Trulli del Trappeto

A Trullo’s Charms Elegantly Updated and Expanded

Two historical structures merge beautifully at this architecturally updated and significantly expanded trulli home. Stately, gentle, and truly picture perfect, this former agricultural compound, with its half a dozen domes on top is all grown up now—dazzling, well-preserved and modestly sophisticated. An air of easy luxury pervades in its expanded interiors and on the manicured pool terrace. A refined restoration project, this villa for rent in Italy is a true stunner, sure to become an architecture and design mag darling.

Serene bedrooms across the stable, mill (trappeto), and trulli, are laid in earthy pastels fill an old stable. Vaulted, stacked-stone ceilings give the living, dining and seating areas the signature charms of a fairytale trullo home. And the attentively refurbished, exposed rock walls create prettily patinaed, distinctively rustic Italian backdrops indoors and out. In fact, wherever you roam within this combined trulli and olive mill restoration, an air of easy luxury pervades.

The two separate structures—a classic Italian olive mill and a 19th-century, multi-coned trulli—meld seamlessly, reinvented by Dutch owners into a six-bedroom villa with a manicured, Mediterranean fruit grove and flowering garden. In fact, guests are invited to pick apricots, lemons, cherries, figs, pomegranates and grapes from the trees. Indoors, colorfully patterned, original floor tiles have been painstakingly restored, and rooms come well-appointed and tastefully decorated, filled with selected furnishings, curated antiques, and a thoughtful collection of curiosities including vases, objets d’art, paintings, and house plants. Shutters, windows and doors are framed in a soothing shade of blue, simple textural linens and throws bring a freshness to antiques, and a long, tree-lined driveway adds an estate quality to the home from the first impression forward.

A highlight of the home is its first-floor lounge area. The vast hall reveals its past as an olive storage, with several remaining casks amid the comfortable lounge seating, long dining table, and unstructured, in-home screening area. Outside, a generous saltwater pool stretches lazily under the silvery olive grove canopy, with a picnic table nearby for simple meals, built-in sofa seating for alfresco lounging, and an outdoor kitchen complete with a wood-fired barbecue.

The master bedroom in the mill has a huge roof terrace offering views of the trulli cones across the olive groves to Locorotondo—the perfect setting for a yoga session, plus a luxurious bath with a walk-in shower, double sinks, and a vintage tub. The master bedroom in the stable has a private garden, meaning there is plenty of space for privacy in addition to a designated space to work if you must.

Each bedroom has two single beds that can be combined to make doubles. An extra bath with a toilet and shower are set near the outdoor pool/garden and outdoor kitchen.

Read a short history of the trullo in our Stories section here.

Around

Located walking distance from the postcard pretty village of Locorotondo, with its sweet maze of vivid white residences and shops, this villa for rent in Italy sits on a private hectare of land, with neighboring hills holding their own fairytale trulli homes. This is the heart of the Itria Valley, where magical whitewashed villages such as Ceglie Messapica, Ostuni, and Alberobello offer historical sites, UNESCO-protected trulli-filled landscapes, and vivid white and cobbled city centers alive with cafes, bars, and artisanal markets. The nearby town of Martina Franca cuts a unique figure, with its mostly Baroque-era buildings. Sun worshippers flock to the Adriatic coast, with its beach bars and restaurants, reachable in a half hour or less by car. Coastal villages and timeless ports such as Polignano a Mare and Monopoli are local favorites.

Location

Locorotondo, Puglia, Italy. Nearest airports: Brindisi (69km); Bari (85km).

Best time to visit

April to October