All the things I’d do to prepare for a holiday to Puglia: the checklist
- Christopher White
- 1 day ago
- 5 min read
So – you’ve done your research, chosen Puglia for your next holiday, and even got as far as booking flights and accommodation.
Those are the main things sorted for your holiday, and if nothing else, you’ve got your flights and somewhere to stay.
What else is there to do? That depends on how free and easy you like to live, or whether you prefer to feel more in control, like me! You can always wing it, but that might not be your style.
Here’s a list of the things I do to prepare for a holiday to Puglia:
Book your airport parking early
Book departure airport parking (where you’re flying out from), or travel to and from the airport in your departure country, way ahead of time to get the best deals.
You might find you get a discount code for airport parking in a pop-up on the airport website, if you register with a different email address.
Check your passport and visa
Check your passport is valid (and that you can find it). And make sure you have an ETIAS, if you’re not from a Schengen area.
Get your rental car paperwork in order
If you’re hiring a car, check you are taking the booking voucher (usually a PDF on your phone is fine), have excess insurance in place (so the rental office don't pressure you to buy their expensive own brand one), and that you take the same credit card (and driver’s licence) that you booked your car with.
I've seen more than one fellow traveller fall victim to the consequences of not having all of these in order - typically if the booking is made by someone on their behalf.
You’ll need to have anywhere from a few hundred to a thousand euros-worth of available credit on your card for the refundable deposit on your rental car (and don’t forget your PIN number).
Also check that the car rental office will be open when you arrive.
Check your arrival connections
To prepare for a holiday to Puglia, if you’re taking the train: check connection times that work with your flight’s arrival into Bari.
Stay in touch with your host
Let your accommodation host (or hotel) know your flight number, and arrival time.
Check you’ll be able to use your phone abroad (including data)
Make sure your phone contract includes European roaming, and purchase an add-on if not (and/or increase your monthly spending cap).
You'll absolutely need access to Google Maps on your trip - although you could simply download local maps within your Google Maps app to use offline.
Your other alternative is to buy a travel guide and/or map - I've listed some good ones available from Amazon.
Buy any essentials for your trip
Check that you have everything you need from the Essential Puglia holiday packing list.
The main things you’ll need are:
- Correct power socket adaptors
- Variety of USB leads
- Power pack to recharge your phone on the go
- A Ryanair or Easyjet hand luggage size bag if you’re only taking the free option baggage included
Everything else (sunscreen, towel, mosquito spray, handheld fan, slides etc) can be bought once you arrive, if you forget to pack them, from a supermercato and/or pharmacia.
Get your money situation sorted
Find a handful of euros to get you started: you probably won’t need much cash, but if you have any euros lying around the house, it’s worth taking them.
Make sure your bank debit / checking card allows you to use it abroad, and the same with credit cards which can be useful in an emergency.
And always choose to use the exchange rate of your own bank, rather than the ATM machine or restaurant card machine, when you're spending on your card.
Make a gentle Puglia itinerary
If you want to do some exploring, get a sense of which towns and beaches you want to see. Grab my 7-day Puglia itinerary for inspiration!
Find out whether there are any interesting events on during your stay – the official Puglia tourist website We Are In Puglia is a good place to start.
If you like food markets, there’s a list of which days they’re on, in which towns.
If you want to relax and aren’t too bothered by exploring, then search Google Maps to see which beach clubs are nearby / should be on your list (I can personally vouch for Lido Bosco Verde north of Ostuni – next door to Lullabay, one of my favourite bohemian beach bars; and Guna Beach Club, on the coast nearer Brindisi).
Make some restaurant bookings
Usually you can reserve a table a couple of days ahead of when you want to eat, but if there are any restaurants that you absolutely must eat at, then get it booked – especially if you’re heading to Puglia in the peak season.
Searching Google Maps for restaurants can be a successful strategy – look for any rated 4.5* or above. Like anywhere in the world, look for restaurants which appear to have plenty of Italians eating there – that’s a good sign – and avoid any with people standing outside trying to convince you to eat there.
Check the weather forecast
In all likelihood, it’ll probably be dry and hot if you’re travelling between May and September. But you never know – you might decide to take a rain jacket or better footwear.
Here's a guide to the best times to visit Puglia - with # of days of sunshine and rainfall.
Get the Essential Puglia Packing List
Everything you need for your trip can be bought from Amazon - I've listed it all for you on this handy shopping list.
Have I missed anything?
Hopefully I won’t have any more to add to this list, but if you’ve anything else that you normally do before a Puglia holiday, let me know at info@puglia-holidays.com and it can be added to this list!
Did you enjoy this blog?
I write everything for Puglia-Holidays.com for free - but if you've enjoyed this post, and would like to support me writing future ones, you can Buy Me a Coffee through this link. Every little helps me continue writing handy guides for travellers to Puglia!
Thank you so much ~ Chris
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