Matera to Puglia cycling holiday, Italy

Planet

Activity:
Few holidays have as little detrimental impact on the environment and local residents as a cycling trip. Erosion on and adjacent to popular paths is a growing problem in certain places and therefore our trip leaders encourage clients to stick to advised routes in order to minimise this. We do believe in leaving no more than footprints although this tour actively encourages guests to talk to local people, visit local cafes and restaurants, and use shops to purchase traditional gifts and crafts. At Basilicata and Puglia fruit markets, for example, clients can lend their businesses to farmers and small vendors selling seasonal fruit: peaches, apricots and cherries in spring; grapes and citrus in autumn.

Water:
Water is a really important issue with cycling trips and whilst we must stay hydrated, it is also vital that we have a system for providing clean water without causing lots of waste with plastic bottles. We suggest that instead of repeatedly buying bottled water, guests should re-fill a singular bottle. Our guides can advise where to fill them and where to recycle litter.

UK Office:
It all starts at home so we have first worked at reducing our carbon footprint in our UK Offices. Through energy conservation measures and recycling policies, we are proud to be actively reducing the waste produced and our impact on the environment. We support various projects all over the world to try and give something back to the places we visit.

People

Accommodation and Meals:
We use a mixture of hotels and spend one night in a typical Masseria (a traditional converted farmhouse) surrounded by olive groves. All of the accommodation we have selected is run by local people, which is good for the community. Where meals are provided, local and organic ingredients are used wherever possible. There will be a range of delicious Italian food on offer over the trip and guides encourage clients to use the large range of local restaurants and cafes at dinner. Regional specialties include Orecchiette served with a sauce of turnip-tops or fresh tomato and sheep's ricotta-cheese, aubergine and parmesan bake, roasted peppers, fresh seafood, burrata (soft mozzarella and cream cheese), mozzarella and Caciocavallo sheep's cheese.

Local Craft and Culture:
At Locorotondo we organise a regional wine tasting- which is exceptional in this area and goes towards supporting local production. We also visit a number of religious and historical sites along our route like the Grotta Zinzulusa, the thermal baths of Santa Cesarea Terme and the Baroque city of Lecce, which is home to over 40 churches, palaces and a Roman amphitheatre. By making donations and using businesses which surround these sites, we are ensuring that the community benefits from our tourism.

Charity:
Every year we sponsor and support Bicincittà, which is a national Italian bike ride organized every year by UISP ( Unione Italiana Sport Per Tutti). This organisation run several events year round and aims to promote social inclusion for sporting activities all over the country. This particular bike ride is open to all and campaigns for mobility and sustainability of the community and surrounding environment.

Group Size:
This small group tour has a maximum of 16 participants, meaning that we have a low impact on the environments and communities we visit and are able to ensure that we do not disrupt or lead to the displacement of local people. The small number also allows us to stay in unique, family-run hotels that cannot benefit from coach tours and other mass tourism due to their limited sizes.