The heel of Italy is a different kind of golf country. South East Italy means Puglia and the Salento peninsula: ancient olive groves, white-stone towns, a coastline of clear Adriatic and Ionian water, and a pace of life that rewards those who slow down. Golf here is uncrowded and unhurried, set against masserie (fortified farmhouses), trulli, and long Mediterranean light. It pairs beautifully with food, wine and gentle exploring, which is why it suits a couple or a small group looking for somewhere their friends haven't already played.
We have arranged Italy golf since 1981. Every itinerary is hand-built and hand-priced around your dates, your group and the courses you want to play.
Why play golf in South East Italy
Two genuine courses in one compact region — San Domenico Golf Club on the Puglian coast and Acaya Golf Club in the Salento — so you play variety without long transfers.
Quiet fairways and easy tee times, a world away from the queues of busier European golf hubs.
A landscape you play through, not just on: olive groves, dry-stone walls and sea views frame the round.
A short, walkable region that lets you combine golf with Lecce, Ostuni and the coast in a single trip.
The kind of place we hand-pick for golfers who also care about where they eat, sleep and wander.
The courses you’ll play
The region's golf rests on two courses we know well. San Domenico Golf Club sits on the Adriatic coast in Puglia, a links-influenced layout where the sea, rock and old olive trees come into play — a course with real character and exposure to the elements that asks for shot-making rather than brute length.
Inland on the Salento peninsula, Acaya Golf Club offers a contrasting, more sheltered parkland test set among Mediterranean vegetation and historic surroundings near the village of Acaya. Played across a single trip, the two give you the breadth of South East Italy's golf — coastal and exposed, then green and protected — without ever straying far.
Where you’ll stay
Where you stay shapes a Puglia trip as much as where you play. Borgo Egnazia in Puglia is the region's landmark address — a resort built in the style of a traditional Apulian village, all white stone, courtyards and quiet luxury, and a natural base close to the coast.
For golfers who want to wake by the fairways, San Domenico Golf Club anchors a stay on the Adriatic, while Acaya Golf Resort in the Salento places you beside the Acaya course and within reach of Lecce. We match the hotel to the trip — a single elegant base, or a move between coast and peninsula — and hand-price the whole thing around your dates.
Best time to play golf in South East Italy
Spring and autumn are the sweet spot in South East Italy. From April into June, and again from September through October, you get warm, settled days, comfortable greens and the coast at its most pleasant — ideal golfing weather without the height-of-summer heat.
July and August are hot and busy along the Puglian and Salento coasts; playable, but better for early tee times and afternoons by the water. Winter is mild but cooler and much quieter, with shorter days and the occasional wet spell — pleasant for a low-key escape, though this is not a winter-sun destination. For most golfers, the shoulder seasons are when South East Italy is at its best.
A sense of South East Italy
History & heritage
Few corners of Italy feel as distinct. Lecce, the "Florence of the South", is a city of exuberant Baroque churches carved from soft golden stone. Ostuni rises white above the olive plains, while the Itria Valley is dotted with trulli — conical drystone houses found nowhere else. Acaya itself is a rare fortified Renaissance village, its walls and moat still intact near the golf club. This is a region shaped by Greeks, Romans, Normans and Spanish in turn, and you feel that layered history in every piazza and masseria. It makes the non-golf hours as rewarding as the rounds.
Food & wine
Puglia and the Salento are among Italy's great eating regions, and the cooking is proudly simple. This is the home of orecchiette pasta, burrata from the dairies around Andria, and vegetables, fish and bitter greens dressed in superb local olive oil — the region produces some of the finest in Italy. Long lunches at a masseria, sea-fresh seafood on the coast, and the famous Salento pasticciotto for breakfast all belong to a good trip here. The wines reward exploring too: bold Primitivo and Negroamaro reds from the Salento, alongside crisp local whites and rosés made for warm evenings. We can build dinners and tastings into your itinerary.
Beyond the fairways
There is plenty to fill the non-playing days. Wander the Baroque streets of Lecce, climb to the white hilltop of Ostuni, or lose an afternoon among the trulli of the Itria Valley. The coast offers some of Italy's clearest swimming, from Adriatic coves to the Ionian beaches of the Salento. Closer to the courses, the Renaissance village of Acaya and the masserie of the Puglian countryside reward a slow drive. Add a cooking class, an olive-oil tasting or a boat trip, and the golf becomes one strand of a richer Italian week — exactly the kind of balance we like to build in.
Getting around & exploring
A hire car is the natural way to explore South East Italy. Distances between the courses, the coast and the towns are short, but a car gives you the freedom to move between San Domenico on the Adriatic and Acaya in the Salento, and to reach Lecce, Ostuni and the masserie at your own pace. Roads are generally good and the driving relaxed once away from the towns. For those who prefer not to drive, we can arrange private transfers between your hotel, the golf clubs and the airport — simply tell us how you'd like to travel and we'll set it up.
Getting there
South East Italy is served by Brindisi and Bari airports, both within easy reach of the Puglian coast and the Salento. From either, San Domenico, Acaya and the region's towns are a comfortable drive.
Flights are not included in our prices — Golf Planet Holidays is a ground-only operator. We can arrange flights for you as a separate, ATOL-protected add-on, or you're welcome to book your own; either way we'll handle the transfers, golf and accommodation seamlessly around your arrival. Just tell us your preferred airport and we'll build the itinerary to fit.
Good to know
We are not ABTA members. Our trade credentials are ATOL (for flights only), PTS and IATA.
Our prices are ground-only; flights are a separate ATOL-protected add-on you can have us arrange or book yourself.
Best golfing months are spring (April–June) and autumn (September–October); summer is hot and busy, winter mild but quiet.
The two courses — San Domenico (coastal Puglia) and Acaya (inland Salento) — sit close enough to combine in one trip.
A hire car is recommended; private transfers can be arranged if you'd rather not drive.
Every itinerary is hand-built and hand-priced around your dates, your group and the courses you want to play — just ask and we'll get started.
Golf holidays in South East Italy — answers to the questions our golfers ask most.
How do I get to Italy?
There are several regional airports, easily accessible from the UK, or you can enjoy a leisurely drive through France before settling in Northern Italy around Venice, Milan or The Lakes, to play great golf and enjoy Italian hospitality.
Is it easy to get around in Italy?
Hire a car or ask us to arrange private transfers. If you are staying at one of the excellent play and stay resorts, taxis may suit you best.
How do we know which area of Italy will suit us?
Give us a call and we'll discuss what holiday works for you.
Are the golf courses in Italy busy?
Italy is still off the beaten track as a golf holiday destination so there is good availability, and prices, at excellent golf courses.
Are flights included?
Our golf holidays are arranged ground-only — hotel, golf and transfers. You can add flights through us, and those flights are ATOL protected as part of your booking.
How do golf holidays with Golf Planet Holidays work?
Every trip is tailor-made. Tell us your group, dates and the destinations you fancy, and we build a personal itinerary — hotel, golf and transfers — around them. There are no fixed packages to squeeze into; we shape the whole break to suit how your group likes to play.
