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Matera Italy Travel Guide: The Ancient Cave City Worth the Journey

Matera is one of the most extraordinary places in Italy. This ancient cave city in the southern region of Basilicata is believed to be one of the oldest continuously inhabited settlements on earth. The Sassi di Matera — two districts of rock-cut dwellings carved into a ravine — draw visitors from around the world. If you are planning an Italy trip and wondering whether Matera is worth the detour south, the answer is an emphatic yes.

The European Capital of Culture title came to Matera in 2019, and it deserves every bit of the attention that honour brought. Yet the city still feels far removed from the crowds of Rome or Florence. Getting there takes a little effort, which is precisely why so many visitors skip it — and precisely why those who make the journey leave feeling they have discovered something rare.

What Is Matera?

Matera sits in the instep of Italy’s boot, in the Basilicata region. The city is built on and around a dramatic ravine called the Gravina. On one side of the gorge you find the Sassi — the cave districts of Sasso Caveoso and Sasso Barisano — while across the ravine stand rock churches and ancient cave complexes that date back thousands of years.

People have lived in these caves since at least the Palaeolithic era, making Matera one of the earliest known human settlements in the Mediterranean. For much of the 20th century, Italians saw the Sassi as a national embarrassment. Families lived in extreme poverty in single cave rooms shared with their livestock. The Italian government forcibly relocated residents in the 1950s. Today the same caves house boutique hotels and restaurants, and UNESCO has recognised the whole Sassi district as a World Heritage Site.

Getting to Matera

Matera has no airport and no direct train connection from Rome or Naples. This is part of what keeps it special. There are a few practical ways to reach the city:

By Train and Bus from Rome

The most common route is to take a high-speed train from Rome to Bari (around three and a half hours), then connect to Matera by bus or the Ferrovie Appulo Lucane (FAL) regional railway. The FAL train runs from Bari Centrale to Matera Sud and takes roughly one hour 20 minutes. Buses operated by Flixbus and local companies also run this route. Total journey time from Rome is around five to six hours depending on connections.

By Train from Naples

From Naples, travel to Potenza by train, then continue to Matera. Alternatively, take the train to Taranto and connect from there. The journey takes around four to five hours. Getting around Italy by train is generally excellent, though the connections into Basilicata are slower than the main high-speed routes.

By Car

Driving is arguably the best way to reach Matera, especially if you plan to explore the surrounding countryside. The drive from Rome takes around four hours via the A1 motorway south, then across towards Potenza. From Naples it is around two and a half to three hours. Parking is available on the edges of the Sassi districts, though the streets inside are narrow and mostly pedestrian.

Where to Stay in Matera

Staying inside the Sassi is the experience most visitors come for. The cave hotels here are genuinely remarkable — builders carved many rooms directly into the tufa rock, giving them vaulted ceilings and thick stone walls that stay cool in summer and warm in winter.

Cave Hotels in the Sassi

Sextantio Le Grotte della Civita ranks among the most celebrated cave hotels in the world. The designers carved rooms directly into ancient cave dwellings, restoring them minimally with original stone floors and modern comforts. The Aquatio Cave Luxury Hotel and Spa is another standout, perching on the edge of the Sasso Caveoso with dramatic views across the ravine. Expect to pay more than you would in a standard Italian city hotel, but the experience genuinely resembles nowhere else on earth.

Budget Options in the New Town

If budget matters, the newer part of Matera — known as the Civita — has several B&Bs and small hotels at more modest prices. You can walk into the Sassi from here in ten to fifteen minutes. This is a practical choice for travellers who want the cave city experience without paying cave hotel prices for every night of their stay.

How Many Nights Do You Need?

Two nights is the sweet spot. One night leaves you rushing. Three nights is plenty for most visitors. The Sassi are compact — you can walk the main areas in a day — but the city rewards slow exploration. Evenings in Matera are magical, when the cave buildings glow golden in the fading light and the day-trip crowds have gone.

What to See and Do in Matera

Walk the Sassi Districts

The Sassi di Matera divide into two sections: Sasso Caveoso to the south and Sasso Barisano to the north, separated by the Civita hill on which the Cathedral stands. Walking both districts takes around three to four hours at a leisurely pace. The streets are steep, uneven, and often have no guardrails at the edge of drops — wear good footwear and keep children close. The rewards are constant: every turn reveals another view across the ravine, another carved doorway, another ancient church cut into the rock face.

Visit the Rock Churches

The Parco della Murgia Materana, the park that occupies the ravine opposite the Sassi, contains more than 150 rock-cut churches. Many date from the Byzantine period, when Christian monks retreated to these caves to live and worship. The most famous is the Madonna de Idris, carved into the cone of rock that rises above Sasso Caveoso. Inside you can see fragments of Byzantine frescoes that have survived for centuries. Guided tours of the park are available and strongly recommended — the park is large and the churches can be hard to find without local knowledge.

Explore the Matera Cathedral

The Cathedral of Matera, dedicated to the Madonna della Bruna, sits at the highest point of the Civita and was built in the 13th century in the Apulian Romanesque style. The facade is relatively simple, but the interior contains remarkable sculpture, carved altars, and a celebrated nativity scene. The Cathedral is the heart of the city’s religious life — the Festa della Bruna, held every July, draws enormous crowds for a procession that culminates in the ritual destruction of a papier-mâché float.

Casa Noha and the MUSMA Sculpture Museum

FAI (the Italian equivalent of the National Trust) runs Casa Noha, a small museum that tells the story of the Sassi through a powerful audiovisual presentation. Visit early in your trip for good context. The MUSMA — Museo della Scultura Contemporanea — occupies an extraordinary underground palazzo where curators display contemporary sculpture across a series of cave rooms. The combination of ancient space and modern art works better than it has any right to.

Day Trip to Alberobello

Alberobello, with its iconic trulli — whitewashed conical-roofed stone huts — is around an hour’s drive from Matera. It makes an excellent half-day excursion. The town is touristy but the trulli district (also a UNESCO World Heritage Site) is genuinely charming, especially early in the morning before the coach tours arrive. A day that combines Alberobello in the morning with the drive back through the Murgia plateau at sunset is hard to beat.

What to Eat and Drink in Matera

Basilicata has a distinct cuisine that most Italian food enthusiasts have never fully explored. Matera sits at the centre of it.

Bread: The Pane di Matera

Matera is famous throughout Italy for its bread. The Pane di Matera — a large, domed loaf with a dense yellow crumb and thick crust — holds DOP protected designation of origin status. It is made with local durum wheat semolina, and a single loaf can weigh several kilograms. You will find it in every bakery and on every restaurant table. Buy a loaf to take away; it stays fresh for several days. Tearing into a warm piece straight from the baker is one of the simple pleasures of the city.

Peperoni Cruschi and Local Specialities

Peperoni cruschi — dried sweet red peppers fried until crisp — are the defining ingredient of Basilicata cooking. You will find them piled in baskets in every market, hanging in strings from shop fronts, and scattered over pasta and main courses in local restaurants. They have a delicate sweetness and satisfying crunch. Try them in a dish of lagane e ceci (pasta strips with chickpeas) or simply with fried eggs and the local bread.

The Aglianico del Vulture grape makes some of the most serious red wine in southern Italy. It is grown on the volcanic slopes north of Matera, and the resulting wine is tannic and age-worthy — quite different in character from the lighter reds of Tuscany or Piedmont. Ask for a glass with dinner.

Where to Eat

Ristorante Baccanti, in the Sasso Barisano, serves traditional Basilicata dishes at fair prices with cave dining rooms. Osteria Il Cantuccio, near the Cathedral, is a local favourite for pasta and grilled meats. For a special dinner, the restaurants in the cave hotels are excellent — expensive by local standards, but the setting inside carved stone rooms adds to the experience in a way that is difficult to replicate elsewhere.

Practical Tips for Visiting Matera

Best Time to Visit

April, May, September, and October are the best months to visit Matera. The summer months of July and August bring intense heat — temperatures regularly exceed 35°C in the ravine. The stone amplifies the warmth and there is little shade in the Sassi. If you do visit in summer, explore early in the morning before 10am and again after 5pm. Spring and autumn bring comfortable temperatures, lower visitor numbers, and cleaner light for photography.

Wear the Right Shoes

The streets in the Sassi are cobbled, steep, and uneven. Many have no handrails. Rain makes them slippery. Wear comfortable walking shoes with a grip sole — sandals and heels will let you down. If you plan to visit the rock churches in the Murgia Materana park across the ravine, trainers or light hiking shoes will serve you well.

Guided Tours vs Self-Guided Exploration

Matera rewards a combination of both. Take a guided tour of the rock churches and the Sassi on your first morning — a good local guide will give you the historical context that transforms what you see. Spend the rest of your time wandering freely. The city is compact enough that you will not get badly lost, and the best discoveries often happen when you turn off the main paths and follow your curiosity down an unmarked staircase.

Getting Around Within Matera

Matera’s Sassi districts are entirely walkable. No roads penetrate the cave districts — only narrow pedestrian lanes and stairways. If you stay in a cave hotel, staff can collect your luggage by hand or with small electric vehicles. Roads connect the new town to the Sassi, and taxis operate throughout. A free electric shuttle bus runs between the main car parks and the edge of the Sassi at peak times.

Frequently Asked Questions About Matera

Is Matera worth visiting if you only have one day?

Yes, but only just. A single day allows you to walk the Sassi, visit the Cathedral, and have one good meal. You will miss the evening light, which is when Matera is at its most beautiful. If you are travelling from Rome or Naples, the journey time means a single-day trip involves a long day of travel. Whenever possible, plan to stay at least one night — ideally two.

How far is Matera from the Amalfi Coast?

Matera is around two to two and a half hours by car from Sorrento, which is the gateway to the Amalfi Coast. The drive takes you through beautiful inland Basilicata countryside. Combining Matera with the Amalfi Coast road trip from Naples is one of the best southern Italy itineraries available — you get dramatic coastal scenery and an ancient cave city within the same trip.

What makes Matera a UNESCO World Heritage Site?

UNESCO added the Sassi di Matera to its World Heritage List in 1993. The designation recognises the Sassi as an outstanding example of a rock-cut settlement that humans have continuously inhabited since the Palaeolithic period. The site shows how people adapted to their rocky landscape over millennia, creating a layered urban environment of extraordinary complexity. UNESCO also included the associated Murgia Materana park, with its rock churches and cave complexes, as an integral part of the cultural landscape.

Where is Matera in Italy?

Matera is in the region of Basilicata, in the deep south of Italy. It sits roughly in the middle of the instep — the arch of Italy’s boot — between Naples to the west and Bari to the northeast. It is the capital of the province of Matera and the second-largest city in Basilicata after Potenza. The city is less well known internationally than other southern Italian destinations, which is a large part of its appeal.

When was Matera named European Capital of Culture?

Matera was European Capital of Culture in 2019, sharing the designation that year with Plovdiv in Bulgaria and Novi Sad in Serbia. The title brought significant investment in cultural infrastructure, new museums, and international attention. For many visitors outside Italy, the 2019 designation was their first introduction to the city. The events programme ran throughout the year and drew visitors from across Europe and beyond.

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Plan Your Italy Trip

Matera works best as part of a wider southern Italy itinerary. Pair it with the Amalfi Coast for a coastal and cultural contrast, or combine it with Alberobello, Lecce, and the heel of Puglia for a deep dive into the south. If you are flying into Rome, consider building a loop: Rome south by car, Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast, inland to Matera, then north through Puglia before returning north. Allow at least ten days to do it properly. Rushing southern Italy does it a disservice.

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