Hotels near Monastero delle Monache Carmelitane, Ostuni

Today is the Italian ferragosto on August 15th. I looked at the thousands of photos taken during the two months of my sister and me traveling in Italy this summer, and recalled some of the beauty of the trip. This time we went to more than 20 cities, villages and towns from north to south and then from south to north, and stayed in many different styles of hotels, palaces, and homestays. Among them, the Palazzo Stunis that lives in Ostuni Puglia is particularly memorable. It has been half a month since I returned to Shanghai. Every morning when I drink coffee at home, I always think of the Palazzo Stunis I lived in. Its special charm is the warm and familiar intimacy when I enter the door. After chatting with the owner, I learned that the house is a family business he inherited from his grandfather. Everything from the color of the wall, the hand-painted pattern on the ceiling, the mosaic of the floor marble, the furniture, the tableware to the bathroom shower equipment, the towels for the guests, everything is spotless and elegant. The readily available antique furnishings are polished and polished, exuding extravagance but no ostentation, and naturally set off the historical sense of the ancestral real estate without revealing any old and pedantic atmosphere. The host, Matteo, is very sincere and polite. We are moved every morning by the hearty breakfast he carefully prepared. The table is covered with starched white drawnwork tablecloths and elegant silver-rimmed plates are placed on the table. With silver tableware and neatly folded white cloth embroidered with small flowers. He brought out the cappuccino while chatting softly, introducing us to the places to go every day and the restaurants he likes to go to, and then he helped us contact the car and the driver. During the few days spent here, the beauty of every day starts with his breakfast... Until the day of departure, Matteo helped us carry our heavy luggage and drove us into the car. Next time I go back to Ostuni, I will definitely live with him again. Today, I wrote a review on TripAdvisor, which is a small reward for the host’s hospitality.

Pros: 1. Location. Highest point in Ostuni with great views Old character. Simple. Calm quiet. Small boutique Relais chateau hotel. Walk and explore the town from your doorstep 2. Room size good. Excellent detail of shelf at base of bathroom mirror as incorporated into the mirror. This freeing up counter space. High ceilings light. Design was lovely and functional. Hard surface floor - thus much cleaner than carpet. So glad when we see no carpet in hotel rooms 3. Private view balcony from our room. We loved room 8 Soleil. Slept so well. Am curious the history of the hotel and would have loved to learn about it. I should have inquired. 4. Our section of hotel had large private upstairs open room, high ceilings and larger balcony too 5. Service ! Daniela. Francesca. Gianni /Giovanni. Restaurant/breakfast. Front desk. Welcome drink fresh unusual made by Daniela I think. Fulvia C does a lovely job as the GM. Our many thanks to all at front desk to housekeeping and others that we didn't see but who surely worked to make our experience so very lovely 6. Quiet. Private. Nice especially for famous people who want the quiet family time with privacy. (Don't ask me who!) 7. Breakfast good, not great. . Fresh fruit. Ordered some veggies sautéed (no egg). But eggplant drenched in olive oil so not good. Yet zucchini was. No fresh cucumber. Would have loved fresh cucumber and riper tomato especially for veggie and vegan guests Fresh juice but consider adding fresh veggie/fruit mix with ginger. Great service. They remembered our cappuccino oat milk preference. Pastry chef first day had a fabulous little chocolate muffin 8. Excellent linens Good bedding etc very clean. 9. Nice location to go and explore the area. Advisement/Improvement: (not much of any cons to report - basically overall excellent!) so maybe just some ideas .... 1. During heatwave kindly have more water available. My understanding is that hotels are supposed to provide water when the tap is not ok to drink. 2. Parking not available on site so you park at their lot offsite and wait for pick up. But was fairly prompt. Fun little three wheel classic Ape ( tuck tuck). All part of the charm. Parking is not included in room rate However no cars in the city means a more special experience :) 3. Provide guests with directions to parking as GPS has known issues in not finding it - probably due to some new roads 4. Breakfast: Being few guests would be easy to offer fresh blended ginger juice vs just sugary ones, even if ”fresh” was not offering a green ginger option. Other hotels less $$$ offered this to us. Also no cooked veggies, but they did some for me but was awful - full of oil. I don't eat eggs and would recommend some beans and warm veggies for Vegans/non egg eating vegetarians. A few tables down was a very well known American celebrity, but the place was low-key, which we prefer over OT glitz. Nice when everyone

The hotel is located in the heart of the villages of Cisternino, in a peripheral area but not isolated about three kilometres from the historic centre. It has large parking spaces, also covered and has developed around the existing pizzeria still today at the service of the structure. Many rooms on three floors provide guests with a pleasant stay in the immense Itria Valley, offering a wonderful view. The hotel's furniture is a bit date but the timeliness of the service, the reception and the accessory services of the structure put this to a negligible level. The staff are very careful to clean and pay attention to the needs of the clients. The pool area is equipped with three baths of different sizes and depths, is wide enough and has the necessary equipment. No animation or entertainment service is provided. Unlike other neighbouring locations, this year in Cisternino is the residence fee (2 euros per person per guest) which is worth paying. Recommended structure for work stops and quiet stays. Cost proportional to the category of the structure. Recommended.