Villa Thistle

A luxury villa to rent near Ostuni, Puglia, Italy

A beautifully designed villa with a cinema room, a Turkish bath and a spacious roof terrace with views of the Adriatic.

Handsome Villa Thistle comes from the same architect and owners behind the magical Masseria Moroseta hotel in eastern Puglia, between Monopoli and Brindisi.

Like the hotel, the villa has been built with local materials using traditional methods and is light and linear, with a wonderful roof terrace that boasts views of the Adriatic.

Inside is a large living room and dining room, a fully equipped kitchen, a cinema room and even a Turkish bath. The master bedroom has a veranda with an outdoor tub and a private garden with an open-air shower.

There are two further bedrooms in the main house, one with a double bed, the other with two singles. These share a bathroom, though if you don’t need the beds, the twin room can be used as an additional cosy living room. The fourth double bedroom is in the traditional stone lamia (country cottage) on site, which has its own large bathroom.

Outside is a long pool, an outdoor kitchen with a barbecue and a wood-fired oven, and plenty of space for lounging, reading and taking in the sunsets.

The house is surrounded by a hectare of land strewn with olive and almond trees and feels very private. Though help is at hand should you need it, with everything from private chefs to yoga instructors available on request.

We especially like the sound of their blind tasting menu, in which expert local chefs bring a selection of dishes and accompanying paired wines to the villa for you to try, using fruits, vegetables, herbs and products sourced from local organic growers, and drawing inspiration from a mix of Mediterranean and modern global cooking styles.