Casino Doxi Stracca

The Palazzo

• Bedroom 1: double bed (160x190cm), en-suite WC and separate shower room
• Bedroom 2: double bed (160x190cm), en-suite bathroom with tub and shower attachment
• Bedroom 3: double bed (160x190cm), en-suite bathroom with tub and shower attachment
• Bedroom 4: double-twin bed (80/160x190cm), en-suite shower room

NB: please note that bedrooms 1 and 2 are interconnected by a door which can be locked or left open. If this is locked, bedroom 2 can be accessible directly from its terrace.

The Casino

Bedroom 5: double bed (160x190cm), en-suite shower room
• Bedroom 6: double bed (160x190cm), en-suite bathroom with separate tub
• Bedroom 7: double bed (160x190cm), en-suite shower room

NB: please note that bedroom 7 can only be accessed externally via the second floor terrace or a flight of steps near the pool area.

Reduced Occupancy

During the shoulder seasons, Casino Doxi Stracca has a reduced price for a group of up to 8 that only need up to 4 bedrooms. The bedrooms not required will be closed, but the rest of the villa, its amenities and its grounds will remain at the complete disposal of guests. Should you book the reduced occupancy rate, the palazzo's bedrooms will be prepared for you.

Inside

accommodation at Casino Doxi Stracca is laid out over two principal buildings: the palazzo, and a traditional casino, once the buzzing hub of the agricultural estate. Rising gracefully between them is an utterly charming baroque chapel.

The palazzo

The main entrance of the palazzo leads into a welcoming hallway, off which the accommodation flows. To the left is a series of reception rooms interconnected by arched and rectangular openings. After an elegant and convivial dining room are three living areas, each furnished with a variety of stylish sink-in sofas and armchairs. Antique carpets and Iznik ceramics add colour and warmth to the sandy walls, and a subtle mix of contemporary and traditional lighting works in tandem with the soft sunlight filtering in through the windows to create a warm, thoroughly tranquil atmosphere. Strategically placed pieces of Islamic pottery from the 10th and 11th centuries add yet more depth and interest, and a door opens out into the side gardens, where there are a pair of al fresco dining areas.

Opposite the main entrance, meanwhile, is the a well-equipped contemporary kitchen.

Stairs lead up from the entrance hall, rising above a guest WC to the first floor and an elegant reception room furnished with a sofa and a pair of armchairs and offering views over the pool, the chapel and the gardens. The four bedrooms on this level, all of which have lofty vaulted ceilings, antique painted doors, and a serene atmosphere, are accessed from here:

• the first is a double bedroom with modern four-poster bed, a little balcony overlooking the pool and gardens, an en-suite WC and a separate, walk-in shower room with sink clad in dark pebbles
• the second, the generously proportioned main bedroom, is accessed either via the first bedroom or externally from its terrace. With windows on three sides, luminous opulent space is home to a modern four-poster double bed, an extra large rug, an ornate red and gold embroidered wall hanging with a central coat of arms, a designer mid-century easy chair, and a statue of a putto on a rectangular black pedestal. Its contemporary en-suite bathroom has a bath with shower attachment. Lovers of al fresco ablutions will be delighted to learn that the private panoramic terrace of this room comes with an outdoor tub
• the third bedroom, a double, has an en-suite bathroom with tub and shower under an original (decorative) fireplace
• the fourth and final room is a double-twin room with en-suite shower room

The casino

Accommodation in the casino is spread over three floors and is quite complex in layout. The main entrance leads into a wonderfully voluminous open-concept communal space with star-vaulted ceilings in the local creamy tuff stone, polished concrete flooring, and discreet contemporary lighting. Roughly divided into three zones: a foyer with round table nearest the entrance; a sleek modern kitchen and a large, convivial dining table at the centre; and a stylishly furnished living area at the far end.

A door to the left of the main entrance opens into a living space (five steps down) furnished with a day bed, and from here one may access both the plunge pool courtyard and the first of the three bedrooms in the casino, a double under a star-vaulted ceiling with en-suite shower room. This bathroom (and the bedroom) may also be accessed from the dining area.

Back in the open-concept communal space, five steps next to the kitchen connect to a little landing and a venerable flight of stairs leading up to the first floor and the second bedroom in the casino, a double with a panoramic terrace and a large en-suite bathroom with tub, separate shower and a day bed.

The third and final bedroom (in reality a suite) in the casino is on the second floor, and accessed either from the terrace of the second bedroom or via a flight of steps leading up from near the pool. Boasting soaring vaulted ceilings, this space comprises:

• a spacious living area, furnished with a pair of day beds and adorned by a variety of antiques
• a double bedroom with modern four-poster bed, walls decorated with single-line modern frescoes, and views out over the main pool, the gardens and the grounds
• an en-suite shower room

The chapel

the handsome chapel, with its ornate baroque façade was dedicated to San Rocco (and before that to the Madonna della Purità). Today it has a new lease of life and hosts a splendid breakfast room with kitchen area.

Outside

the grounds at Casino Doxi Stracca, which incorporate vineyards, olive groves, formal gardens and terraces, extend for some five acres, cocooning the property in atmosphere of privacy and seclusion.

In terms of everyday al fresco living, activities revolve around the idyllic gardens and terraces between the palazzo and the casino. At the centre, under the benevolent, handsome baroque façade of the chapel is the main pool, an elegant, slender mirror of water clad in chessboard-patterned tiles. The tuff stone surrounds of the pool give way to emerald lawns, shade-giving trees, meticulously maintained hedging, a rich variety of flora, sitting areas and the main al fresco dining area. Other options for al fresco dining can be found round the sides of the palazzo and in the courtyard pool area of the casino.

To the far end of the pool is an impressive arch, bearing the inscription Villa Valentino (the noble Valentino family from Naples inherited the property in 1800). The arch delimits the "inner" garden from a large olive grove brimming with horticultural interest and architectural treasures. Running through the middle, from the arch down to a rustic temple folly at the far end, is a colonnade, flanked by towering Mediterranean pines and a phalanx of cypresses.

Other al fresco areas of note include the private panoramic terrace of the main bedroom in the palazzo, the pool courtyard behind the casino, and a pair of terraces on the first and second floors of the casino.

The first offers wide-open views across the estate and one can imagine former aristocratic owners standing here to survey their land. It has a sitting area and, uniquely, a fabulously ornate antique black metal bath - imagine submerging yourself in preparation for dinner, or enjoying a well-earned soak after a hard day's touring the sights.

The second, which is accessed from the living area outside the ground floor bedroom of the casino is a secluded, walled courtyard with an inviting plunge pool, and a shaded sitting and dining area. This is where you might come for a quiet breakfast, or two while away an hour or two with a book, hopping in and out of the water to cool off.

The terrace on the first floor of the casino has a little sitting area and provides access to the suite on the second floor, which also has a terrace.

In 18th-century Puglia, a new aristocratic fashion saw landowners take a closer interest in their extensive estates. Where once they had left the management of their farms to massari, they now became “lord-peasants”, travelling out from their sophisticated town-centre palazzi to directly oversee agricultural activities on their land. To do so in the greatest possible comfort, they built impressive country houses in which to live and work for a few months of the year, especially around harvest time.

Many of these grand houses were masserie, but some families were even more ambitious. The aristocratic Doxi-Stracca clan, once owners of the eponymous palazzo in the centre of Gallipoli, provide a perfect example. At the very end of the 17th century, they began the construction of a large palazzo (palace) in which to stay, an elegant baroque chapel in which to pray, and extensive gardens in which to while away the hours. They also created a voluminous, multi-dimensional agricultural building (casino) for storing equipment and crops, pressing the grapes, and sheltering the animals. Just outside the present perimeter walls, they added an olive mill (trappito), which is now run as part of an educational farm project.

In 1800, the property passed to the Valentino family of Naples. They transformed the gardens, adding a host of features, including fountains, a colonnade leading to a rural temple, an impressive avenue, ornate stone benches, and, perhaps most significantly, an archway between the formal gardens and the inner courtyard that still bears the inscription “Villa Valentino”.

The Valentinos brought with them high-society connections and plenty of political intrigue. The wife of Vito Valentino, Cristina Chiarizio, had played a significant role during the Neapolitan Revolution of 1799, which resulted in the short-lived, Jacobin-inspired Parthenopean Republic. When the Bourbon King, Ferdinand IV, returned from Palermo to reclaim his throne in Naples, the Valentino family fled to Puglia, where they settled at Casino Doxi Stracca.

In 1838, the son of Cristina and Vito, Epaminonda, married Maria Rosa de Pace, and together, inspired by the republican revolutionary, Giuseppe Mazzini, they held meetings of the secret, revolutionary Carbonari at the villa. The cause of this anti-Bourbon group was the unification of Italy (il Risorgimento).

Epaminonda would not live to see the united Italy he yearned for, however. On 9th May 1849, he was arrested while hiding in the barn at Casino Doxi Stracca and incarcerated in the prison in Lecce, where he died some months later. His son, Francesco, continued in his parents’ footsteps: he fought (and died) fighting alongside Garibaldi at the Battle of Pieve in 1866.

Zooming forward to the 21st century, from 2018 to early 2023, Casino Doxi Stracca underwent a complete renovation led by the distinguished architect Paolo Genta Tarnavasio. The property's original charm shines through wherever you look, the generous proportions of its spaces continue to inspire awe, and the sophistication, subtlety and quality of the interior design is entirely in-keeping with architectural magnificence of this most storied noble home.

Due to the nature of the property including terraces low walls and several drops around the grounds, children must be supervised at all times.

The number of steps that must be negotiated to get into and/or around this property might make it unsuitable for people with mobility problems.

This property is surrounded by countryside, some of which is unfenced and may include drops or steep slopes. We therefore recommend that younger children are supervised by an adult when exploring the grounds. .

The discreet and helpful house manager may stay in the adjoining property/within the grounds and will not disturb in any way, unless of course you need local advice.

There are also a few cats at the property, to keep the wildlife under control.

Parts of the access road to the property are unpaved, so we recommend guests drive with care and at a reduced speed.