one go ever, but felt I was so strong by the end of the 6 days. A great personal challenge! It was great being in a big group, and soon got to know the people we had just met. Manuela was a tremendous guide & Pierrot was a superb support guy... providing us with healthy snacks , fresh water & delicious local food picnics. This trip is to be recommended. I will definitely go back to the area. And definitely travel with exodus again. The bicycles we hired were of a superb quality & very comfortable to ride.

I'd highly recommend this cycling trip to those who are looking for a 'moderate' cycling holiday. The route is great - you visit some of the main tourist sites in Puglia, but also visit some of the little towns that have very few tourists. The scenery is beautiful - you cycle through olive groves, along the coast and through narrow lanes in little towns. Our tour leader, Emanuele (Mani) was fantastic. He was keen to ensure that everyone had a great time. I really can't praise him enough. We ate in a range of cafes and restaurants for lunch and dinner - all were very good with some delicious food.

The sun shone,the bikes were sturdy to cope with the bumpy roads and the food was outstanding. After a long and undulating first day I thought I'd never keep up. But my legs did get used to the speed of the others and the hills became just a small challenge. A great holiday with lovely people.

This was a great, relaxing cycle holiday to the heel of Italy, with a good mix of people. We had quite a large group and exceptional weather of 35-40 degrees in September, which was a little higher than the expected temperature for that time of year. What a beautiful part of Italy to visit and cycling was a fantastic way to explore it. I loved having the time to indulge in the cafe/gelato culture at lunch or after the day cycling and the freedom to chill before the optional group dinner or doing something by yourself. In some of towns, where we experienced an increase in traffic, it was still relatively ‘cycle friendly’. There were many locals who cycle, regardless of age and others self-touring - so it was a very positive cycling experience.

This was a really enjoyable cycling holiday:  the roads chosen were predominatly little trafficked by cars, the countryside was a lush green, with roadsides and fields covered in masses of wildflowers, the villages and towns presenting aspects ranging from rural tranquility to urban liveliness and architectural interest. 

This was a hugely enjoyable trip made by our delightful and knowledgeable guide, Marinella Bozzetti . The tour took us through beautiful countryside and fascinating historic towns and the distances and hills were reasonable for regular cyclists with a good level of fitness. I would rate the trip as excellent but felt our tour guide could have done with more back up - at the very least there should be a spare bike of equivalent standard so that bikes could easily be replaced if necessary.