Leonardo Trulli Resort

What the property says

The resort calls itself tiny and upscale, and the buildings fit. There are trulli from the 18th century, returned to raw stone after a conservative recovery, and a small Liberty-style masseria, a villino of around 1900 built for Leonardo. The history page follows Leonardo Cardone, who built his home in the countryside among olive trees, vegetable gardens and aromatic herbs.

The activity list is long: a panoramic padel court among olive trees, yoga by the pool, a cooking class, a pottery class, guided bike tours, horseback riding, a boat trip and massages.

The gardens, the courtyard and an indoor dining room also work as a wedding venue.

The rooms

The resort says all its trulli are original 18th-century buildings. Each has air conditioning and underfloor heating, linen hand-embroidered by a Salento maker, and a garden with an outdoor shower, deckchairs and sun loungers. A Trullo Superior measures 28 to 33 m² for two guests, and the Suite Rosmarino 30 m² for up to four.

The showpiece is Suite Leonardo in Cantina, a 35 m² trullo built around Leonardo’s historic cellar. The cave holds a private pool with hydromassage stations and magnesium salt water, reserved for the guests staying there. The suite also has a fireplace, a garden and a private terrace.

Suite Rosalba is the other named option, in the country house, which dates from 1800.

Food and drink

The restaurant, Leonardo ArteCibo, serves traditional Apulian cooking under chef Francesco Cataldi, with organic products from the resort’s garden and the local area. The garden at Il Villino di Leonardo supplies tomatoes and seasonal vegetables, and the kitchen turns out orecchiette, frise, taralli, focaccia, panzerotti and mignon biscuits.

Breakfast is a sweet and savory buffet built on local organic products, with vegetables picked in the garden. Half board adds a four-course dinner, wine and drinks excluded, and children up to 13 get an à la carte menu.

The cooking class runs in the same restaurant with the same chef. On the resort’s garden page, fresh milk goes into cheese and picked fruit into jam.

The setting

The resort places itself not too far from Locorotondo, which it calls one of the most beautiful villages in Italy and the most dynamic community in the Itria Valley. Each unit has a lawn of medicinal and Mediterranean plants, and garden loudspeakers play music from the early 1900s.

The outdoor pool has Epsom salts and hydromassage stations, and it is heated from September to May. That puts a swim within reach in October and April, if the resort is open on your dates.

For weddings, an indoor air-conditioned dining room near the pool and a large outdoor area shaded by olive trees host the banquet, and Leonardo’s courtyard is ringed by a rose garden. The chef creates the menu for each event with the couple.

Outside the grounds, the resort lists tours of the Itria Valley, guided visits to wineries and vineyards in Locorotondo, a boat trip and horseback riding.

Good to know

• Check-in is from 3 pm and check-out until 11 am.
• The resort lists Italian, English and French as spoken languages.
• Every reservation includes the pool, a buffet breakfast and parking with an electric vehicle charging station.
• Rooms are non-smoking and soundproof, with free Wi-Fi and floor heating, according to the services list.
• The resort also lets private villas and four annexes in the center of Locorotondo, so check whether your unit is in the countryside or in town.
• Weddings and events are held on site; ask which dates are taken.
• Price band: 3 of 5 (estimated: no official rate found).

Who it suits, and who should look elsewhere

Couples who want a trullo with its own garden, a heated pool outside summer and padel in the afternoon are the obvious guests. Wedding parties come second, since the resort lists its gardens, courtyard and dining room for events.

A spa is not confirmed here. Masseria Torricella lists a spa with a sauna, a Turkish bath and an emotional shower. Ottolire Resort, in the same town, pairs a similar trulli setting with a gym and a spa suite.

Getting there

Leonardo Trulli Resort is outside Locorotondo, in the Valle d’Itria.

No transfer service is confirmed, so plan on a rental car. The private parking has an electric vehicle charging station, so an electric rental works too.