Trullo negli Alberi

The Trulli houses of Puglia are the kind of place that a hobbit might feel at home but Trullo Negli Alberi would ‘truly’ be a palace, (excuse the pun!), among these unique architectural curiosities. This Trulli villa has no less that seven of the characteristic, bee-hive like cones poking out of the roof and beneath four of these are four lovely bedrooms (with air-con), with exposed stone walls and ceilings circling up to their pointy pinnacles. The living room also has the same stone archways and ceiling with funky red leather sofas providing a splash of Italian designer style.

So the Trullo has bags of character but it’s also been lovingly renovated by British owners, Alison and Chris, as a luxurious villa, where up to 9 family and friends have absolutely everything they could wish for. Of course the Trullo has a private heated pool and measuring 12m x 6m, with Roman steps at one end for easy access by little ones and pool inflatables provided. A lockable gate ensures toddlers can’t just totter through unsupervised and sail canopies provide welcome shade over outdoor bean bags and sun loungers when temperatures start to soar.

Besides having fun in the pool, little ones can safely play in either the enclosed courtyard or games room, with a play house, a push-along walker, rocking horses and a paddling pool, all generously provided by the owners. Children can also explore the grounds and discover a petanque pitch and play frame tower with swings and a slide, or simply hang out in hammocks slung between the oak trees. As if all this wasn’t enough to keep children happy, the icing on the cake at Trullo Negli Alberi is a fab games and cinema room where parents might lose kids for most of the week! Traditional games include a pool table, table tennis, table football, giant Jenga, giant Connect 4 and a darts board and then there’s a Wii console and Playstation 2 console with games, plus a 42" plasma TV with over 3000 films on the hard drive cinema system!

With the children busy as bees having fun, parents can completely chill out and enjoy delicious food, in good company, in the southern Italy sunshine. Puglia is renowned for some of the best traditional food in Italy, not to mention the Pugliese wine, so a quick trip to one of the local towns to stock up and that’s the grown-ups sorted. Besides sizzling up the fabulous local seafood and lamb on the barbecue, one thing that is sure to get the kids back for dinner is homemade pizzas baked in the outdoor wood fired oven, perhaps with the local ‘little ears’ orecchiette pasta on the side. To combine a bit of fun with yummy food, the owners can also arrange pasta making evening at the Trullo with a friendly local lady who really knows her stuff, or a pizza making evening where kids can make up their favourite weird and wonderful creations.

Accommodation overview
Trullo Negli Alberi is a large, traditional stone villa, with the distinctive conical roofs that are a quirky characteristic of this part of Puglia. The villa very comfortably sleeps up to 9, with up to 3 babies in cots and/or one toddler in an infant bed. Two travel cots and one wooden cot are provided and three of the bedrooms have space for a cot within them, whilst the master suite has space for all three, or a cot and a small toddler bed. The master suite has a wrought iron double bed, a sofa that converts into a single bed and an ensuite shower room. The second bedroom, with an original fireplace, also has wrought iron double bed, space for a cot, and a luxury ensuite shower room. The remaining two bedrooms both have twin beds that can be set up as a king-size double and one of these has an ensuite shower room. Each bedroom has its own iPod dock and a TV for playing DVD’s, with a large collection at the Trullo to choose from. The bedrooms also have double glazing and shutters to stay cool or cosy and get and good night’s sleep. All the ensuite shower rooms have been finished to very high standards, along with the family bathroom, which has both a bath and a shower.

The large sitting room has all the character of a traditional Trullo, with a stone ceiling, and families can settle down into a pair of red, Italian designer-style, leather sofas to watch satellite TV or DVD’s, or stream games and movies through the WI Fi. The modern dining kitchen is well equipped for cooking up Pugliese feasts, including a large oven and 5-ring hob, microwave, fridge/freezer, dishwasher, coffee maker, drinks fridge, bottle steriliser and washing machine. There is also a handmade ash dining table with seating for 10, plus 3 high chairs are available.

For eating al fresco there is a sun terrace with stone dining table and chairs to seat 10, a barbecue and wood fired pizza oven. There is also an enclosed courtyard where children can play and a garden of oak trees, with a play frame, petanque pitch and hammocks. The private heated swimming pool has a lockable gate and there are 12 sun loungers, big garden bean bags and sail canopies for shade. The Trullo also has games and cinema room with a table football, a pool, table, giant Jenga and Connect 4, plus a Wii and Playstation 2 with games and a 42" plasma TV with over 3000 films on the hard drive.