Postcards from Puglia | Part 3

I hope you’re in the mood for a bit of sun, as I have more from our September trip to Puglia to share with you today.

After stops in Monopoli and Ostuni, we drove south to the beautiful Salentine Peninsula – the very tip of Italy – for a three-day stay at Don Totu. This little hotel sits just off the main square in San Cassiano, a sleepy village surrounded by a sea of olive groves, and from the front it looks much like any other house in the street. But behind the narrow façade lies a very special hideaway indeed.

I’d heard nothing but good reports before we arrived so I was expecting to like Don Totu, but I wasn’t expecting to love it quite as much as I did. The whole place is enchanting. First, you enter the lounge – a cool, calming space decorated in understated neutrals, with soaring ceilings and opulent chandeliers. From there, a series of tiled courtyards and multi-level terraces lead to sprawling gardens, which are dotted with fig and citrus trees and scented with jasmine. And right at the far end lies a glittering infinity pool, flanked by loungers and a vine-entwined pool house.

The six rooms are scattered around the main building and the grounds. Some are larger than others, but all have restored period features (perhaps a giant stone hearth or an intricately carved door), elegant wooden furniture by Belgian designer Flamant, and very comfy Durelan mattresses topped with local linens. We had one of the suites – a mezzanine space with a suntrap roof terrace and a four-poster bed – but I had a peek at all the others and I would have happily stayed in any of them.

The atmosphere throughout is relaxed and peaceful – not least because of the excellent service provided by smiling manager Alessandra and her team, who are wonderfully discreet yet somehow appear from nowhere whenever you need them. And their attention to detail is top-notch: pre-packed beach bags wait by the front door every morning, and there’s a constant supply of homemade cakes and chilled drinks on offer.

Don Totu makes a great base for exploring – the Baroque city of Lecce is nearby, as are countless beaches – but we spent most of our time relishing the rare opportunity to unwind. Our days soon fell into a lazy rhythm: a delicious breakfast of pastries, local cheeses and freshly made smoothies under the shade of an olive tree, followed by a morning soaking up the sun by the pool or heading off for a gentle pootle around the countryside (there are electric bikes to borrow and Vespas to hire). In the afternoon, we’d rotate between the various hidden nooks in the gardens, watching butterflies flit among the flowers, before bubbling away in the subterranean Jacuzzi – a cocooning, candlelit space that you can reserve for private one-hour slots. Come evening, we’d head to one of the terraces for free aperitivi as the setting sun cast a golden glow over the village.

Don Totu doesn’t serve dinner, but there are lots of restaurants within a short drive, or you can do as we did and buy cheeses, bread and charcuterie to prepare in the guest kitchen. And on our final evening we were treated to one of the hotel’s weekly alfresco cinema nights, when food is ordered in. Watching a classic Italian movie under the stars while munching our way through pizza and ice cream was the perfect finale to a fantastic stay, and we both found ourselves wishing we could tag on a few more days.

And so ended our road trip around Puglia, but not our time in Italy. More on the last – and very special – leg of our journey on the way next week…

Book a stay at Don Totu here

All photography by Abi Dare

I was given a free stay at Don Totu for the purposes of this review, but all words and opinions are my own.