Airports Closest to Puglia Italy

I have been to Puglia a couple of times now, and the first time was from Sicily and the second time was from Croatia. So because of this, we were looking to find the airports closest to Puglia, Italy, because I love the south and there were so many towns to go to. So in this blog, I will break down the nearest airport to Puglia and the destinations they are close to before you take a trip. Knowing this was really important due to the areas I was coming from and shaped my whole itinerary.

Airports in Puglia

So there are two major airports near Puglia, Italy. The first one is Bari Airport, also known as Bari Karol Wojtyła Airport that is in the north of Puglia. Most people know it as Bari Airport, but it was named after Pope John Paul II, who was born Karol Wojtyła. Bari Airport is about 8km from Bari city centre and handles the majority of international and domestic flights, so it tends to be better known. We're talking about 36 countries. In terms of passengers, the latest stats say 7,977,881 went through per year.

Then there is Brindisi Airport. This airport is located in the south of Italy and only goes to about 13 countries. It is located about 6km from Brindisi centre, and this airport is more for the south if you want to travel to Lecce, Otranto, Gallipoli and many more towns. The annual traffic is about 3,385,610 passengers per year, so about half of the traffic of Bari Airport.

Airport closest to Puglia, Italy - Bari Airport

So if we look at the map and put a pin on Puglia technically the airport closest to Puglia Italy is Bari airport. It has major airlines such as Wizz Air, Ryanair, British airways and many more. It even has United airlines so you can directly fly from Newark in America. The airport itself has great facilities such as many car rental services and easy transport.

I remember on my last trip I flew from Rome to Croatia and then wanted to go to the south of Italy before flying home. I looked at ferry's however it was much easier flying and the closest airport to Puglia and only connection was to Bari Airport from Croatia. From there I rented a car and went down south.

Brindisi Airport connections

In terms of the closest Airport to the south of Puglia, that would be Brindisi Airport. Whilst it doesn't have as many routes, you can still get direct flights to Spain, the UK and other international destinations and also many domestic connections. The airport is very close to Lecce that was one of my trips. The car journey took just 35 minutes to Lecce's hotels.

I think Puglia is an amazing destination, although Brindisi airport doesn't have that many connections its definitely the best airport to get you quickly into popular beach towns around the south.

The next closest airports to Puglia Italy to consider

Naples Airport to Puglia

Next up is Naples Airport; however, this is not in the Puglia region. However, it does go to around 40 countries, including many international flights from America & Canada. You can fly from Chicago or Atlanta directly in 10-11 hours and then choose to take a connecting flight or stop off. Naples airport is just 300 km from Puglia, and you can enjoy this city and hop in a car for 3 hours. In terms of flights from Naples to Puglia they are very very limited, so may want to drive.

Rome airport to Puglia

Then, for a lot more connections for South America, Australia, San Fran, Japan, the nearest airport to Puglia Italy, that goes one way is if you fly into Rome Fiumicino. From there, you can either take a flight to Puglia's airports or drive. To take the car or train it will take 4-5 hours, and I would highly recommend it if you have time and want to enjoy more of Italy.

Road transport from Puglia airports

Buses from Bari Airport

In terms of bus services from Bari Airport to the surrounding towns. You can get from Bari Airport to central Bari by taking the Linea 95 R95 bus in about 30 minutes, and it costs about 5 euros. There are other towns such as Taranto that take about 1hour 15 minutes, but if you are on holiday, I would stick to other transport options for further towns.

Driving from Bari Airport

I think driving is one of the easiest ways to get Bari however, you just need to think about parking. For instance, the airport to Polignano a Mare takes about 45 minutes. Bari airport to Bari city is 25 minutes, and to Monopoli 50 minutes.

Buses from Brindisi airport

Brindisi airport is the nearest airport to Puglia Italy if you want to head to the south to go to Lecce, Otranto, Gallipoli, and Castro and I have been to all of these places. There is a direct bus to Lecce from Brindisi airport that takes 40 minutes and starts at 8.30am with the last bus 11.40pm. There are buses to other towns but you will need to switch onto other buses so I would use other transport if you going to the deep south

Driving from Brindisi airport

Driving from Brindisi airport is pretty easy, and the roads are a lot longer with not much traffic around. To get to Castro or Otranto its about 1 hour 20 minutes. Driving from Brindisi airport to Gallipoli takes an hour, and to Lecce it's the same as the bus, around 40 minutes.

Train connections from Puglia airports

I think the airports closest to Puglia Italy have some really good train connections to get to all the nearby towns and also main towns around Italy.

Bari airport train station connections

Bari airport is very good for high-speed rail connections, such as to Rome in 5 hours or to Naples in just under 4.5 hours. To get into Bari central, it takes 30 minutes on the train, which isn't bad. From Bari airport to Monopoli it takes around an hour and to get to Lecce its about 2 hours 20 minutes

Brindisi airport train connections

Trains are a bit more limited for the deep south of Puglia; however, there are some good routes. These include Brindisi airport to Lecce non-stop in 22 minutes. If you go to Gallipoli on the train, it will take around 2 hours. If you don't have a car, buses are the best option when travelling from Brindisi airport.

Seasonal flight availability from airports in Puglia

Now when it comes to flying into the airports closest to Puglia Italy you have to consider seasonality. There are many cities that either fly once or twice a week or have complete periods where they do not function. It is the summer and shoulder seasons where they may fly more often.

Flying into Bari airport during the seasons

Here are the cities with Bari airport that you need to double-check before planning your trip. I remember when I flew from Split we could only fly at specific times so it made me look very closely at my itinerary:

Flying into Brindisi airport during the seasons

Brindisi airport is even more limited, here are all the destinations to watch out for when planning your holiday:

I still like that you can fly from Sicily at times to the south of Italy. It saves a very long drive!

Budget airline options to Puglia Airports

When it comes to flying into Airports in Puglia there are quite a few budget airlines that travel a long distance. With flying into Bari airport here they are:

When it comes to flying into Brindisi airport, check out these destinations:

Airports in Puglia map

Puglia airports map

I made this Puglia airports map so you can see where your closest airport may be when staying in the Puglia region. When I was planning my trip to Lecce I always thought of Bari, but little did I know Brindisi airport was actually quicker to get to. The airports in Puglia map was also useful when heading to the south of Puglia to Otranto.

I hope you got some value out of this blog on the nearest airports to Puglia Italy, if you have been to Puglia and have any other secret tips to share feel free to leave a comment in the box below.

Airports closest to Puglia Italy FAQ's

What airport should I fly into for Puglia, Italy?

To be honest, it really depends on where you are flying from. I wanted to visit Croatia last time, and I could only fly into Bari Airport from there. Also, you can fly to the east of America, the Middle East and Africa from Bari. So Bari is very good for long distances, and then Brindisi is more for shorter routes if you are close by except for Croatia.

Which airlines fly direct to Puglia?

There are actually quite a few airlines that fly to each airport closest to Puglia Italy. Airlines flying to Bari include Aegean Airlines, Air Cairo, Air Dolomiti, Air France, Air Serbia, Austrian Airlines, British Airways, Discover Airlines, easyJet, Edelweiss Air, Eurowings, Iberia, Israir, ITA Airways, Lufthansa, Luxair, Neos, Norwegian Air Shuttle, Ryanair, Scandinavian Airlines, SkyAlps, Transavia, Turkish Airlines, United Airlines, Volotea, Vueling, and Wizz Air.

Airlines flying to Brindisi include Aer Lingus, Air Dolomiti, British Airways, Brussels Airlines, DAT, Discover Airlines, easyJet, Eurowings, FlyOne, ITA Airways, Luxair, Neos, Ryanair, SkyAlps, Smartwings, Swiss International Air Lines, Transavia, TUI fly Belgium, TUI fly Netherlands, Volotea, and Wizz Air.

So 27 airlines to Bari and 21 airlines to Brindi, not bad.

Is Amalfi Coast or Puglia better?

This is a very, very tough question. I have been to both the Amalfi Coast and also Puglia. In my opinion, Amalfi is great for those scenic drives and views; it also has great beaches to swim at, however can be a bit expensive and a bit busy during peak season. Puglia, there is a lot of history, hidden beaches and towns, and it can be a bit cheaper and less known for some of the towns.

Is it better to fly into Bari or Brindisi?

This is a real tough one when choosing the closest airport to Puglia Italy to fly into and really depends on where you are staying and how you plan on getting around, so I made a table: