Masseria Il Frantoio

What the property says

Masseria Il Frantoio has been a country farm since 1500, and in 2004 its 72 hectares were converted to organic farming. The name means olive mill, and the visit takes in an underground mill and a millennial olive grove.

The 16 rooms come from renovating the main buildings of a house founded in 1500 and expanded up to 1800, without demolishing the old walls. They are furnished with vintage pieces, and the masseria keeps citrus trees dating to 1800 and a kitchen garden.

The price band is an estimated 2 of 5, and the services list names a playground and kids’ meals.

The rooms and suites

Classic rooms (20 m², for 2 guests) sit in the courtyard, on the noble floor and in the restored area of the old stables. The masseria recommends the stables area for a secluded room among the fields. Superior rooms are 25 m² and take 2 or 3 guests.

Privilege rooms are the larger ones, picked from areas of the building where every room differs. The Junior Suite is in the 16th-century part, in what the masseria calls the oldest room of the structure, known for 300 years as the Wisteria Room. The owners’ house has a master suite on the first floor of the oldest part, from the 1500s.

For families, the Family rooms take 2 to 5 guests, with an extra bed for children and exposed brick walls. Rooms have air conditioning, Wi-Fi and soaps made with olive oil.

Where you eat

The restaurant follows the season and the estate. Jam comes from the citrus grove, bread and several kinds of pasta from durum wheat, and the paths give asparagus, pumpkin, artichokes, beans and wild chicory. The masseria says you will not eat the same dish twice, even over a two-week stay.

The masseria says it has no chefs in the kitchen, only women who cook with a mother’s heart. Lunch or dinner ends with one of 35 liqueurs the masseria makes itself, and the masseria singles out the one flavored with olive leaves.

The restaurant is open to guests from outside, and in summer it moves to the central courtyard. Kids’ meals and special diet meals on request are listed, and so is a pool bar. For olive oil, book the tasting: it lasts about an hour, visits the underground mill and the old grove, and covers four organic extra virgin oils.

The setting

The masseria lies in the countryside near Ostuni, in what its website calls the Alto Salento, between Torre Canne and Torre San Leonardo. The Dune Costiere Regional Park is close, and the beaches along the coast are a short drive away.

The estate has easy walking paths leading to high ground that shelters the farmland from the sirocco, with wild herbs, birds and, in summer, fireflies. The saltwater pool has a shallow end and a pool bar, and the services list also describes it as an infinity pool with a view. It also names a library, ping-pong, a playground, bike tours and walking tours, and a chapel.

The address is on the old state road 16, at kilometer marker 874. Expect to drive to the old town of Ostuni and to the beaches.

Good to know

• Check-in runs from 3:00 pm to midnight, and check-out from 8:00 am to 11:00 am.
• Pets are allowed on request, with no extra charges.
• Parking is free, Wi-Fi is free, and the property is smoke-free.
• The front desk is open 24 hours, and a shuttle service is listed.
• A hypoallergenic room is available.
• Not confirmed here: opening months, weddings and the spa.
• Price band: 2 of 5 (estimated: no official rate found).

Who it suits, and who should look elsewhere

Food lovers will like a farm where the kitchen garden, the mill and the dinner table are connected, and anyone who wants countryside and a lower price band. If you travel with children or a pet, the services list family rooms, kids’ meals and pets on request; ask about ages first.

Look elsewhere if you want to sleep inside the old town, which La Sommità Relais does, or if a spa is the reason for the trip. Vista Ostuni has a 350 m² spa.

Getting there

The At a glance box gives the straight-line distance to both airports. The masseria is in the Ostuni and the White Coast area. From Brindisi the masseria’s directions take the freeway toward Bari and the Ostuni/Villanova exit; from Bari they take the first exit to Ostuni.

Plan on a car, since the masseria is in the countryside. A shuttle service is listed, so ask what it covers.