“From the moment I stepped foot on this property, I felt the need to restore its soul. In the process, it restored mine.” — Paul Cappelli
Paul found the villa when visiting family from Terlizzi. It was in ruins, but he couldn’t resist the challenge of restoring a historic, crumbling villa.
After many, many years, (before and after pics here), we painstakingly restored the villa to the beautiful home it is today. Not just a home for us, but for travelers like yourself.
Sadly, Paul passed away in 2020. But I (Steven), his husband, have been happy and proud to continue to share Paul’s dream and Italian hospitality with people from all over the world.
You can rent Villa Cappelli it by the day, week or longer. Or use the grounds for weddings, private functions, parties, banquets, and conferences.
Here you’ll have an unforgettable, authentic time in a truly special part of Italy. Relax and enjoy immersing yourself in Italian indulgence — the food, the people, the fun — as so many have before you.
In fact, members of the British Royal family have stayed here as has the music group, Elbow. We’ve even received Top Vacation Rental awards from TripAdvisor’s FlipKey.
From cooking classes to homemade dinners, to guided and unguided bike tours, we can help set up whatever kind of trip you like. And no matter what you decide to do — tour the beautiful neighboring towns, explore the countryside, or just sit by the pool — you’re sure to have a sweet time doing it.
The villa sits majestically on the ancient Via Appia in the town of Terlizzi, just northwest of Bari in the region of Puglia. It is just 20 minutes from the Bari airport and approximately 7 miles from the Adriatic Sea.
No one is quite sure when the villa first sprung up, but some historians believe the garden to have begun as a 13th century monastic garden. The stone buildings on the property probably date to the 12th century. While the newest additions were probably built in the 1600s. One peculiar location in the villa is believed to be pre-Christian. This is a very odd shaped grotto under the garden, we’ve been told it was probably an Ipogeum, used for rituals.
Since the property sits directly alongside the Appian Way, we know for a fact that Roman legions, Crusaders, saints, and pilgrims have been traversing it since it was built circa 115 AD. In fact, we discovered an ancient stone cross that is believed to be from the Knights Templar. The entire villa is completely enclosed by an 18 ft. wall and features a formal half-acre garden planted almost exclusively with citrus trees, roses, and lavender.
