La Casa Di Gioia

We had a great stay at Casa Di Gioia in a quadruple room during the last week of August. The rooms were super clean, and the new manager, Gianluca, was lovely, really helpful, and always ready to meet our needs. It’s set among greenery, just a few minutes from central Mottola, and about 20 minutes from Chiatona’s well equipped beach. The location also makes it handy for seeing lots of sights within a 40 minute drive. We made it to Taranto, Alberobello, and Matera, but ran out of time for other places like Bari, Altamura, and Ginosa. There’s a lot to see around here. I’d highly recommend it for a relaxing holiday exploring Puglia!

The heated outdoor hot tub was a lovely highlight, perfect for relaxing. We spent a wonderful week here, and the change in management is already making a clear difference. Everything was cared for down to the smallest detail, and the hospitality was impeccable. Gianluca was extremely helpful and ready to accommodate every request. Highly recommended!

We booked four rooms at this B&B with friends, and it was an awful experience. The place itself is beautiful, but it felt neglected and was missing basic amenities. As soon as we entered, several rooms had a strong damp smell. Two had been closed up with the heating on, and had no windows. The air was stale and nauseating, and staying in those rooms was impossible. The sheets in every room were damp. In two rooms they also had mascara stains, which made me think they hadn’t been changed. We found used toilet paper rolls and hair in the showers too, so I doubt there was proper cleaning. My room didn’t even have a refrigerator, and the others that did had no water. If you don’t bring your own, you could die of thirst. Before arriving, we asked whether there was a kettle for making milk for the two babies staying with us. The owner said there was one, but it was full of limescale and rust and completely unusable. Luckily, we had liquid milk with us, or we couldn’t have fed the children. There were all kinds of animals in the rooms, so I strongly recommend adding mosquito nets. The kitchen is closed and can’t be used unless the owner is there. At night, the gate is left open with nobody watching it. I absolutely wouldn’t recommend staying here, especially with small children. I’m attaching photos, though the quality is poor because they’re screenshots from videos I couldn’t post. I’m giving one star only because the place is beautiful. Otherwise, I’d give it zero.

The room sheets were damp, and one pillowcase was dirty with mascara. When we checked another room, its comforter was full of the red spiders we’d heard about, and a mattress protector elsewhere had a black stain, probably mascara. There were also insects in the newlyweds’ room. This was a real nightmare, especially with two newborns in our group. My friends and I had booked four rooms after a wedding. In two of them, the fan coils were blowing hot air and smelled unpleasant, probably from dusty, unsanitary filters. Once we switched them off, we tried to wash up and rest, but the bathrooms were in no state for that. The showers had hair, and the toilet paper had already been used. We compared rooms and found the same issues in all but the newlyweds’ room. It wasn’t just one missed spot. The bathrooms hadn’t been cleaned and the toilet paper hadn’t been replaced. One fridge had mold, the chandelier had cobwebs, and there were papers left by previous guests in a decorative vase. We had two newborns with us, so the owner had supplied a kettle. We checked before using it to heat milk and found it full of limescale and rust. Luckily we also had liquid milk, so we could feed the babies without heating anything. The owner said insects were normal because the property is in the countryside. A gecko had gotten into my room, and I simply let it out without making an issue of it. The bugs weren’t the main problem. Three of the four rooms had no windows, only an entrance door, and none had mosquito nets. In summer, guests would have to choose between the heat and the smell from the air conditioners, which probably hadn’t been sanitized. We didn’t mention the spiders since it seemed pointless. No one told us there was no bottled water. We waited for breakfast, which cost €5 per person and was a lukewarm cappuccino and a frozen croissant. When I asked for water, I got a jug, probably tap water, since there were no bottles in the fridge. Nobody drank it. We also paid €90 to surprise the newlyweds. I’ll leave it there and attach photos. If you find this place online, don’t go, especially with children.