Large estate very near Alberobello. 11 trulli, huge panoramic terrace, sweeping grounds. Superb private residence, or commercial opportunity for "agri-tourismo" boutique hotel, restaurant, event centre, etc. Excellent accessibility by autostrada, rail and air.

The Alberobello Estate is situated only 2 kilometres from the beautiful town of Alberobello, a UNESCO World Heritage site in southern Italy that attracts many thousands of visitors every year. The Estate covers 22 hectares (55 acres) of agricultural land planted with 500 olive trees and and fruit orchards, and has buildings totalling 2,000 sq.mt. (21,500 sq.ft.) of potentially habitable space. The buildings include a “masseria” or mansion house and 11 charming “trulli”, the characteristic 14th century conical-roofed dwellings unique to the area.

The Estate is situated in a commanding position with sweeping rural views and enjoys a 400 mt. footage to the Strada Provinciale, providing excellent road access into Alberobello, to the main autostrada and to Bari airport. Other major tourist attractions in Puglia are within easy reach as are the venues of countless “festa” held every summer evening. The coast is an easy half hour drive away.

Two private entrance drives with wrought iron gates lead from the Strada Provinciale up to the property, thus allowing a useful back entrance for deliveries and agricultural work separate from the grand front entrance leading to the masseria.

Set in the walls to the right of the main entrance gates are embrasures with pointed arches which were once outdoor mangers for the horses, which drank from the adjacent ancient stone water trough. To the right of the drive and in front of the mansion house is a splendid “aia”, a circular brick-paved area, once used for threshing grain with machinery worked by oxen, but which now could be used as a terrace for al fresco dining.

The drive leads to the front of the mansion house which, as is traditional, is flanked by its trulli. The house was built some 80 years ago and is of an attractive symmetrical design with stone arches on either side leading to the fields at the rear of the Estate. Painted a traditional deep red, it presents a stunning appearance contrasting with the white trulli to each side. It has a simple two level interior layout with a wide central stairwell, four main rooms and a lounge on each floor, the upper level being completed by a balcony over the front door.

There are both very old and more modern stables and milking stalls at the rear of the Masseria, some with original farming equipment; the flat roof of these buildings forms a magnificent roof terrace with panoramic views accessed from the upper floor of the Masseria. Below is an inner stone-walled courtyard.

The 11 trulli, which may date back to the 14th century, although requiring restoration are generally in good condition and would make perfect guest accommodation. Their circular stone roof structure can readily be admired from both the interior and the exterior of the trulli.

One of the largest outbuildings has ‘Marsigliese” tiles, antique roof tiles imported many years ago from Marseilles in France in a barter trade exchange for agricultural produce.

The property benefits from mains water and electricity, but also has a well sunk to 700 metres, one of the deepest in the entire area, thus ensuring a constant supply of water for irrigation. The installation of a swimming pool would be greatly facilitated by the existence of this well.

This property is also ideally suited for conversion into tourist-focused activities: the possibilities including an “agri-tourismo” boutique hotel utilizing produce from the 22 hectares of farming land, a restaurant, an event centre, a spa, etc. Only a few minutes drive from Alberobello, with limitless parking on site, ready access to Puglia’s many attractions, and excellent accessibility by autostrada, rail and air from elsewhere in Italy, this is a superb commercial opportunity which could be combined with creating a lovely private home in part of the property should the purchaser so desire.

Energy classification: G


Alberobello, Puglia

At first, Alberobello may seem like a typical Italian town - attractive, with some nice tree-lined piazzas and old churches, elegant shopping streets and shady parks, but essentially little different from a hundred others. But then, quite randomly, you come upon a trullo, sitting in the middle of a normal street: round the corner is another one, then three more, until at last you come to one of the two quarters which are nothing but trulli - street after narrow street of whitewashed buildings and conical dry-stone roofs. Some are single buildings, some little conjoined clusters of 2 or 3, some grand complexes of 10 or more trulli. Many of the trulli themselves are surprisingly old - some trulli are known to date back as far as 1350 AD, and many have more or less existed for centuries, with continual maintenance and reconstruction as required (which makes precise dating difficult).

A UNESCO World Heritage site, Alberobello looks like no other town on earth, and it is well worth visiting one of the museums dedicated to the history of the area and its unique architecture. Alberobello is, however, reassuringly like other Italian towns in boasting a number of excellent restaurants, bar-cafes, gelaterias etc, as well as a fine weekly fruit and vegetable market. (In fact, in Italy Alberobello is famous not only for its trulli, but for the excellence of its Pugliese cuisine, particularly the bombette (roasted pork skewers with caciocavallo cheese and salami), which are considered better in Alberobello than anywhere else in Puglia.)