Alberobello is one of the most beautiful towns in all of Italy. Famous for its eggshell-colored stone houses with fantastical conical roofs, visiting Alberobello is like stepping into a fairy tale. But how can you have an authentic travel experience in a place that now caters almost entirely to tourists looking to escape reality?
I recently spent three days in Alberobello in Puglia, Italy. By spending two nights in the town I was able to spend some time meeting local residents, exploring the residential neighborhoods (where people still live in the typical stone huts) and scoping out the best restaurants and accommodation options. I’ll cover all of that in this Alberobello travel guide so that you can make the most of your visit, whether you’re in town for a few hours or a few days.
Introduction to Alberobello
Alberobello is one of the most famous towns in Puglia. It is located between Bari and Lecce, about ten kilometers from the coast. It is also close to other Puglian towns such as Locorotondo (just a few kilometers away) and Ostuni.
Anyone with a rudimentary knowledge of Italian would assume that the name Alberobello means “beautiful tree”, but the town’s name actually has different roots. According to the guide of my walking tour (see below), Alberobello actually derives from the Latin phrase “forest of the tree of war”, and refers to the contested, and strong, oak trees that once stood here.
Alberobello is famous for its white stone huts, called trulli. As with most Italian nouns, the ending of the word changes depending on if it’s singular or plural:
- One trullo
- Two or more trulli
So, you could say that you visited Alberobello to see all the trulli, and you stayed overnight in a trullo.
Traditional trulli are made from local limestone, and feature domed or cone-shaped roofs made from slabs of grey limestone. There are more than 1,600 trulli in Alberobello, with the oldest dating back to the 1400s. Today, many retain their traditional appearance, but others have had their facades renovated and modernized to look more contemporary from the street. Alberobello’s trulli became protected as UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1996, and interest in visiting the town has been on the rise ever since.
The most important thing to remember about Alberobello is that it’s not a tourist attraction. It’s a real town where real people live, and as a visitor it’s important to respect their community and their quality of life. Don’t trespass onto private property, be mindful about your volume level when you’re in residential areas, and remember that you are a guest in their neighborhood.
Rione Monte – The Main Trulli District
Rione is the Italian word for “district”, and in Rione Monte you will find more than 1000 of Alberobello’s famous trulli. Rione Monte is located on the south side of Via Indipendenza and ascends uphill towards Via Cadore and Via Isonzo.
As you can see above, the streets here are paved with large, slippery stones and often have irregular steps. If you have any difficulties with walking (or are using a stroller or wheelchair) then you may want to explore Rione Monte in a tuk-tuk tour (see below).
Rione Monte is the main tourist area in Alberobello. In fact, many day trippers won’t even make it to the other trulli district, Rione Aia Piccola (see below). Because this area is so touristy, most of the trulli here have been converted into either souvenir shops, vacation rentals, house museums or restaurants.
As you’re walking in Rione Monti make sure to look atop the different trulli to notice the symbols painted on their limestone roofs. There are signs throughout town explaining the significance of each symbol, which draw their origins from Christianity, paganism, mysticism and occasionally just the owner’s imagination! The caps atop each roof also have unique significance, as each stonemason had his own signature style.
At the top of the hill you will find Saint Anthony’s Church, a large church shaped like a Greek cross and constructed from a series of interlinked trulli. This church was built in 1927, well after most of the surrounding trulli and shortly after a law was passed saying that any new constructions in the Rione Monte area would have to adhere to traditional architectural norms. It’s free to enter the church and look around, although the interior isn’t particularly exciting.
Rione Aia Piccola – The Small Trulli District
On the north side of Via Indipendenza you’ll find the smaller trulli district: Rione Aia Piccola. Here, there are about 600 trulli still standing, and many of them are still owned and occupied by local residents.
In my opinion, this is the more charming side of Alberobello. I first strolled around early in the morning, when the streets were empty, and it felt like I had stepped back in time.
Here you’ll find what I believe to be the prettiest trullo in all of Alberobello. Decorated with pumpkins and with a garden teeming with greenery, this trully is owned by a local man who enjoys showcasing the fruits (and vegetables) of his labor to tourists. You can even purchase fresh fruits grown in his back garden if you’re in the mood for a sweet snack!
At the edge of the Rione Aia Piccola district you’ll also find Alberobello’s Trulli Museum, formally known as the “Territory Museum in the House of Doctor Giacomo Giuseppe Pezzolla”. €4 grants you admission to the interior, which features a malfunctioning audioguide and some mostly-empty rooms. The highlight is probably the interior courtyard (shown above) which has an unobstructed view of some trulli if you are looking to take a few photos for your Instagram.
There is also a panoramic lookout point at the edge of Rione Aia Piccoli, inside the Villa Comunale Belvedere Park. From here, you look across Via Indipendenza to the Rione Monte trullo district. Unfortunately the view is partially obscured by trees and flags set up by private property owners, but an expert photographer with a good camera should be able to take a decent shot.
Alberobello by Night
A good reason to spend at least one night in Alberobello is to explore the trulli districts by night. Once the tour buses and day trippers have left the historic center (and once the hot summer sun has set if you’re visiting in July or August), the historic center takes on a much more evocative atmosphere.
By night, many of the trulli are beautifully illuminated with strings of sparkling lights. Shadows fall across the cobblestone streets and, if you pay attention, you’ll notice the occasional black cat hopping from rooftop to rooftop. Night is when Alberobello truly 😉 feels like a fairy tale setting.
I stayed in Rione Monte and felt very safe walking around Alberobello alone at night. The only thing to be careful about is (again) the slippery cobblestones and uneven steps, which can be hard to see in the dark.
Guided Tours in Alberobello
I started my first full day in Alberobello with this guided walking tour. There were some hiccups at the meeting point (make sure to follow the instructions and message your guide to confirm – I was at the right spot but we had to wait for people who went to the wrong spot) but once we got going it was really interesting to see the city through a local’s eyes. Because our guide was local she had good relationships with many of the trulli owners and got us into some places that typical tours wouldn’t visit.
An alternative to a walking tour is a private tuk-tuk tour of Alberobello. I spotted these retro tuk-tuks scooting all over town and it looked like so much fun. It also looked a lot safer than slipping and sliding over the steep cobblestones, which is an important consideration for any travelers with mobility limitations.
Tours to Alberobello
If you’re coming from elsewhere in Puglia and want to visit Alberbello on an organized day trip, here are some options:
- Alberobello and Matera from Bari or Polignano a Mare – You’ll have about three hours in Matera and two and a half hours in Alberobello on this guided tour.
- Alberobello, Locorotondo and Ostuni from Brindisi – This eight-hour tour will show you three of the most picturesque towns in Puglia.
- Alberobello, Ostuni and Polignano a Mare from Lecce – You’ll visit three distinctly different historical towns in this full-day guided tour.
Restaurants in Alberobello
In the busy summer season Alberobello doesn’t have enough restaurants to accommodate all of the tourists that descend upon the city! If there’s somewhere you particularly want to visit then you should make reservations in advance. Otherwise, be prepared to wait for a table.
Cosi Comera
This was my favorite restaurant in Alberobello and I actually ate here three times! The food in Puglia is fresh and local and beautiful but there simply isn’t much variety for vegetarians, especially if you’re staying for more than a week or two. Fortunately, Cosi Comera had several different vegan and vegetarian options on their menu, in addition to more typical dishes with meat.
On two mornings I had their omelette made with local sheep cheese and tomatoes, which was served with beautiful bread. I also tried their vegan pancakes with fresh fruits and almond butter. All three visits I had a fresh-squeezed orange juice and cappuccino with my breakfast.
Cosi Comera gets busy in the morning because they partner with some local trulli to serve breakfast to their guests. You can reserve a table or try coming earlier or later to avoid the breakfast rush.
Sintesi Pizza
If you want a pizza in Alberobello that is a little bit more unique and creative than the norm, then you’ll want to eat at Sintesi. This popular restaurant fills quickly and often has a wait, but it’s worth it! I had their interpretation of a margherita pizza, where the local tomatoes and cheese were enhanced with chili peppers and citrus zest. Adding the citrus zest really made the pizza stand out and it’s a technique I now use at home to make a boring frozen pizza more exciting!
I hate having to add this but you’ll want to check your bill here carefully – the price I was charged on my receipt was significantly higher than what was shown on the menu, and when I pointed it out their first “correction” was still higher than the menu! I don’t see any other reviews mentioning this so hopefully it was just a one-off experience on the day I was there.
Bagia
An excellent option for a light meal, aperitivo or snack, Bagia is located right on the main street at the base of the Rione Monti trullo district. They have indoor seating but it’s the sunny terrace that offers the best atmosphere and people-watching.
I had their vegetarian veggie burger (a welcome change from the typical regional food I’d been eating for the past month!) after a small aperitivo plate with olives, taralli and cheese. And an Aperol Spritz, of course!
Frutta dell Aia
If you don’t have room for a full meal but you need something to tide you over until apertivo hour, pop by Frutta dell Aia where you can buy a fresh-cut fruit salad in a to-go cup (complete with fork). There’s a Todis supermarket 100 meters north from the fruit shop, so you could also get some yogurt if you wanted to make a more substantial snack.
🍓Fun fact: In Italian, the word for “fruit salad” is macedonia, like the country! 🍓
Coppino
I don’t have a photo of this restaurant in Alberobello but I did eat at their location in Monopoli (where I took the photo above) and it was lots of fun. Billing themselves as “orecchietti and meatballs the way grandma used to make” this fast-casual restaurant has vegan, vegetarian and meaty choices. I had the orecchietti with fresh tomatoes, olive oil and cacioricotta cheese, which was definitely a simple, grandma-style pasta dish.
If you’re in Alberobello with kids this restaurant would be one of your best options. Get a few bowls of pasta and some meatballs (or the vegetarian bread balls!), order a side of salad or crudites, and let everyone dig in!
Hotels in Alberobello (Staying in a Trullo)
If you’re spending the night in Alberobello then you definitely have to stay in a trullo! At the top, I took a photo of the trullo rental company that I DO recommend you use to book a trullo rental in Alberobello. This company is called Trulli Holiday Albergo Diffuso.
In Italian, an “albergo diffuso” is an accommodation provider with locations spread across a wide region. In this case, Trulli Holiday Albergo Diffuso has a number of trulli for rent on different streets around Alberobello. The address shown on Booking is where you check in, and the staff will then take you to your specific trullo. I met a few people who were staying in their properties at breakfast and they all raved about their accommodations – this is confirmed by their 9.4/10 rating on Booking (at publication time).
I unfortunately booked with a different trullo rental company and I can’t recommend them. They sent me the wrong address for check-in, my trullo (shown in the second two photos) was not very clean and when I left them an honest review they sent me a barrage of offensive messages on WhatsApp. I won’t name them – I’ll just recommend Trulli Holiday Albergo Diffuso instead.
A couple of things to note about staying in a trullo are that you’ll likely find the ceilings are quite low, parking is generally prohibited in most of the trullo areas, and you may be disrupted by all the tourists around your rental. I had one family of tourists sit on my private terrace and then later come back and try to open my front door, which was quite stressful. If that doesn’t appeal to you then you might want to stay in a regular hotel or guesthouse, like Mirum Apuliae or Hotel Silva.
Getting to Alberobello
Alberobello is well-connected to other cities around Puglia, especially in the summer. Trains and buses both use the same station, and tickets for both can be purchased on the official Trenitalia website.
Walking from the train or bus station into the trulli district takes about ten to fifteen minutes, and the pedestrian sidewalk is paved (not cobblestones!) most of the way. However, once you reach the center there is a possibility that your trullo rental will then be up a very large hill paved with rough cobblestones (RIP suitcase wheels), which might make a taxi a better option. Sort this out with your accommodation via WhatsApp before you arrive in Alberobello.
I spent the summer traveling around Puglia by bus and train! Check out my other Puglia travel guides:
Locorotondo (The Prettiest Town in Puglia)
The Best Things to Do in Lecce
14 Amazing Things to Do in Matera
The 7 Best Beaches in Monopoli
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