Biccari, Puglia: €1 Houses and Puglia’s Highest Mountain

Biccari is known for two things internationally that no other town in Puglia can claim simultaneously. The first: it was among the first Italian villages to offer abandoned properties for €1 to buyers willing to restore them — a scheme that attracted global media attention and hundreds of enquiries from across Europe and beyond. The second: it sits at the foot of Monte Cornacchia — at 1,151 metres, the highest peak in Puglia — from whose summit you can see the Adriatic coast, the Gargano peninsula, and on exceptional days the Tremiti Islands.

Biccari, Puglia sits at the border of three regions — Puglia, Campania, and Molise — in the Daunia Mountains of the Foggia province, surrounded by thick forests of chestnut, beech, elm, and oak. The locals call this corner of Puglia “il tetto della Puglia” — the roof of Puglia. The name is geographically accurate. From here, the coastal cities and the tourist circuit of the south feel very far away. They are.

From here, in fact, we can admire thick forests, herd-grazing fields, olive groves and the lake Pescara. We can even stretch a view to the Adriatic Coast, the Gargano Promontory and the Tremiti Islands. This area of Puglia is known as “the roof of Puglia.”

House on sales for €1

More recently, Biccari became famous, as it launched a campaign to sell off dilapidated homes priced at €1 in an effort to repopulate the urban area. They also offer bargain deals on ready-to-occupy places with prices starting as low as €7,500 and in average in the range of €10,000 – €13,000.

The massive migration over the past decades has more than halved the population of the town, going from 5,000 inhabitants in the 1950s to just over 2,000 residents.

The mayor Mignogna said in a recent interview “We’re barely 2,000 residents; depopulation is an open wound, a steady phenomenon. Locals keep leaving and while most used to come back during the summer to visit. Now they no longer do so. Many habitable houses are empty and are falling into oblivion. I thought the best way was to involve those no-longer interested owners to sell them right off.”

Photos and maps of the properties can be found on the this website.

Thanks to this initiative, potential buyers will be able to enjoy a wonderful stay in one of the most characteristic towns in Puglia. The initiative has been a success as demonstrated by the high number of purchase requests received in a short time frame.

Biccari has become one of the most sought after Italian destinations to move.

Best Time to Visit Biccari

What to do and see in Biccari

Set on rolling hills, Biccari enjoys a privileged position with a top view to amazing panoramas. The local landscapes include beautiful olive groves, vineyards, the Bosco Cerasa and large woods of Cerro, maple, beech, elm, and hawthorn. Numerous itineraries allow exploration if this beautiful scenery.

The old town has also a lot to offer from an architectural level.

Founded by the ancient Romans, the origins of Biccari dates back to the 11th century. As testimony of its ancient origins we find the Byzantine cylindrical tower, ancient military outposts to better defend the Via Traiana.

Of particular interest the Palazzo Caracciolo and the elegant portal of Palacio del Gallo. The mother church, which perfectly expresses the neoclassical style. The well maintained historical center and the roman-gothic church of San Quirico. The Convent of Sant’Antonio (1477), the Church of the Assunta, the wooden altar richly carved and decorated in pure gold of San Michele (XVIII century).

The countryside is dotted with ruins of prehistoric settlements and old farms as well as with industrial windmills

If you want to enjoy the local festivity, we suggest visiting the town during the first week of August. The patron saint San Donato is celebrated on the 7th with a lot of former residents moving back to town. As in other town in Puglia, the Biccaresi parade through the town with statues of San Donato and other saints accompanied by a hired marching band

The best way to get to Biccari is by car. If you prefer the train then the closest train station is in Foggia, about half an hour away

How to Get to Biccari

A car is essential — there is no practical public transport to or between the Daunia villages. Biccari is best approached from Foggia, the provincial capital and the most convenient base for exploring the Daunia Mountains.

• From Foggia: approximately 50km via the SP6 — around 50 minutes
• From Bari airport: approximately 170km via the A14 to Foggia, then SP6 — around 2 hours
• From Naples: approximately 160km via the A16 to Candela, then north — around 2 hours

The SP6 road from Foggia climbs steadily through the Daunia foothills — the views open progressively as you gain altitude and by the time Biccari is visible on the horizon the landscape is completely different from the flat coastal Puglia most visitors know.

Hiking and Outdoor Activities

Monte Cornacchia is the defining outdoor attraction of Biccari — and of the entire Daunia Mountains. The ascent from Biccari takes approximately 2.5–3 hours return on marked trails, passing through the Bosco Cerasa and the broader chestnut and beech forest zone before emerging onto the open ridge that leads to the summit at 1,151 metres. The panoramic view from the top is one of the most extensive in Puglia: the Tavoliere di Puglia plain stretches east towards the Adriatic, the Gargano peninsula is visible to the northeast, and the Apennine ridge continues north into Molise and Campania.

The marked trail network around Biccari extends well beyond Monte Cornacchia. Several routes follow the ridgelines between the village and the neighbouring Daunia communities, passing through landscapes of alternating forest, open grassland, and abandoned masserie (farmhouses) that give the walking a particular quality of solitude.

Mushroom foraging is a serious autumn tradition in the Biccari forests. The chestnut and oak woods around Monte Cornacchia produce porcini, ovoli, and other edible mushrooms from late September through November. Several local guides offer organised foraging walks; ask at the comune or the local bars for current contacts.

Mountain biking on the forest roads and the low-traffic mountain roads between Daunia villages is growing as an activity. The roads are quiet, the gradients are manageable on most routes, and the scenery is exceptional.

💡 The trail to Monte Cornacchia is best in spring and autumn. In summer the exposed ridge section can be hot and the forests are thick with vegetation. In autumn the chestnut forest turns gold and the mushrooms are at their best. Snow occasionally covers the summit in January and February — check conditions locally before attempting the ascent in winter.

What to Eat in Biccari

The food tradition of Biccari is the mountain food of the Daunia — simple, seasonal, intensely flavoured, and built around local agricultural products that have no commercial equivalent.

Pizze al furne apierte — pizza made in open-fire ovens, enriched with local olive oil, oregano, and chilli — is the street food of Biccari and the surrounding Daunia villages. The dough is the same semolina base used across Puglia, but the open-fire technique gives the crust a char and smoke that wood-fired oven pizza in a tourist restaurant doesn’t replicate. Ask locally where to find it on the day you visit.

U’ Mascjuottele is Biccari’s flagship cheese — a hard cheese made from local goat’s milk, available fresh (mild, yielding, eaten as an antipasto with local olive oil) or aged and dry, when it develops a sharp, slightly funky character that works grated over pasta or eaten in thin slices with cured meats. The aged version is particularly good with the local red wine.

Sausages from wild black piglet — made from the indigenous semi-wild black pig that forages in the Daunia forests — are a seasonal product of genuine distinction. The meat is darker, more flavourful, and more complex than commercial pork. The sausages are produced fresh (eaten grilled immediately after purchase) or seasoned and dried. Ask at the local macelleria (butcher) for the current stock.

Porcini mushrooms from the Monte Cornacchia forests appear on menus in autumn — grilled with olive oil and garlic, as a pasta sauce with hand-rolled cavatelli, or dried and sold in bags at the market. The Biccari porcini are less famous than those of Norcia or the Dolomites but of comparable quality from good years.

Local wine from the Daunia DOC zone — Nero di Troia and Montepulciano-based blends from the foothills — accompanies all of the above. Order the house wine at the local osteria; it’s almost always the right choice.

Frequently Asked Questions