# Puglia: trulli, a castle, and a sick olive

> Alberobello has 1,500 trulli on 10.52 hectares, Castel del Monte admits 120 people a slot, and a plant disease has redrawn Salento since 2013.

URL: https://myitalia.it/regions/puglia
Last updated: 2026-09-02

Puglia holds five World Heritage listings and one live plant health emergency, Xylella fastidiosa, which since 2013 has changed the olive landscape a visitor actually sees in Salento.

## Five listings, and three of them are shared

Castel del Monte, inscribed in 1996, and the trulli of Alberobello, also 1996, belong to Puglia alone. The other three are joint: the primeval beech forests from 2007, the Longobard power centers from 2011, and the Via Appia added in 2024 with Lazio, Campania and Basilicata.

The region recorded 17,894,361 overnight stays in 2024, 3.84% of the national total, and it is one of the few southern regions with two busy airports feeding it, Bari at 7,977,881 passengers in 2025 and Brindisi at 3,444,438.

## Alberobello: 1,500 trulli on 10.52 hectares

The trulli were inscribed in 1996 under criteria iii, iv and v, over a protected zone of 10.52 hectares covering the Rione Monti and Rione Aia Piccola districts, with more than 1,500 conical buildings inside it.

The technique is dry stone: limestone slabs called chiancarelle, no mortar, a double wall with a loose core, and buried cisterns for rainwater. Trulli existed in Rione Monti by the mid 16th century and the district expanded after 1620; in 1797 Ferdinand IV granted Alberobello the status of royal town, and new trullo building fell away. Parts of the town were declared national monuments between 1909 and 1936.

The Trullo Sovrano, the only two story one, has a single €2.50 ticket. It opens 10:00 am to 12:45 pm and 3:30 pm to 6:00 pm from November to March, closing at 6:30 pm from April to October.

## Castel del Monte: 120 people a slot, 45 minutes

Entry costs €9 full and €2 reduced, or €12 and €3 on the combined ticket with the castle at Trani. Hours are 9:00 am to 5:45 pm from October 1 to March 31 and 10:00 am to 6:45 pm from April 1 to September 30, closed December 25 and January 1.

The cap matters: 120 people per time slot, and the visit itself is limited to 45 minutes. Getting there is its own step, because no private car reaches the building. You park on the main road and take a paid shuttle; without a car, take the train to Andria and the ASA bus number 6, daily from April 1 to November 1 and weekends only otherwise.

## The bacterium that redrew the Salento

Xylella fastidiosa was detected on Salento olive trees in October 2013, the first documented case in Europe. The organism is subspecies pauca, strain ST53, locally called CoDiRO, and it causes rapid desiccation and death of the olive. The EFSA host database lists 696 species in 88 botanical families, including citrus, grapevine and many ornamentals.

The Leccino cultivar is tolerant, which is why replanting looks the way it does. What you see between Gallipoli and Otranto is a landscape in the middle of being remade, and it isn't finished. There is a full account at [the bacterium that redrew Salento](/stories/the-bacterium-that-redrew-salento).

## What the region is doing, in numbers

Puglia has committed more than €15 million to the 2024 to 2026 Xylella action plan, with monitoring run by ARIF, the regional agency for irrigation and forestry, and compensation available to both nurseries and affected growers.

Under EU regulation 2024/2504 the containment band inside the infected zone was narrowed from 5 km to 2 km. That's a technical change with a visible effect: the strip where felling and treatment rules apply is now much narrower than it was.

## Caves, forest, islands, and one museum card

The Castellana caves run 3,348 m and reach 122 m below the surface at a constant 62°F (16.5°C). Two routes exist: 1 km in 50 minutes, or 3 km in 100 minutes including the Grotta Bianca.

The Foresta Umbra in the Gargano National Park covers more than 12,000 hectares and contains four state nature reserves, Umbra at 399 hectares, Ischitella and Carpino at 299, Sfilzi at 56 and Falascone at 48. It's the only place where the depressed beech wood phenomenon is observed, with beeches growing far lower than they should.

The Tremiti islands are the only archipelago in the Adriatic, 20 km off the northern Gargano coast: five islands over 3 square kilometers, with 400 residents, forming the smallest municipality in Puglia. The Puglia Musei Card costs €20 and gives six months of access to the regional state museums, excluding Mattinata and the Castello Carlo V in Lecce.

Pane di Altamura DOP has been in the EU register since July 19, 2003, and it's the loaf that keeps for a week.

## FAQ

### How do you get to Castel del Monte without a car?

Train to Andria, then the ASA bus number 6, which runs daily from April 1 to November 1 and weekends only for the rest of the year. Even with a car you stop on the main road and take a paid shuttle up: no private vehicle reaches the monument itself.

### Is Castel del Monte limited to a set number of visitors?

Yes. Entry is capped at 120 people per time slot and the visit is limited to 45 minutes. Hours are 9:00 am to 5:45 pm from October 1 to March 31 and 10:00 am to 6:45 pm from April 1 to September 30, closed December 25 and January 1.

### What happened to the olive trees in Salento?

Xylella fastidiosa was found on Salento olives in October 2013, the first documented case in Europe. The subspecies is pauca, strain ST53, known as CoDiRO, and it causes rapid desiccation. Dead and cut trees are why parts of the landscape look bare.

### How long does it take to see the Castellana caves?

About 50 minutes for the 1 km partial route, and about 100 minutes for the 3 km full route, which includes the Grotta Bianca. The system runs 3,348 m and reaches 122 m below the surface, at a constant 62°F (16.5°C).

### How long is the train from Rome to Bari?

Four hours and 14 minutes on the fastest direct Frecciarossa, and only six direct high speed services ran on the weekday checked. Bari Karol Wojtyla airport handled 7,977,881 passengers in 2025, which is how most non Italian visitors arrive.

## Sources

| Fact | Source | Confidence | Valid until |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nel 2024 Puglia ha registrato 17.894.361 presenze turistiche. pari al 3.84% del totale nazionale | [Eurostat](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/api/dissemination/statistics/1.0/data/tour_occ_nin2) | medium | 2027-07-31 |
| In Puglia ricadono 5 siti UNESCO del Patrimonio Mondiale (2026) | [UNESCO World Heritage Centre](https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/it/); [Ministero della Cultura - Ufficio UNESCO](https://unesco.cultura.gov.it/projects/); [Wikidata (query SPARQL su P1435=Q9259, P17=Q38, P757, P131)](https://query.wikidata.org/sparql) | medium | 2027-08-31 |
| Il Pane di Altamura DOP e registrato nel registro UE dal 19 luglio 2003. | [MASAF - Elenco DOP e IGP prodotti agricoli (PDF, agg. 11/06/2026)](https://www.masaf.gov.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeAttachment.php/L/IT/D/1%252Fa%252F2%252FD.e7bdb4ebe6d458c7925a/P/BLOB%3AID%3D15453/E/pdf?mode=download); [Commissione europea - DG AGRI, registro eAmbrosia](https://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/eambrosia/geographical-indications-register/) | high | 2099-12-31 |
| I Trulli di Alberobello sono iscritti alla lista del Patrimonio mondiale UNESCO dal 1996 con i criteri (iii), (iv) e (v); la zona tutelata copre 10,52 ettari nei rioni Monti e Aia Piccola e comprende oltre 1.500 trulli. | [Ministero della cultura - Ufficio UNESCO](https://unesco.cultura.gov.it/projects/i-trulli-di-alberobello/); [Commissione Nazionale Italiana per l'UNESCO](https://www.unesco.it/it/unesco-vicino-a-te/siti-patrimonio-mondiale/trulli-di-alberobello/) | high | 2099-12-31 |
| Il Trullo Sovrano di Alberobello si visita con biglietto unico da 2,50 euro (2026), aperto 10:00-12:45 e 15:30-18:00 da novembre a marzo, 10:00-12:45 e 15:30-18:30 da aprile a ottobre. | [Trullo Sovrano - Alberobello](https://www.trullosovrano.eu/ingresso-biglietti/); [doc 2](https://www.trullosovrano.eu/) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| Castel del Monte ad Andria costa 9 euro intero e 2 euro ridotto (2026); il cumulativo con il Castello di Trani costa 12 euro intero e 3 euro ridotto. | [Castel del Monte - Ministero della cultura](https://casteldelmonte.cultura.gov.it/tariffe-e-informazioni/) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| Castel del Monte apre 9:00-17:45 dal 1° ottobre al 31 marzo e 10:00-18:45 dal 1° aprile al 30 settembre (2026), con ingressi contingentati a 120 persone per fascia oraria e visita limitata a 45 minuti; chiuso il 25 dicembre e il 1° gennaio. | [Castel del Monte - Ministero della cultura](https://casteldelmonte.cultura.gov.it/orari-di-apertura/) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| A Castel del Monte non si arriva in auto fino al monumento: si parcheggia sulla statale e si prosegue con una navetta a pagamento; senza auto si arriva in treno ad Andria e si prende il bus ASA n. 6, attivo tutti i giorni dal 1° aprile al 1° novembre e nei soli fine settimana nel resto dell'anno. | [Castel del Monte - Ministero della cultura](https://casteldelmonte.cultura.gov.it/come-raggiungerci/) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| La Xylella fastidiosa fu rilevata sugli ulivi del Salento nell'ottobre 2013, primo caso documentato in Europa: si tratta della sottospecie pauca ceppo ST53 (CoDiRO), che causa il disseccamento rapido dell'olivo. | [EFSA - Autorita' europea per la sicurezza alimentare](https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/topics/topic/xylella-fastidiosa) | medium | 2027-12-31 |
| La Regione Puglia ha stanziato oltre 15 milioni di euro per il Piano d'azione di contrasto alla Xylella fastidiosa 2024-2026 e, applicando il regolamento UE 2024/2504, ha ridotto da 5 a 2 km l'ampiezza della fascia della zona infetta in cui si applicano le misure di contenimento. | [Regione Puglia - Ufficio stampa](https://press.regione.puglia.it/-/la-giunta-regionale-approva-l-aggiornamento-del-piano-d-azione-di-contrasto-alla-xylella-f.-2024-2026) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| Le Grotte di Castellana si sviluppano per 3.348 metri e raggiungono 122 metri di profondita' dalla superficie, con temperatura costante di 16,5 gradi; si visitano con un percorso parziale di 1 km in circa 50 minuti o completo di 3 km in circa 100 minuti che include la Grotta Bianca. | [Grotte di Castellana S.r.l.](https://www.grottedicastellana.it/) | medium | 2028-12-31 |
| La Foresta Umbra, nel Parco nazionale del Gargano, si estende su oltre 12.000 ettari e comprende le riserve naturali statali Umbra (399 ha), Ischitella e Carpino (299 ha), Sfilzi (56 ha) e Falascone (48 ha); e' l'unico luogo in cui si osserva il fenomeno della faggeta depressa. | [Ente Parco Nazionale del Gargano](https://www.parcogargano.it/foresta-umbra/) | medium | 2028-12-31 |
| Le Isole Tremiti sono l'unico arcipelago dell'Adriatico, a circa 20 km dalla costa settentrionale del Gargano: cinque isole su circa 3 km quadrati complessivi, con circa 400 residenti, il comune piu' piccolo della Puglia. | [Ente Parco Nazionale del Gargano](https://www.parcogargano.it/isole-tremiti/); [doc 2](https://www.parcogargano.it/) | medium | 2028-12-31 |
| La Puglia Musei Card costa 20 euro (2026) e da' accesso per sei mesi a tutti i siti della Direzione regionale Musei nazionali Puglia, esclusi il museo di Mattinata e il Castello Carlo V di Lecce. | [Direzione regionale Musei nazionali Puglia - Ministero della cultura](https://museipuglia.cultura.gov.it/ticket/) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| L'aeroporto di Bari Karol Wojtyla (codice IATA BRI) ha registrato 7.977.881 passeggeri nel 2025 (+9,7% sul 2024). | [Assaeroporti](https://data-upload.assaeroporti.com/download-export/2025/12); [ENAC](https://www.enac.gov.it/app/uploads/2024/04/Dati-_di_traffico_2021_220914.pdf) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| L'aeroporto di Brindisi Papola Casale (codice IATA BDS) ha registrato 3.444.438 passeggeri nel 2025 (+1,7% sul 2024). | [Assaeroporti](https://data-upload.assaeroporti.com/download-export/2025/12); [ENAC](https://www.enac.gov.it/app/uploads/2024/04/Dati-_di_traffico_2021_220914.pdf) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| In treno Roma Termini-Bari Centrale il collegamento diretto Frecciarossa piu' veloce impiega 4 ore e 14 minuti, con soli 6 Frecciarossa diretti nel giorno feriale rilevato: la relazione non e' servita da linea ad alta velocita' continua (orario in vigore a settembre 2026). | [Trenitalia (sistema di vendita Le Frecce)](https://www.lefrecce.it/Channels.Website.BFF.WEB/website/ticket/solutions) | medium | 2026-12-13 |

## Image

https://media.myitalia.it/media/region.puglia.1600.jpg
Author: acediscovery. License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0).
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Panorama_Polignano-a-Mare.jpg

## Other languages

- it: https://myitalia.it/it/regioni/puglia.md
- es: https://myitalia.it/es/regiones/puglia.md
- fr: https://myitalia.it/fr/regions/puglia.md
- de: https://myitalia.it/de/regionen/puglia.md