Bari (Bari dialect: Bare) is the capital of the Apulia region of Italy, on the Adriatic Sea. With a population of 317,000 (in 2019), it's the second largest city in Southern Italy after Naples. It's also the core of a metropolitan area exceeding one million inhabitants and a bustling commercial centre and port.
Photos: Wikimedia Commons contributors.
Bari is the largest and most important city of Apulia and stands on the Adriatic coast. It's mainly famous for being one of the exit doors of Italy, where travellers leave on ferries for neighbouring countries. The city authorities, however, have been trying to raise its tourism profile and awareness of Bari's old town, which has retained its ancient Medieval plan and contains many historic buildings and sites.
Bari is composed of four urban sections. In the northern city area, there is the Old Town (Bari Vecchia) between two modern harbours, with the Basilica of Saint Nicholas, the Cathedral of San Sabino (1035–1171) and the Hohenstaufen Castle built for Frederick II, which is now also a major nightlife district. In the southern district, the Murat quarter (erected by Joachim Murat), the modern heart of the city, is laid out on a rectangular grid-plan with a promenade on the sea and the major shopping district. AMTAB (Azienda Mobilità e Trasporti Autobus Bari). There are many public buses. A ticket costs €1 (€1.50 if bought on board).
In Bari there are so many things to see, especially the Old Town (Bari Vecchia), or the Cathedral of San Sabino, a Romanesque-style church. It has the longest seafront promenade in Italy, as well as alleyways, historical buildings, marvellous architectures and more than 30 churches, among which some outstanding ones like the Basilica of Saint Nicholas which is considered to be one of the prototypes of the Apulian Romanesque architecture.
Bari is a very lively city, with a wide range of clubs, pubs, bars, discos very popular among young people and adults. Many pubs are found in Corso Vittorio Emanuele II or in Piazza del Ferrarese; there are also many discos, like the Reef, on the seafront in the direction of San Giorgio. A popular summer tourist destination is "Torre Quetta”. You can get to Torre Quetta easily, taking the train from Bari station (direction: Fasano) and getting off at Bari Torre Quetta station on the seafront of Bari, a destination much loved not only by "baresi" (locals) but especially by tourists that love to spend an evening by the sea. If you are not a nightlife lover, you can spend an evening in the Ol…
Local cuisine is based on three typical agricultural products found within the Apulia region, namely wheat, olive oil and wine, beyond being even enriched by the wide variety of fruit and vegetables produced locally. Local flour is used for homemade bread and pasta production including, most notably, the famous orecchiette (ear-shaped pasta), also known as recchietelle or strascinate, very famous accompanied by cime di rapa, but also chiancarelle (orecchiette of different sizes) and cavatelli. Homemade dough is used for baked calzoni stuffed with onions, anchovies, capers and olives.
1 Black Lounge bar, Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, 182. Daily 09:00-20:00. Bar at the exit from Giardino Garibaldi. (updated Apr 2022)
Bari Vecchia is a beautiful quarter but because of the narrow, crowded streets and the presence of tourists, it is the preferred place for local pickpocketers. Sometimes at night there could be drunk people in the nightlife area.
Guide content from Wikivoyage contributors (CC BY-SA) — abridged; the full article has much more.
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In Jul, Bari typically sees ~32°C daytime highs and 4 rainy days.
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