Matera Travel Guide: What to Know Before You Go

In 1952, the Italian government forcibly relocated 15,000 people out of Matera’s cave dwellings, the sassi, declaring them a national disgrace and a symbol of southern poverty. The caves had been continuously inhabited for 9,000 years. Today they are boutique hotels charging premium rates and UNESCO World Heritage sites. The gap between those two facts is the most interesting thing about Matera.

Understanding the sassi

The sassi, Italian for “stones”, are two adjacent districts carved into a ravine outside the modern city plateau: Sasso Barisano and Sasso Caveoso. They face each other across the Gravina canyon, which drops roughly 150 meters to a stream below.

Sasso Barisano is the more heavily restored of the two. It faces northwest, catches the afternoon light, and is where most hotels, restaurants, and visitor amenities are concentrated. It’s the polished face of Matera, the version that appears in the travel supplements.

Sasso Caveoso faces southeast toward the canyon and is rawer. The rupestrian churches with their Byzantine frescoes are concentrated here, and larger sections remain in a more original state. If you want to understand what the sassi actually were before they became a tourism site, spend more time in Sasso Caveoso.

The first view from the ridge above, looking down into Sasso Caveoso with the canyon and the Murgia plateau beyond, tends to stop people.

The forced evacuation of 1952

Carlo Levi’s book “Christ Stopped at Eboli” (1945) brought national attention to the poverty of southern Italy. Levi wrote about the Basilicata region during his period of internal exile there in 1935, a punishment from Mussolini’s government for anti-fascist activity. He described people living alongside their livestock in the sassi, malaria endemic, children malnourished. The book was read widely.

Prime Minister Alcide De Gasperi visited Matera in 1950 and called the sassi “a national disgrace.” Law 619 of 1952 was not a suggestion; it ordered the evacuation. Residents were relocated to new public housing blocks on the plateau above the ravine. They left quickly enough that personal belongings remained behind in many caves.

For the displaced families, the move was rarely a straightforward improvement. They were taken from a community built over millennia; extended families sharing a single cave with goats and donkeys was not comfortable, but the social structure was real. The new housing blocks were alien. Many people did not want to leave.

The caves were reopened to habitation in 1986 when the Italian government reversed course entirely. The sassi are now protected, restored, and priced for international tourism. The families who were evacuated received no compensation for what are now, by any measure, extremely valuable properties.

The rock-cut churches

There are more than 150 rupestrian churches in and around Matera, churches carved directly into the limestone, built between the 8th and 13th centuries by monks following the Eastern Christian tradition. You won’t see all of them, and you don’t need to. Three are worth prioritizing.

Madonna de Idris sits inside a rock outcropping at the center of Sasso Caveoso. The entrance is a low door cut directly into the stone. Inside, 11th and 13th-century Byzantine frescoes cover the walls, ochres, blues, and terracotta that have faded but remain readable: saints, the Virgin, Christ Pantocrator. The scale is very small and very direct. It’s a different experience from museum frescoes at a distance.

Santa Maria di Idris is immediately adjacent and visited with the same ticket. The frescoes here are primarily 17th-century, more Counter-Reformation than Byzantine in style, different enough to show how the cave churches evolved over five centuries.

Santa Lucia alle Malve at the base of Sasso Caveoso is the largest rupestrian church in Matera. It was a women’s monastery from the 8th century through the medieval period. The frescoes, 11th to 18th century, are better preserved than at most other sites: reds and greens still distinct, individual figures still readable. Worth the separate entry or the combined churches pass.

The combined churches ticket (available from the ticket office near Piazza Vittorio Veneto) typically covers 5–7 churches at a modest combined price. It’s the right way to approach them; trying to buy entry at each site individually wastes time.

Casa Grotta

Casa Grotta di Vico Solitario in Sasso Caveoso is a reconstructed cave dwelling showing how a single cave housed an extended family, their tools, and their animals circa the 1950s. Iron beds, a hearth, agricultural equipment, a donkey in the stable alcove at the back.

It does one thing well: it shows the physical reality of cave life, the ingenuity of different levels and niches, the proximity to livestock, the darkness beyond the entrance. What it can’t show is the community life outside the cave, the economics, the texture of daily existence across the whole neighborhood. It takes about 20 minutes to walk through. Do it before visiting the empty caves; it gives you a reference point.

Viewpoints and the ravine

The canonical photograph of Matera, the full sweep of both sassi with the canyon below, is taken from across the Gravina ravine on the Murgia plateau opposite the city. The Belvedere di Murgia Timone is where this shot is taken. Reaching it requires either a car (the SS7 road crosses the canyon with viewpoints on the far side) or a walk across the Ponte Tibetano, a pedestrian suspension bridge.

The Belvedere Guerricchio is the viewpoint within the city itself, on the ridge above the sassi near Piazza Vittorio Veneto. This is the first view most visitors get and it is very good. Every hotel terrace on the ridge has some version of it.

At night, the sassi are lit from below. Walking through them after 9pm, when the day-trippers have gone and the tour groups have eaten, is a different experience from the daytime. The stone lanes, already narrow, feel deeper.

The Murgia National Park

The Alta Murgia National Park extends across the plateau on the far side of the Gravina from Matera. The landscape is treeless limestone upland, wide, dry, and very old-feeling. It’s not dramatic the way mountains are dramatic, but it has a quality of stillness that the cave city doesn’t.

Several hiking trails cross the canyon and plateau. The most-used route starts near the Ponte Tibetano bridge, climbs to the Belvedere di Murgia Timone, and continues across the plateau past the Palaeolithic rock engravings at Murgia Timone, the oldest in Basilicata. Allow 3–4 hours for a loop including the viewpoint and canyon descent. Paths are marked but not heavily maintained. Bring water.

The park is also accessible by car via the SS7. Some visitors drive to the Belvedere, photograph the view, and drive back, a 45-minute round trip and a worthwhile detour even without hiking.

Getting to Matera

Matera has no connection to the national rail network. Getting here requires a separate step from any major city.

From Bari: The most common and practical route. Ferrovie Appulo-Lucane (FAL) runs a direct bus from Bari Centrale (the main train station) to Matera roughly every hour during the day. Journey time is about 1 hour 20 minutes. The fare is inexpensive. No reservation needed; buy on board or at the FAL desk at Bari station. This is the approach almost all independent travelers use.

FAL also runs a train from Bari to Altamura then a connecting bus to Matera, about 2 hours total, slightly cheaper. Most people take the direct bus.

From Naples: No direct service. Options include Trenitalia to Potenza (about 3 hours) then a connecting bus to Matera (1 hour), or a private shuttle. Total journey time is 3.5–4.5 hours. This matters for planning: Naples, despite being the obvious “gateway to southern Italy,” is not a convenient base for Matera. Many visitors fly into Bari, see Matera and the Puglia region, and use Naples as a one-way arrival or departure.

By car: Useful for flexibility, driving out to the Murgia viewpoints, reaching Blagaj independently, exploring the surrounding countryside. Parking near the sassi is limited; most visitors park on the plateau and walk down. The descent into the sassi is steep.

Consider combining Matera with the surrounding region: Alberobello (the trulli village) and Lecce (Baroque architecture) form a natural southern Italy circuit that adds depth to a Puglia-focused trip.

When to visit and how long to stay

Spring (April–June): The best window. Warm days (20–25°C), clear light on the limestone, wildflowers on the Murgia plateau in April and May. Crowds are manageable; tour groups arrive from May but the city doesn’t overwhelm.

Summer (July–August): The sassi concentrate heat; the canyon traps warmth and the stone radiates it back. Temperatures reach 35°C+ by early afternoon. Crowds peak in August with day-trippers arriving between 10am and 3pm. If visiting in summer, arrive before 9am and return in the evening. The overnight experience is noticeably better than the midday one.

Autumn (September–October): The second-best window. Warm enough for the Murgia without summer heat. Crowd numbers drop significantly after early September. The ochre tones of the stone are particularly good in autumn light.

How long: Two full days is the minimum for Matera done properly. Day one works for Sasso Barisano, the rock-cut churches, and Casa Grotta. Day two covers Sasso Caveoso in depth and a walk to the Belvedere di Murgia Timone. Three days allows the full Murgia hiking route and more time sitting in the sassi without rushing.

Matera can technically be done as a day trip from Bari; 1h20 bus each way gives you roughly 4–5 hours in the city. That’s enough to see the view, walk one sasso, and eat lunch. It’s not enough to understand the place. The case for an overnight stay is strong.

Frequently asked questions

Is Matera worth visiting? Yes, and not just for the photograph. The forced evacuation history, the Byzantine frescoes in the rock-cut churches, and the Murgia landscape give the city more layers than most single-monument destinations. Two days here is time well spent.

How do I get from Bari to Matera? Ferrovie Appulo-Lucane (FAL) runs a direct bus from Bari Centrale roughly every hour. Journey takes about 1 hour 20 minutes and is inexpensive. No reservation needed. Buy on board or at the FAL desk at Bari station.

What are the sassi? The sassi are two districts, Sasso Barisano and Sasso Caveoso, of cave dwellings carved into a limestone ravine. They were inhabited continuously for approximately 9,000 years, forcibly evacuated in 1952, and have since been partially restored as hotels, restaurants, and museums. Together they form a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

How long should I stay in Matera? Two full days covers the main sights properly. Three days allows hiking in the Murgia National Park and unhurried time in the sassi. A day trip from Bari is possible but limits you to the view and a quick walk through one district.

Is Matera safe? Yes. Basilicata is one of the quietest regions in Italy in terms of crime. The main practical concerns are the heat in summer and the uneven stone streets, which require proper footwear. The lanes are steep in places and slippery after rain.

What is the best time to visit? April through June and September through October. Spring has wildflowers and clear air. Autumn has warm light and smaller crowds. Summer is hot and busy with day-trippers between 10am and 3pm, manageable if you go early and stay late.

Is Matera expensive? Cave hotels in the sassi range from mid-range to very expensive per night. Accommodation on the plateau above (the modern city) is considerably cheaper, fine as a base and only a 10-minute walk to the views. Food is reasonable: a full meal with wine in a restaurant is moderately priced. The churches combined pass is inexpensive.

Can you actually stay in a cave? Yes. Several dozen hotels have converted sassi caves into rooms, typically with modern bathrooms and heating contrasting with bare limestone walls. Sextantio Le Grotte della Civita and Locanda di San Martino are the most cited. Prices vary widely, from moderate to very expensive, depending on the season and room category.