I’ve been to Matera so many times that I’ve lost count, and yet each time this small city in Basilicata amazes me with its colours and its unique flavours. Maybe it’s the views, maybe the calm you still breathe walking among the old tufa houses, but visiting Matera always leaves me with wonderful feelings.
If you’re about to visit Matera, there are some things you absolutely can’t miss.
Matera is a very ancient city, whose thousand-year history has left us monuments and traditions to discover. It’s no surprise that the Sassi of Matera and the Park of the Rupestrian Churches have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993 (the first site in southern Italy to earn the recognition). Among the Sassi you’ll find plenty of attractions: houses, museums, an underground cistern, rock-hewn caves and beautiful churches.
As I said, I’ve been several times over the years and I’ve watched it literally transform. Until about fifteen years ago the Sassi of Matera were almost abandoned, and it wasn’t unusual to walk through deserted areas. Then the city made an incredible leap forward, culminating in 2019, when Matera was European Capital of Culture: today the streets are always full of visitors of every nationality.
Dozens of new businesses have opened in the old town, and the Sassi can be explored with plenty of guided tours. If you want my advice, the best thing is to have a guide at least the first time: you can book a walking tour of the Sassi that includes entry to a cave house and a rupestrian church.
In short, this city has become a real gem to discover, and nearby there are many other interesting places, such as the abbey of Venosa or the beautiful towns of Puglia, including Alberobello.
Do you fancy learning more?
Here are 7 things you absolutely can’t miss in Matera.
Let’s go!
1 – The most beautiful churches in Matera
The churches to visit in Matera are many, some very ancient and of overwhelming beauty.
One of these is San Domenico, whose Dominican monastic complex dates back to 1230: the interior, as in many of the city’s churches, was redone in the Baroque period, but the exterior still keeps its original Romanesque façade.
Where are the most beautiful ones?
The main artery of Matera’s old town is Via Vittorio Veneto. Some of the city’s finest places of worship face this street, such as the church of the Purgatorio. Built in the 18th century, it’s striking for its exterior decoration of skulls and skeletons.
Continuing to the far end of the street you reach one of the loveliest terraces. Looking out from here, you’ll notice the large cross at the centre of the old town, and right below it the church of the Madonna dell’Idris, a small rock church entirely carved into the stone. Getting there isn’t easy, as there are steep steps to climb, but I assure you the visit inside will repay every effort.
At the foot of the Madonna dell’Idris, on a rocky spur overlooking the Gravina of Matera, stands San Pietro Caveoso, of 13th-century origin: one of the few rupestrian churches not overhauled inside, so still full of Romanesque charm.
Also among the Sassi is the splendid Santa Lucia alle Malve, a rock church attached to an 11th-century Benedictine nunnery, preserving frescoes datable to between the 13th and 14th centuries (the oldest, a Saint Michael the Archangel, is even from the 12th). It really stands out: I recommend it.
But the most important place of worship remains the cathedral of Matera, dedicated to the Madonna della Bruna and Saint Eustace. Built from 1230 and completed a few decades later, it’s dominated outside by the original Apulian Romanesque, while the interior is Baroque. The cathedral finally reopened in 2016, after about thirteen years closed for restoration.
Do you want to know which church in Matera I liked most?
It’s the little church of San Giovanni Battista, from the early 13th century, a few steps from Piazza Vittorio Veneto. It struck me because it preserves all its medieval simplicity intact: a fine example of Apulian Romanesque, with some Arab and Byzantine influence. A place that seems suspended in time.
2 – The cave house, the well house and the cistern
What fascinates me when I travel is discovering how people lived in the places I visit. If you want to understand what to see in Matera and how its inhabitants used to live, this little tour will take you back a thousand years.
Going down into the Sassi from Piazza Vittorio Veneto you’ll find the well house: here you can visit the cistern of the family who lived in the building, with explanations of how they managed to keep ice even in summer.
Near Santa Lucia alle Malve is the cave house, a typical Sassi dwelling, fully furnished with the objects of a family of eleven who lived essentially in a two-room flat (with an attached stable). It’ll seem incredible by today’s standards, but this was normal in rural areas until the mid-20th century.
Another unmissable place to understand Matera is the Palombaro Lungo, the great cistern beneath Piazza Vittorio Veneto, right in the centre. It was the city’s most important water reservoir and, thanks to the rock, kept the water cool even in summer.
The cistern was essential for the people of Matera. Before the San Giuliano dam was built, it was in fact the only way to store rainwater, in a region where water has always been precious. For its size it’s also called the “Cathedral of water”, and it’s one of the largest underground cisterns in Europe.
Here’s a curiosity!
The Palombaro isn’t the only cistern: beneath the whole Sassi area there are smaller ones that collected the overflow. An extraordinary work, considering it dates back several centuries. And yet the Palombaro Lungo was only rediscovered in 1991, during the works to redevelop the square; today the ticket costs about €3.
3 – The prehistoric caves to visit in Matera
Still undecided about what to see in Matera? Then I suggest heading a little out of town.
This area has been inhabited since prehistoric times, and that’s why the whole park surrounding Matera is dotted with an incredible number of prehistoric caves, used for centuries by transhumant shepherds as shelter.
The Murgia Materana Park holds the largest number of rock churches in the area: over 150 in all, facing the Gravina on both sides of the river. Among the finest are San Giacomo, San Leonardo, the Cappuccino Vecchio and Santa Cesarea.
Artefacts dating back to the Palaeolithic have been found in the caves and, despite the state of decay of some, they have a timeless charm: they are fully part of the UNESCO site. If you want to visit them with a guide, there’s a tour of the rupestrian churches of the Murgia Park, a great excuse for a walk among the rocky hills of Basilicata.
4 – The Tibetan bridge and the gravina
Matera is perched, or rather, carved into the rock. Below it opens a gravina (canyon) crossed by a stream called, precisely, Gravina. Going down and up the other side of the valley, you catch different perspectives of the city.
But how do you get there?
The two sides are linked by a Tibetan bridge, a walkway suspended over the void that will take your breath away. Built in 2015, it’s not recommended for those who suffer from vertigo!
The path starts not far from the church of San Pietro Caveoso, inside the Sassi, and descends into the Gravina. I’d recommend proper shoes, because in some spots the ground is uneven: the trail (number 406) is classed for experienced hikers.
The bridge was closed for a while due to a landslide along the path, but since 2024 it’s open and walkable again: if you feel up to it, it’s an experience that offers a unique perspective on the Sassi.
5 – The viewpoints over the Sassi
Matera is splendid also for its countless panoramic terraces. Walking around, you’ll find glimpses of the famous “Sassi” and of the whole old town.
But where are they?
The finest terrace is the one in Piazza Vittorio Veneto: from here you see one of the most photographed views of Matera, with a splendid frontal view of the cathedral (until a few years ago “spoiled” by the restoration cranes, now finally clear).
A second balcony is at the end of Via del Corso, a few steps from Palazzo Lanfranchi: from here you don’t see the cathedral, but you can take in the Madonna dell’Idris, San Pietro Caveoso and part of the main street.
It was from this very area, incidentally, that some of the Sassi scenes were shot for “No Time to Die” (2021), the latest James Bond film, whose spectacular opening sequence takes place largely in Matera.
Finally, look out too from the cathedral terrace: you’ll be on the opposite side to the Piazza Vittorio Veneto viewpoint, with the Sassi opening up before you.
6 – The museums of Matera
Did you know that Matera has one of Italy’s most important contemporary sculpture museums?
It opened in 2006 and is called MUSMA (Museum of Contemporary Sculpture), housed in a palace carved into the rock: essentially a museum in a cave.
Another interesting museum is Palazzo Lanfranchi, home to the National Museum of Medieval and Modern Art of Basilicata: inside, sacred art from the 11th to the 18th century and, above all, the canvases of Carlo Levi, including the great painting Lucania ‘61.
In the Domenico Ridola National Archaeological Museum you’ll find prehistoric artefacts, while to explore local culture I recommend the Museum of Peasant Civilisation, where you can discover old trades.
7 – What to eat in Matera, my tips
I’ve told you what to see in Matera, but I haven’t told you everything.
Travelling without tasting the local dishes is like missing the best part of the exploration. This city’s thousand-year traditions aren’t only to be explored, but also tasted. Matera bread (a protected IGP product), for example, has a unique shape, a thick crust and a yellow crumb: it’s exceptional.
The same goes for the focaccia (I could eat it every day!): tomato, oil and dough have an incredible flavour.
In the restaurants you can enjoy many local specialities: cialledda (made with stale bread, cherry tomatoes and onion), peperoni cruschi (crisp dried peppers), strazzate, crapiata… but do try the panzerotti too.
And you, have you already been to Matera? Which glimpse of the Sassi stayed with you the most?
