Rione Monti
Hillside quarter of trulli
A whole hillside of conical roofs. Come before nine, when the lanes are still yours.
Rione MontiEarly morningFree
Alberobello & the Valle d'Itria, Italy
Ideal: 2–3 daysBest: May–Jun, Sep–OctPrice: Moderate
In 60 seconds
Alberobello & the Valle d'Itria in 60 seconds
Alberobello's two hillside quarters are made of trulli — whitewashed dry-stone houses with conical grey roofs, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1996. They are best early in the morning, before the day trips arrive. The real pleasure is the valley around them: the circular white lanes of Locorotondo, Cisternino's butchers who grill your choice of meat to order in the evening, and baroque Martina Franca. Stay in a trullo among the olive groves and drive between the towns.
UNESCOVillages
Best for
- Food
- Architecture
- Hidden gems
Known for
- The trulli of Alberobello
- Locorotondo's white lanes
- Cisternino's grill butchers
Skip if
Crowds of day-trippers spoil it for you. Alberobello's Rione Monti is packed by late morning — stay in the countryside and come early.
Your match
Choose a few travel interests and we will show how well Alberobello & the Valle d'Itria fits them. Choose interests
See
Must experience
The things that would make the trip incomplete without them.
Trullo Sovrano
InexpensiveThe only two-storey trullo
Step inside to see how a trullo is built and lived in, in the grandest of them all.
AlberobelloMuseumShort visit
Locorotondo
Round white town above the valley
Whitewashed lanes in a circle on the hilltop, and the valley's own crisp white wine.
LocorotondoEveningWine
Beyond the obvious
Hidden gems
Less obvious, rarely queued for, and usually the part people remember.
Rione Aia Piccola
The quieter trulli quarter
Across the road from the Monti, where the trulli are still homes rather than shops.
AlberobelloFreeLived in
Cisternino
Grill butchers and white alleys
Choose your meat at the butcher's counter in the evening and they grill it for you to eat at their tables.
CisterninoDinnerLocal
Martina Franca
Baroque town of the valley
Elegant baroque streets and the Valle d'Itria opera festival in summer.
Martina FrancaBaroqueSummer festival
Stay
Where to stay
Areas rather than hotels — pick the right one and the rest follows.
A countryside trullo
ExpensiveAmong the olive groves
The point of coming: a restored trullo with a pool and stone walls between the towns.
Car neededUnique
Locorotondo
ModerateHilltop town in the middle of the valley
Central for every town in the valley, and lovely after dark.
CentralRestaurants
Practical
Know before you go
- Getting in
- Bari airport is about an hour by car. Local Ferrovie del Sud Est trains link Bari with Alberobello, Locorotondo and Martina Franca.
- Getting around
- A car makes the valley: the towns are close together but the trains are infrequent.
- Timing
- Visit Alberobello early in the morning or at dusk; spend the middle of the day in the quieter towns.
Context
History in 5 minutes
Enough to make what you are looking at legible.
- 15th–17th century
The counts of Conversano have settlers build in dry stone without mortar — houses that could be taken down quickly, it is said, to dodge taxes on new towns.
- 1797
Alberobello is freed from feudal rule by King Ferdinand IV of Naples.
- 1996
The trulli of Alberobello become a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Further out
Nearby escapes
Worth a day if you have one to spare.
Matera
The cave city
Worth a night of its own, across the border in Basilicata.
About 1 hour 15 by carOvernightUNESCO
Polignano a Mare
Cliff town over the Adriatic
White houses on limestone cliffs and a pebble cove between them.
About 40 minutes by carSeaSwimming