Apulian cultural heritage is widespread throughout the region and this means that it should be exploited as a "territorial museum". This would undoubtedly make the region attractive and contribute to determining its tourist potential.

        In the last few years the Superintendency for Historical, Environmental, Artistic and Architectural Heritage of Apulia has concentrated its efforts on setting up a cultural network to improve the exploitation of the historical-artistic heritage of the Region.

        The first steps could only begin with the State Property Office heritage, under the auspices of the Superintendency: the castles of Bari, Trani, Castel del Monte, Otranto and Copertino.

        The Castles circuit project, made possible thanks to co-financing from the European Community within the Multiregional Operative Programme Tourism, aims at exploiting the museums located in the state owned castles run by the Superintendency. This project will also bring Apulia in line with the European standards for exploitation of museums.

        The castles of Bari, Trani, Castel del Monte, Otranto and Copertino, considered the nerve centres of tourist and cultural development within the Region and the South of Italy and engines of economic, tourist and employment growth, are at the centre of itineraries defined as follows:

• Itinerary around the Frederican Castles: Trani, Castel del Monte and Bari: they are the three Apulian castles which best illustrate the themes connected to Frederican building work in the region.
  
  
• Itinerary around the "fortresses" in the Salento Region: The Castle of Otranto and the Castle of Copertino: they represent the starting point for the castle system and the defensive towers in the Salento area.

        The aim of the project was that of responding to different demands with the conviction that the museum system must and can develop organisational models which go beyond the traditional functions of safeguarding and conserving. They must exploit the quality and quantity of the services offered by means of setting up adequate exhibition areas, promotion and information services, additional services like snack bars and book shops, in order to attract customers and users to use and reuse the services offered in the museum environment.

        Particular attention has also been paid to the functions connected to education with the design of two education games areas inside the Castle of Bari and the Castle of Copertino. The areas are given over to laboratory activity to get to know the castle, castle life, etc. and connected to the exhibitions which will be realised in the exhibition areas.