Torre dei Preti

Why it’s on the Edit

Torre dei Preti is an agriturismo built around a tower of the 16th century, raised as a fortress to guard the surrounding land. From the top the eye runs a long way over the Puglian countryside, as far as the coast at Peschici. The tower has been restored and is now white.

It stands on an estate of more than 26 hectares, among old olive trees in the Gargano National Park, and the owners run it directly. The oil is made from the Ogliarola Garganica variety, picked by hand and pressed on the same day.

It is filed as an agriturismo for families, not as a luxury masseria. The tower is the landmark, and the rest is a modern farm stay.

The rooms

There are three room types. Standard rooms are described as wide, with an independent entrance, a covered and furnished veranda, air conditioning, satellite TV, a minibar and a shower bathroom.

The Family Room has a double bedroom, a small bedroom and a living room with a kitchenette. The Junior Suite has a double bedroom, a small bedroom, a living room and a bathroom with separate services.

Rooms for guests with disabilities are listed. Wi-Fi is free throughout the complex. The number of rooms and their sizes are not confirmed here.

Eating and drinking

The restaurant serves mainly the traditional dishes of the Gargano, which the farm describes as a mix of flavors with genuineness in common. Guests can taste the produce of the coast and the countryside, and the extra virgin olive oil from the estate’s old trees.

The oil comes from a tall, long-lived tree that often grows to a giant size. It is cold-pressed using only mechanical processes, and the farm publishes a lab analysis with an acidity of 0.35. It is fruity, with a slight bitter and spicy edge and an almond aftertaste, and the farm links the bitter edge to its polyphenols.

There is also a bar. The menu, opening days and board plans are not confirmed here.

The setting

The setting is an olive estate with a nature park, a jogging track and a playground. The pool lies below the main building, rectangular, set in a green lawn with tall palms.

The farm puts the estate 3 km from Peschici and 2 km from the sea, and points guests to the bays of the Gargano. Peschici’s old town is known for its white buildings with grey domes.

From the port of Peschici, motor ships go to the Tremiti Islands and speedboats visit the sea caves. The farm also lists longer days out to Monte Sant’Angelo, with its sanctuary, castle and medieval Junno quarter, to San Giovanni Rotondo, where the sites linked to Padre Pio draw pilgrims, and to the Foresta Umbra, which the farm calls the greenest zone of Puglia.

Good to know

• Pets are welcome. Confirm any conditions with the farm.
• The complex has free Wi-Fi, internal parking, a playground and an electric-car charger run on solar panels.
• Rooms have independent entrances and covered verandas.
• Motor ships to the Tremiti Islands and speedboats to the sea caves leave from the port of Peschici.
• Opening months and the number of rooms are not confirmed here.
• Price band: 1 of 5 (estimated: no official rate found).

Who it suits, and who should look elsewhere

It suits families with children, dog owners and travelers with an electric car who want a farm stay near Peschici, with a pool and a kitchenette in the family rooms.

Look elsewhere for a beach at the door, and ask first if a spa matters. For another owner-run farm on the Gargano, see La Chiusa delle More, and for a family resort with a private beach, Gattarella Family Resort. The Gargano hub lists the rest.

Getting there

Torre dei Preti is at Valle Croci, near Peschici, on the Gargano. The farm names no airport.

The agriturismo has internal parking. By road the farm advises the A14 exit at Poggio Imperiale for drivers from Milan, the A24 then the A14 from Rome and the A16 exit at Candela from Naples, and it lists daily bus links to Peschici from Bari and Foggia. For rail, it names the stations of Foggia and San Severo, then onward to Peschici; timetables are not covered here.