The Trulli Houses are really quaint and it was a bit like being in Hobbitland for a week.  The hotel was lovely but the bar prices kept changing from day-to-day, so those of us who 'tipped' got unexpectedly high bar bills at the end of the stay.  The entertainment on Tuesday and Friday got us all dancing, and we knocked the other nationalities, mainly Belgians and Austrians,  off the dance floor, (not deliberately), as they seemed a bit scared of us with our arms flying about all over the place. 

The trips we good, although I took two days off, so didn't get Lecce or Matera, but enjoyed the others.  The locals were really friendly and the little village by the hotel was like being in an Italian version of 'The Archers'. 

I note though, that JY have changed the hotel for next year.  The meals out, one lunch , at the Masseria  Torre Coccaro, (an upmarket farmhouse restaurant owned by the hotel group), and one dinner at a more 'rustic' farmhouse later in the week, with endless food and endless wine, was also great!  

Our fantastic TM Marsha and our wonderful driver Mauritzio, made the trip special for all of us and nothing was too much trouble.  We never expected to have a group photo taken with elephants and giraffes behind us, ( well, way down below us in a wildlife park at least, visible with zoom lenses).

Our group, all 30 of us, one from Canada, gelled really well and I am sure we have made some long-lasting friendships.   Once again I met someone who I had been on a previous JY trip with. 

Unfortunately, just as we were boarding the return flight , an airport worker in Bari accidentally backed his truck into the front wheel of our plane, burst the tire and bent the wheel brace, but BA put us up in a nice hotel nearby and we got a BA special dinner with free wine and breakfast the next morning, because they, BA, had to fly out a spare tire and two engineers overnight to sort out the damage.  Anyway, all went well on the return trip and for me, being retired,  it didn't cause me any problems, although some of our group had to re-arrange connecting flights and re-arrange taxi pick up for the next day, which was a bit stressful for them.

However, I am sure this didn't spoil the overall holiday, which was really enjoyable.

This was a great trip in a beautiful part of Italy.  I'd only ever been to Italy on cruises before, so was pleased to be able to get into the culture a bit more.  The weather was great despite the 10 day weather forecast beforehand which predicted thunderstorms!  Take no notice as we didn't see a drop of rain and only had one partly cloudy day.

The Trulli Houses are really quaint and it was a bit like being in Hobbitland for a week.  The hotel was lovely but the bar prices kept changing from day-to-day, so those of us who 'tipped' got unexpectedly high bar bills at the end of the stay.  The entertainment on Tuesday and Friday got us all dancing, and we knocked the other nationalities, mainly Belgians and Austrians,  off the dance floor, (not deliberately), as they seemed a bit scared of us with our arms flying about all over the place. 

The trips we good, although I took two days off, so didn't get Lecce or Matera, but enjoyed the others.  The locals were really friendly and the little village by the hotel was like being in an Italian version of 'The Archers'. 

I note though, that JY have changed the hotel for next year.  The meals out, one lunch , at the Masseria  Torre Coccaro, (an upmarket farmhouse restaurant owned by the hotel group), and one dinner at a more 'rustic' farmhouse later in the week, with endless food and endless wine, was also great!  

Our fantastic TM Marsha and our wonderful driver Mauritzio, made the trip special for all of us and nothing was too much trouble.  We never expected to have a group photo taken with elephants and giraffes behind us, ( well, way down below us in a wildlife park at least, visible with zoom lenses).

Our group, all 30 of us, one from Canada, gelled really well and I am sure we have made some long-lasting friendships.   Once again I met someone who I had been on a previous JY trip with. 

Unfortunately, just as we were boarding the return flight , an airport worker in Bari accidentally backed his truck into the front wheel of our plane, burst the tire and bent the wheel brace, but BA put us up in a nice hotel nearby and we got a BA special dinner with free wine and breakfast the next morning, because they, BA, had to fly out a spare tire and two engineers overnight to sort out the damage.  Anyway, all went well on the return trip and for me, being retired,  it didn't cause me any problems, although some of our group had to re-arrange connecting flights and re-arrange taxi pick up for the next day, which was a bit stressful for them.

However, I am sure this didn't spoil the overall holiday, which was really enjoyable.

Great review Mike.  I've never got round to doing this trip, mainly because of the dreaded Gatwick scenario, but also because of mobility issues over the last few years.

What a shame that JY are no longer using the hotel.  I hadn't realised until I looked in the brochure as so many of the web pages have not been updated yet.  They seem to be changing a lot of hotels for next year.

Enough political talk  :s   I had seen online about the flight problem in Bari.  Yikes.  I'm glad that BA came good with getting you all a hotel for the night.

So where to next?

Thanks again for a great review.

.

Hi Bosuncat.  Glad you liked my review.  Like many others, I am waiting to see what happens on Oct 31st.  I had to apply for a new passport yesterday as my old one would not have 6 months left if I go to Europe at Christmas and if we are no longer in the EU, would be invalid, (according the the UK Government website). I am looking at the Christmas in Portugal and New Year in Spain trip, but I haven't booked anything yet as I didn't have a current Passport number to give JY yet.  Just to add, I went to the nearest main Post Office to get the new passport, and although I paid an extra £15, it was worth it because they take a digital photo there and then and there is no longer any form filling.  Although I took along my birth certificate, (now going yellow around the edges-LOL), my Driving Licence and a Utility Bill, the only proof of identity they needed was my OLD passport, because I am already n the 'system'.  It's a bit Big Brother-ish, but just to reassure any other JY passengers who may also need to check their passports on the Government website, the procedure for getting a new one at a Post Office is hassle free!

.

Thanks Mike,That’s good to know about renewing passports, I will have to do mine in December 

Keith

Hi Bosuncat.  Glad you liked my review.  Like many others, I am waiting to see what happens on Oct 31st.  I had to apply for a new passport yesterday as my old one would not have 6 months left if I go to Europe at Christmas and if we are no longer in the EU, would be invalid, (according the the UK Government website). I am looking at the Christmas in Portugal and New Year in Spain trip, but I haven't booked anything yet as I didn't have a current Passport number to give JY yet.  Just to add, I went to the nearest main Post Office to get the new passport, and although I paid an extra £15, it was worth it because they take a digital photo there and then and there is no longer any form filling.  Although I took along my birth certificate, (now going yellow around the edges-LOL), my Driving Licence and a Utility Bill, the only proof of identity they needed was my OLD passport, because I am already n the 'system'.  It's a bit Big Brother-ish, but just to reassure any other JY passengers who may also need to check their passports on the Government website, the procedure for getting a new one at a Post Office is hassle free!

.Mine doesn't expire until 2026 Mike  🙂   Interesting information though, thanks!

It is also very easy to apply for the passport online and the turnover is very quick plus it is also a bit cheaper. It seems that doing it via the post office too is good. I would have loved a Blue passport but mine too is Burgundy!

Jaya