Beta tested on Italian tarmac: 18 Days, 1 Platform, and a Thousand Curves

Some road trips are planned. Others are felt. This one was both, a journey mapped by curiosity, powered by instinct, and made richer by the subtle, seamless presence of New Roads.

Over 18 days, we set out to pressure-test the platform we’ve spent months shaping, not in a studio, but on real tarmac. From Puglia’s timeless trulli to the sun-washed coasts of western Sicily, we covered 2,500kms, testing everything from planning day trips to recalculated routes.

This journal is the start line of our story. A panoramic view before we zoom into the details. Each section you’ll read below will soon be followed by a more in-depth journals, from the crisp valley loops of Alberobello to the mountain pass ascents of Erice at dawn.

But first, an overview. This is how the road unfolded.

Start line: Bari, Puglia

We landed in Bari, picked up our hire car via Hertz, and headed south, straight into the warm heart of Puglia. Our base for the first leg was Trulli Magravì Apparthotel, nestled among olive groves on the edge of Alberobello, a region where the roofs are conical, the roads are lined with dry-stone walls, and the pace of life moves to the sound of cicadas.

From there, we explored the Valle d’Itria in loops, cruising the SS172 “dei Trulli”, a two-lane beauty that threads Alberobello to Locorotondo and Martina Franca. The SP58 provided a low-slung sweep through vineyards, ideal for early morning starts or golden hour returns. Stops for coffee came with panoramic views and slow lunches became rituals.

We took coastal day trips too, darting east via SP113 and SP81 towards Polignano a Mare and Monopoli, where the road became a mix of straights and cliff-edge bends. Polignano gave us one of the best lunches of the trip, while Monopoli, lovely as it looks, proved that good roads don’t always guarantee good restaurants.

A longer loop to Lecce came next. Outbound via SP134 and SP16, then onto the breezy SS379, the drive was a blend of quiet countryside sweepers and ocean-hugging runs. We wandered Lecce’s baroque heart, then circled back at golden hour through Ceglie Messapica, following New Roads’ suggestion to a terrace café overlooking the hills. The platform proved its worth here, not just finding routes, but finding those hidden places so often missed.

A city carved in stone

From Alberobello, we turned inland. The drive to Matera followed a web of provincial roads: SP239, SP51, SP140. The land changed shape, flatter, wider, more solitary. The SP22 reminded us that not all roads are equal, with potholes that tested the suspension and the beta’s alert system. (It passed.)

We arrived late afternoon in Matera, a city carved from stone and bathed in golden light. Our one-night stay at Locanda Di San Martino Hotel & Thermae Romanae gave us access not just to Roman thermal baths, but a balcony view of the Sassi Caveoso as it came alive at dusk.

This is a city of a thousand steps where you leave your car at the city limits and the rest is on foot. And the sunset? It was the kind of cinematic scene that makes you understand why Bond made his entrance here in No Time To Die.

Calabria calling

Day 7 saw a 3.5hour drive south to Gizzeria Lido on the Calabrian coast. We began on the SS7, then onto the SP3 and E90, crossing rolling farmland and into long tunnels. The roads were glorious: broad, scenic, and practically empty. Near Trebisacce, New Roads pointed us to a quiet beach town for lunch, where we parked right up against the shoreline and ate fresh seafood with our toes in the sand.

As we joined the SS534 and E45, the inland roads became a highlight in themselves. Long tunnels, dramatic hills, and open stretches made it feel like the road was built for driving, not just commuting.

Our home for the next five nights was Hang Loose Cottage Hotel & Resort, a laid-back surf lodge vibe with space to unwind and plan. From here, we took a mountain drive on the SP103, rising into the clouds above Gizzeria. It was technical, tight, and utterly spectacular.

We also looped down to Tropea via the SS18 and SS522, a coastal run that offered beach glimpses and warm sea air, with Gelateria Tonino delivering one of the best gelatos of the trip. The platform helped us time the run just right, avoiding industrial traffic with a later departure.

Sicily: All roads lead to wonder

The next leg brought a symbolic moment. Crossing the Strait of Messina by ferry from Villa San Giovanni. It was quick, easy, and scenic. Within 30 minutes, we were on Sicilian soil.

We hit the E90 (A20/A19) and made for the west. This was where Sicily opened up. Toll roads carried us across mountains and coastlines, with countless tunnels and viaducts delivering a driving experience that felt engineered for joy. We stopped at Brolo for a quick swim and granita al caffè at Antonio Raffaele, then at Cefalù for lunch on the boardwalk and a slow stroll through its medieval heart.

From there, the A29 took us past Palermo, then across the final stretches of open autostrada toward Trapani. Our last base was Villa Angelina, nestled just outside the city. Six nights gave us time to explore the surrounding coast, and to drive some of the most memorable roads of the trip.

One day we followed the SP16 to San Vito Lo Capo, a glowing coastal road with twists, turns, with the unfortunate wildfires in the distance. Another morning we drove the Erice mountain pass before dawn, first via the narrow and cobbled SP3, then the more fluid SP31. We parked at the chair lift and walked a short distance to the viewpoint just in time to see the sun rise over the hills of western Sicily.

This was the kind of moment the platform was designed to enable — not just finding a destination, but timing it to perfection.

What we learnt from the road

This wasn’t a sightseeing trip. It was a real-world test of how New Roads performs across unfamiliar terrain, on changing schedules, with different drivers and passengers in tow. We want to make sure we’d use New Roads before we ask you too.

The results?

• Spontaneity was never punished. Last-minute changes felt exciting, not stressful.
• The platform was uncannily good at surfacing family-suitable stops that weren’t obvious but made a huge difference, shaded beaches, quiet lunch spots, easy-to-navigate towns.
• Suggested routes often took us away from traffic, without compromising on beauty or time. The SP113 into Alberobello, the SS534 in Calabria, the SP31 into Erice — all roads we wouldn’t have picked manually, and yet all became highlights.
• Going off the beaten track didn’t feel like a risk. It felt like a gift.

Perhaps most importantly, the platform created a sense of confidence. Not just in navigation, but in the decision-making. You still choose. New Roads simply clears the fog.

The highlights? Hard to choose

Some drives felt like meditations. Others, like revelations.

• Sunrise over Erice, after a dawn ascent on hairpin mountain roads, the town still asleep.
• Sunset on the SP16 to San Vito Lo Capo, watching the sea flicker to gold.
• Tunnel runs across Sicily, where the acoustics made the drive feel like a symphony.
• Matera at dusk, the city glowing in amber light as we sipped wine on a stone terrace.
• Boat hire in Tropea, with cliffs behind and turquoise water ahead.
• Gelato from Tonino, amarena flavour, closely followed by that pistachio at Brolo.
• Lecce’s baroque spires, Polignano’s cliffside lunch, Cefalù’s beachfront calm.

So yes, we built New Roads to help people plan beautiful drives. But more than that, we built it to help people find their way to moments like these.

This was just the beginning. Over the coming weeks, we’ll share a detailed look at each leg, the roads we loved, the routes we avoided, the places we stumbled across and won’t forget.

Until then, if you’re wondering what it’s like to let the journey guide you, not with a schedule, but with instinct, insight, and a little AI intelligence, you’ll want to read what comes next.

See you on the road.