Car Hire: Take advantage of the special easyJet inflight rates. Visit the Europcar desk on arrival or call +39 (0)80 531 6144. Open from 8am-11.30pm Monday-Friday and 8am-11pm at the weekend.

Airport Transfer: Pre-book your door-to-door transfer with easyJet’s transfer partner, Holiday Taxis—from home to the airport, then city or resort (easyjet.holidaytaxis.com).

Taxi: The fare for the 25-minute journey to the centre is €20-€25.

Bus: Number 16 from the terminal leaves every 40-60 minutes for Piazza Moro train station. The journey takes 35-40 minutes. Tickets: €0.77.

Pizzeria Bar Tavola Calda Nautilus
( 54 Piazza Giulio Cesare. Tel. 080 5565741 )
Great little pizzeria for a quick lunchtime meal or just a snack. Well-priced food.

Al 2 Ghiottini
( 11 Via Putignano. Tel. 080 523 2240 )
Puglian cuisine at its best, including a variety of fish and vegetable dishes. The Mediterranean flavours complement the sometimes surprisingly warm winter's sun at lunchtime.

Ristorante la Locanda del Pescatore
( 4C Via Matarrese. Tel. 080 504 2177 )
As the name suggests, this locanda is renowned for its fresh fish and other exceptional seafood dishes. For those with an appetite, the generous pizzas will hit the spot.

Ristorante la Locanda del Pescatore
( 4/c v. Matarrese. Tel. 080 504 2177 )
As the name states; this locanda is renowned for its fresh selection of fish and other exceptional marine dishes. Specialist pizza too for the hearty eaters amongst you.

Masseria Barbera
( Minervino Murge . Tel. 0883 692 095 )
Just a few kilometres from the beautiful Castel del Monte, this exquisite restaurant has been run by five generations of the Barbera family. The dishes are created with an evident passion for the countryside—and served up like a piece on art on a plate.

Il Caffe Borghese
( 122 Corso Vittorio Emanuele II. )
Right next to Castelli Svevo, this is one of the oldest cafés in Bari—ideally situated to soak up the atmosphere of the city.

Santo Graal
( 4 Vicolo Santa Maria, Trani . )
This Irish pub offers a winter schedule of live music and theatre to entertain its clientèle as they down Guinness, Irish whiskeys and rums.

Gilda
( 60 Viale Einaudi. )
Bar by day, club by night. Order a long drink or a cocktail to get you in the mood for dancing along with the Mediterranean rhythms.

Enotecas around the city offer the opportunity to taste and buy without visiting a vineyard. Try Enoteca Il Tralcio, noted for its wide choice of wines (33 Via Manin, Monopoli).

Discover Bari and the neighbouring region on two wheels. An extensive system of cycling tracks offers the freedom to visit the city's key monuments directly from your hotel door (www.pugliainbici.com).

Piazza XX Settembre Mola di Bari hosts evening concerts throughout the year and often street entertainment, too.

Chi Ha Paura di Virginia Woolf? (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?) is playing at Teatro Piccinni (4-8 January).

Andria – Visit the Castel del Monte, a masterpiece of medieval architecture and took its place on the World Heritage list in 1966. Take the autostrada exit Barletta-Andria SS 170 for about 18 kilometres (www.casteldelmonte.beniculturali.it).

Local producer Cantine Due Palme demonstrated the outstanding quality of Puglian wines and grappa when it won 18 awards at the international wine fair Vinitaly 2008 in Verona.

Compiled by Colleen Boot/www.pugliauncovered.com