10 Days in Italy’s Deep South

begins with arrival into Bari and a smooth group transfer to your first base in the Puglia countryside. After check-in, the group comes together for a welcome dinner, your introduction to the flavours and warmth of the region, and an easy first evening settling into the Pathways rhythm.

takes you into the elegant Baroque heart of the Salento. You visit Lecce, often called the “Florence of the South,” discovering its grand façades, ornate churches, and the showpiece Basilica of Santa Croce. A tasting of pasticciotto leccese and a traditional caffè leccese adds a delicious local ritual, before the afternoon continues to coastal Otranto, where the old town and cathedral offer a calmer, sea-air contrast to Lecce’s grandeur.

is devoted to the sensory, lived-in beauty of Basilicata. You visit Altamura, famous for its bread, with a traditional bakery experience and tastings of bread and focaccia, before returning to Matera for a guided walk through the legendary Sassi, including a cave dwelling and a rock-hewn church, one of Italy’s most moving and unforgettable landscapes of human history.

is a transition day done the Pathways way: early departure south with a worthwhile stop in Cosenza, one of Calabria’s most charming historic towns, for a gentle walk and time to absorb a place most travellers never see. After lunch, you continue to Villa San Giovanni and cross the Strait of Messina by ferry to Sicily, where you meet your local Sicilian guide and travel onward to your seaside base at Aci Trezza/Aci Castello for dinner and rest.

brings classic Sicilian beauty and panoramic drama in Taormina, perched above the bay with extraordinary views toward Etna. After a guided walk, there is free time for lunch, followed by an afternoon in Castelmola, a tiny hilltop village with narrow lanes and small squares. Here you enjoy a tasting of local almond wine and pastries in a historic café, an elegant, distinctly Sicilian moment that feels like a reward.

explores the lava-stone character of Catania, often called the “Black Daughter of Etna,” before a wonderfully authentic close to the day: a visit to an organic citrus plantation, learning the traditions of lemon and orange cultivation, followed by a generous Sicilian brunch-style lunch with local specialities.

completes the journey with optional time in Syracuse and Ortigia (if flight schedules allow), including the Neapolis archaeological park and the extraordinary “Ear of Dionysius,” before your transfer to Catania Airport.