Polignano a Mare is a town in Puglia on the Adriatic Sea, south of Bari. It sits on the edge of a craggy ravine dotted with caves.
Its most famous son is Domenico Modugno who co-authored and sang Nel blu dipinto di blu (Volare) which won the Sanremo Music Festival and came third in the 1958 Eurovision Song Contest. He went on to a successful music and film career and later became a politician.
He has a statue dedicated to him on the sea front.
Polignano a Mare has ancient origins and is believed to be the site of the Ancient Greek city of Neopolis. It still has a Greek feel in some areas.
We arrived to fierce wind and a storm approaching. The buildings clinging to the edge of the sea are impressive.
It was not the best day for its famous, and much photographed beach.
It got better.
The sun came out briefly.
The beach is tiny and is not a sand beach. It is rocky and difficult to walk on. Getting into the water would be tricky and you would need strong footwear.
According to Paolo, the charming owner of the B&B we stayed at, 83,000 people descended on the area for the Red Bull diving competition last year. That seemed a bit far fetched until I looked at this photo from the Red Bull website.
This year it will be held on 2nd June, just in case you happen to be in the area. If you are, stay at Malu B&B. The terrace where we had breakfast has a view of the diving spot which is a private terrace. The divers enter through a living room.
There is evidence of Roman settlement seen with the remains of a bridge on the Via Traiana.
The old part of the town is lovely. The rain squalls and freezing wind kept most people away.
There are another few streets nearby with lots of shops, cafes and restaurants.
We booked dinner at Grotta Palazzese, the restaurant in a cave beside the sea. It really is in a cave! I can imagine it being a good hiding place for pirates centuries ago. Now it is an elegant (and expensive) dining area.
We caught a glimpse of it in the afternoon from one of the nearby cliffs. You can see it in the bottom left corner.
The setting is amazing.
The restaurant sits partly on a platform across the cave. Underneath you can see and hear the sea swirling in and out.
Overhead, these metal sculptures that look like sea creatures are really clever gadgets to allow water drips to avoid diners and plop into the sea.
The food was as good as the setting and the service was seamless. The waiters wore overcoats and we were given blankets…you can’t really heat a cave.
The beach looked great on the way back from the restaurant.
Malu B&B was excellent. The room was small, but well designed with a good bathroom and a great breakfast. Paolo told us his mother made the breakfast goodies.
It was a pity the weather was so awful. I can see that this would be a fun place to come for a few days.