One of the first family holidays we want to share with you is our trip to Puglia. It’s a hidden gem in the heel of the boot of Italy. It has stunningly beautiful beaches, the best Italian food you’ve ever tasted, fields full of big ancient olive trees and medieval white towns with little winding roads. Puglia is yet to be discovered by mass- tourism and that makes it even a more magical place to visit.

When we were in Puglia we stayed in a masseria (this is what they call a farm or country house in Puglia) which is perfect with little children because there is so much to explore. A swimming pool, animals (in our case donkeys and goats), trees with pomegranates and enough space to run around. One evening the farmer came by and brought a baby goat. The little goat stayed with us for a couple of hours playing with our son by running around a big olive tree together.

Our masseria was near a village called Locorotondo. From there we explored the region. Must see places are of course Locorotondo but also Monopoli and her beach Santa Stefano, Ostuni (the white city), Polignano a mare, Lecce (Florence of southern Italy) and Alberobello. Alberobello is probably the most touristy place you will find but it is worth a visit. It’s a village full of typical Puglian houses called trulli’s. Trulli’s are like little white pixie houses with cone shaped roofs. Not to mention that Alberobello is on the UNESCO world heritage list.

Italy is a perfect country to visit with small children. It is super kid-friendly. They love our little monsters and I have never met a child that did not like pizza or pasta. And for us mama’s there is wine and luckely the wine from Puglia is one of the best. There are plenty of wine houses around if you would like to visit one. Talk about a spark of joy.

As for the practical stuff: to get to Puglia you can fly to Naples, Bari or Brindisi and from there drive to your accommodation with a hired car. We had a very lovely stay in Masseria Serio http://www.masseriaserio.com

P.S. If you go to Lecce you must visit La Barrique, it’s a wine bar with local wines and delicious Burratta. It’s this soft and creamy version of mozzarella and it is to die for so good.

(all photo’s by Vesper and the Fox)