The Gargano

The Gargano is the spur of the Italian boot, a limestone block that was an island until the plain silted up around it, and it is unlike the rest of Puglia: instead of flat olive country there are cliffs, sea caves, coves and, on the higher ground, the Foresta Umbra, an ancient beech and oak forest with trees included in the UNESCO listing of Europe's primeval beech woods. Monte Sant'Angelo holds a grotto sanctuary that has drawn pilgrims since the fifth century and is separately listed. Offshore lie the Tremiti islands, a small archipelago with clear water and a fortified abbey.

What you actually see

• The Foresta Umbra - ancient beech woodland, part of the European listing.
• The sea caves and coves - along the coast between Vieste and Mattinata.
• Monte Sant'Angelo - the grotto sanctuary, a pilgrimage site since the 400s.
• The Tremiti islands - clear water and an abbey, reached by ferry.

When to go

May to June and September avoid the August crush, when Italian holidaymakers fill the coast entirely and roads and beaches are solid. The Foresta Umbra is best in autumn colour. Tremiti ferries run mainly from spring to autumn.

Honest expectations

August on the Gargano coast is genuinely overwhelming, with booked-out accommodation and traffic along a single coast road. Public transport on the promontory is poor and a car is needed. Tremiti ferries are weather-dependent and reduce sharply outside summer.

Nearby

Vieste and Peschici are on the coast; the Tremiti are offshore.