Brindisi is the closest Italian port to Greece. The ferry company that will be serving these crossings is Grimaldi Lines. There is at least 1 daily ferry route from Brindisi to Igoumenitsa. The ferry journey lasts around 8-8.5 hours.

The part of Italy closest to Greece is the Salento peninsula, located in the "heel" of the Italian boot in the region of Puglia. Specifically, the Strait of Otranto marks the narrowest point between the two nations. At this location, the distance from the Italian coastal town of Otranto to the Greek island of Othonoi (the westernmost of the Diapontia Islands near Corfu) is only about 72 kilometers (approximately 45 miles). On exceptionally clear days, the silhouette of the Balkan mountains in Albania and the northern reaches of Greece can be seen from the Italian shore. This geographic proximity has fostered deep historical and cultural ties; for instance, the "Grecìa Salentina" area in Puglia is home to the Griko people, who speak a dialect of Greek. In 2026, this proximity makes the ferry route from Brindisi or Otranto to Corfu one of the most popular ways to travel between the two countries, taking as little as 2.5 to 3 hours on high-speed hydrofoils.