Essential Matera Travel Guide: What to See & Do

Matera is one of Italy’s most extraordinary destinations, built into pale limestone above the Gravina gorge. Its famous Sassi districts create a remarkable landscape of cave homes, stairways, tunnels, courtyards, and rooftops layered across the hillside. Some dwellings date back thousands of years, making Matera one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited urban areas.

Matera’s History and Rock-Cut Heritage

Archaeological evidence points to settlement in the area since the Paleolithic era. Over the centuries, residents transformed natural caves into homes, churches, workshops, and communal spaces. Ingenious cisterns and channels collected rainwater, while medieval communities of farmers, shepherds, and artisans developed throughout the rock-cut neighborhoods.

Matera’s history also includes long periods of hardship. Overcrowding and poverty became severe during the 19th and 20th centuries, leading to the forced relocation of residents from the Sassi in the 1950s. Once described as “the shame of Italy,” the abandoned districts were later recognized for their exceptional cultural value. UNESCO added Matera to its World Heritage List in 1993, and the city was named European Capital of Culture in 2019.

What to See in Matera

Visitors can explore Matera’s cathedral, panoramic viewpoints over the ravine, preserved cave houses, and more than 160 rock churches. Frescoes, carved chapels, and Byzantine and Latin influences reflect the city’s deep religious heritage.

Beneath the streets, enormous historic cisterns reveal how earlier inhabitants adapted to life in a dry, rugged environment. These underground structures are part of Matera’s wider network of rock-cut spaces and provide insight into the ingenuity of its former communities.

Things to Do in Matera

For travelers looking for things to do in Matera, walking through its maze-like stone lanes is an experience in itself. The city’s unusual setting has also attracted filmmakers, with the Sassi appearing in productions such as The Passion of the Christ and No Time to Die.

Matera brings together archaeology, architecture, dramatic landscapes, and living southern Italian culture in a destination unlike any other.