Bari’s Old Town and New Town are separated by a wide boulevard, Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, containing the Piccinni Theatre, named after a distinguished Barese composer; the piazza Prefettura, with its rococo red-bricked government palace; and the Fizzarotti palace, which boasts a delightful Venetian Gothic façade. On balmy summer evenings, couples young and old take their passeggiata (strolls) here, heading down to Corso Cavour and the fashionable shopping area of via Sparano.

The Old Town, flanked on three sides by the Adriatic, has at its centre, on Piazza San Nicola, the Basilica of St Nicholas – the first and greatest of the many Norman churches in Puglia. It was founded in 1087 to house the remains of the saint, stolen from Lycia by Barese sailors.

Still in the Old Town, pay a visit to the imposing Castello Svevo (080 528 6111, closed Wed), the massive Swabian castle built by the all-conquering crusader Frederick II. This quadrangular structure hosted the courts of two medieval queens – Isabella of Aragona and Bona Sforza, Queen of Poland. The union of Church and State is expressed in the close proximity of the 12th-century Romanesque cathedral, concealed in the Old Town’s labyrinth of lanes, courtyards and arches.

A visit to the Pinacoteca Provinciale (Palazzo della Provincia, 080 541 2421, closed Mon) provides welcome relief from the heat of high summer. As well as Bellini’s St Peter Martyr and a notable collection of Apulian Renaissance paintings, there’s an intriguing display of remnants from the Rose Window of the Basilica of St Nicholas, which was damaged when a US warship blew up the harbour in 1943.

Just north of Bari, the Museo Jatta di Ruvo (piazza Bovio 35, Ruvo di Puglia, 080 361 2848) is a handsome 18th-century palazzo with a fine collection of ceramics from late antiquity. In summer, its formal, stylised gardens are a delight.

Like its Mediterranean counterpart, Naples, Bari has an unenviable reputation for petty crime, especially near piazza San Nicola, where pickpockets abound. Take the usual precautions and avoid wandering through the Old Town alone at night.

• Tourist information: Piazza Aldo Moro, near railway station (080 524 2244, www.pugliaturismo.com).