Cocotrullo

Rural Regeneration: A Design-Forward Trulli Transformation

A cluster of conical shelters dismantled and reassembled with respect for rural tradition and a passion for contemporary styling, this dazzling Puglian outpost puts a vivid new twist on the timeless trulli home classic.

Vividly redesigned by an architecture and design journalist and her entrepreneur husband, this transformed trulii compound takes the cone-topped stone shelters to hip new heights. The exuberant redesign plays with lighting, both natural and decorative, including a brilliant zenith skylight filling the top of one bedroom cone, neon accents and designer lamps by Elise Fouin for Petite Friture in another, and a giant picture-windowed addition with views across the glinting olive and almond groves. Beds are custom designed by the owner. One vaulted stone volume has been remade as a limewashed walk-in shower. Textural botanical décor and bright textile prints amp up the complex’s sunny rural sensibility. A reflective infinity pool and hot tub, sun lounger-lined deck and artfully updated original farmyard reframe the enchanting agricultural storages as a contemporary estate.

AROUND

A cool rural oasis, the trulli compound was discovered by its owners as they ambled the Puglian countryside. Bewitched by the rural architecture and the sun-drenched vistas, they created their place to serve as a base for exploring the region’s many seductions, from the storybook charms of small nearby villages to the area’s dual coastlines, with beaches skimming both the Adriatic and Ionian Seas. 

Cisternino and Locortondo’s narrow, mesemerizing streets make them two nearby favorites. The neighboring white villages of Ostuni and Alberobello also offer historical architecture, flower-filled streets and piazzi, plus lively artisanal traditions, cafes, and boutiques. Baroque-era Martino Franco presents an elegant architectural diversion from the iconic trulli-dotted hills with its Doge’s Palace, Basilica, Collegiate Church and University Palace. Seekers of unique things artisanal will appreciate the potters’ studios of Grottaglie and the vegetable gardens and creative kitchens that put Ceglie Messapica on the map, while more noble architecture can be experienced in lesser known Francavilla Fontana, known as the “City of the Imperials” for its 15th-century Castello degli Orsini del Balzo and its Baroque-era loggia. The well-heeled port villages of Polignano a Mare and Monopoli aren’t too far away, and the beaches along the Adriatic Sea and Ionian bay between Italy’s boot heel and toe are a bit further afield, offering abundant sands for splashing and sunning.

LOCATION

Contrada Cinera, Ostuni, Puglia, Italy. Nearest airport: Brindisi (20 miles)

BEST TIME TO VISIT: April to November