Luxury Locorotondo Holidays

Literally, round place, in translation, Locorotondo is officially recognised as one of the most beautiful villages in Italy. It's location between Alberobello and Martina Franca, is within a landscape of green countryside, patchwork fields, vineyards and olive groves, dotted with whitewashed, cone-roofed trulli houses. The village is well known for the quality of its wines and is celebrated for the circular structure of its historic centre, which is a photogenic place in which to wander for a couple of hours before pausing at a café table to avail oneself of a true Italian coffee or a glass of the locally produced wine.

Perched on top of a hill, the centre of the village is a maze of whitewashed little lanes lined with historic buildings, some modest and faded, others retaining their rather grand baroque archways and fine architectural details. Flower pots, external stone staircases and balconies, add to the charm, as do rare, in Italy at least, gable-roofed houses known as cummerse. Inevitably there are churches to visit, including the attractive Romanesque Chiesa della Madonna della Greca which dates to the twelfth or thirteenth century, and has a notable central rose window. There are Saints' days on the 22 & 23 April and 16 August.

The main wine producer is a historic co-operative called the Cantina Sociale del Locorotondo and has obtained a prized DOC classification for its white wine; it sells direct to the public.