Vinilia Wine Resort

Vinilia is beautiful, a must visit when in Puglia. The castle, grounds and pool are wonderful, the staff are kind and friendly, the restaurant (michelin star) is one of the best we have ever had the pleasure to dine in. Our room had so much Puglian character, but will all the modern amenities, we loved it. This place is an absolute gem off the beaten track. We cannot recommend Vinilia enough 10/10. Thanks Vinilia Wine Resort for a great stay.

The hotel is beautiful. The castle and the grounds are lovely and the rooms are well decorated. It feels relaxing and it is surrounded by the countryside which is a real bonus. As long as you have a car this is an excellent base to explore. The staff at reception were also very friendly and helpful, arranging dinner for us at a great local restaurant. However, the service and some bits of the offer do not match up to the luxury expectations and pricing. First, we were surprised the hotel didn’t provide complimentary bottled water (the only we stayed at in Puglia that didn’t). Given the hotel is in the middle of nowhere, charging €3 for a small bottle seemed excessive. Second, the breakfast service was very confusing and the staff weren’t attentive. It wasn’t clear they offered hot food until we walked up to a member of staff and asked. We also had to ask for a bowl and a then later on a plate to be able to use the buffet as there were none available. We also sampled some of the wines from the hotel’s vineyard and at €10-€12 a glass it felt very overpriced compared to other local wineries, especially given the wines we had retailed at €13 euros a bottle on the hotel vineyard’s own website.

Vinilia resort is an unique place to stay to experience an absolute fine dining and service that is provided. The place is renovated to the highest quality and standards. The atmosphere experienced is friendly. Fernando is an amazing person who will go step further to make you feel welcomed and appreciated. Thank you for an unforgettable experience.

Lunch at this Michelin star restaurant was fantastic! Great food and wonderful service. You couldn’t have a lovelier setting. Well paced service and nice wine tasting to go with the lunch. Really nice wines that were exceptional in an area that had great wine.

Property is ideal for two/three trip and provides an comfortable backdrop setting to enjoy the wonderful pool, grounds and wonderful lunch menu and selective wine options while at the pool. Property is truly unique, spacious and offers a feeling of tranquility as the castle feature 18 rooms, indoor / outdoor dining and a lovely livingroom setting coupled was fantastic art while offering guests a light and wonderful breakfast spread. Some areas / concerns to be mindful of though. 1. The property / castle is challenged with an AC system that cannot accommodate cooler temperatures which leaves the room temperature at a minimum of 24C / approx 75F degrees despite leaving the AC on throughout the day which provides an uncomfortable room temp after a long hot day. All rooms in the hotel cannot physically go below 24 C at any time period which was very concerning when you’re paying for a luxury hotel experience. The entire hotel setting (lobby, hotel rooms, dinning area) all are kept at 24/25 C and for these reasons it would be hard to justify returning to this hotel. The restaurant: The overall backdrop setting is wonderful but the menu/ food lacks the depth, flavors and or a true culinary experience that would justify considering this Menu. Perhaps a bottle of wine would be a wise option to enjoy in the yard but we would carefully suggest only considering lunch at the pool vs eating dinner at the property which we found to have many limitations.

Absolutely loved this hotel. It is a very quiet beautiful place, perfect for a relaxing break. Staff were so friendly and all seemed to be local and so proud and knowledgeable about the food and wines from the region. We would love to go again.

A 600eur bill for a night to forget Been at Vinilia on a 1 night detour on the 10th August, best advice is to avoid it for the time being until it gets heeled up to international clientele - stick to Masserias on the Savelletri coast instead. Stunning location with plenty of potential, but needs an upgrade in hospitality management. The staff was absolutely lovely and tried to make up for the shortcomings, but management needs to decide if it wants to work with internal guests (proving that sense of ‘uniqueness’ and ‘special stay’) or rely on externals instead. The latter is completely fine, but as a guest i’d feel disrespected if getting charged 400eur/nigh for a room + 200eur for extras. Few suggestions: 1. Strike a deal with your onsite restaurant to reserve places for internal guests. Yes it’s a busy week in August, but not having places for paying guests it’s a bit awkward - if I want to eat out in Manduria i’d book a local b&b instead not a junior suite at your property. 2. Inform guests in advance. If it happens that no places are available because externals have filled out the seats, it would be good to know in advance (email or phone call) so that alternative arrangements can be made 3. In busy periods, consider Flexible hours at the restaurant to accomodate paying guests. what about providing a table from 19.30 to 21.30 on a 2h time slot? Totally acceptable by international standards, we would definitely understand and are used to that. 4. Organise alternative in-room dining. Junior suites for example have amazing terraces, just add some dividers a lounge + umbrella for privacy. And I’m sorry but cotoletta with chips does not make the bar for a 400eur/night property, especially when you have a Michelin starred restaurant onsite, i’m sure with a bit of effort they can make something slightly better and worth the money we’re paying for. And your head chef having trained at the Four Season, should know how to organise this type of service. Discussed with receptions my impressions, all the elements are in place just needs that ‘trait d’union’ to transform an average experience into something unforgettable. But for the moment very disappointed as despite the nice location Vinilia is not worth its price for the time being.