The port city of Bari is the principal rail hub for the Apulia region of south-east Italy. It’s not a mainstream destination but more a place that tourists pass through. That said, it’s a pleasant spot to stop off for a day or two. The atmospheric heart of the Old Town is a web of narrow alleys and tiny squares on a peninsula jutting out into the Adriatic. To the south lies the elegant New Town with the main railway station, Bari Centrale.

Trenitalia operate Frecciargento trains from Bari to Rome three times each day, taking just over 4 hrs for the journey to the capital. There is an hourly express train running north from Bari on the Adriatic coast route via Ancona and Rimini to Bologna. Some of these services continue beyond Bologna to Venice, Milan or Turin. The latter two cities also have overnight trains from Bari.

A boost for 2019 is an improved Frecciarossa train service to Bari, bringing new levels of comfort (and speed) on some services to Milan and Turin.

Bari is the jumping-off point for journeys by rail to many parts of rural southern Italy. Matera, Taranto and Brindisi are all within easy reach. Note that some local services into the Bari surrounding area are run not by Trenitalia but by independent local rail operators. Trenitalia tickets are not normally accepted on these trains.

Bari is first and foremost a city of the sea. There is an excellent range of onward connections by sea, including regular ferries to Bar (Montenegro), Durrës (Albania) and Patras (Greece). These year-round shipping services are supplemented by summer routes to Corfu and Dubrovnik.