Thanks to its strategic geographical position in the Mediterranean Sea, situated on two seas, Ionian and Thyrhenian, and crossed from once navigable rivers rising through the valleys into the heart of the ancient Lucania up to the Tyrrhenian and Etruscan Campania, the Basilicata Region has always been a land of conflict, but also a meeting point of civilizations, of which fascinating tracks still remain.

Numerous and different from each other are the populations who have travelled along the roads of the region: the audacious Likys people, the Enotrians, the refined Greeks, the intrepid Sannites, the skillful Romans, followed by the Barbarians, the Byzantines, the Normans, the Germans, the Angevines, the Saracens, the Albanians, the Spanish people, the French people up to the Modern Age.

All the History can be traced starting from the Paleolithic through archaeological sites, museums, monuments and villages, which show us the life of the old towns and of their ancient inhabitants, who will be happy to make you discover their thousand-year old roots and traditions, some of them unique and unusual, without forgetting the local food & wine.

And what about the near Apulia, the italian booth heel and privileged gate for the East to the West? Characterized from its high plateaus, lacking big mountaines, if compared with Basilicata, it is also situated on two seas, Ionian and Adriatic, but at the same time it is a treasure of stories, art and culture, which will surprice you with its various peculiarities.

The following itineraris can all be tailored and combined with one another. The sites are easily reachable from Matera or from the sourrounding areas. Please do not hesitate to contact me for any kind of assistance or information you may need. I will be happy to offer to you the best solution according to your needs.

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Latest update: December 31, 2018

 

“The facades of the caves were like a row of white houses; the holes of the doorways stared at me like black eyes. The town is indeed a beautiful one, picturesque and striking”.

These were the impressions of Carlo Levi in his literary masterpiece “Christ stopped at Eboli”, published in 1945 after he was banished in Aliano in 1935 because of his uncompromising opposition to fascism. 
Matera has kept its charm intact throughtout these years and today it has become one of the main tourist destination in Italy. It is worldwide known and it is a Must if you are visiting Southern Italy. This is one of the reasons why Matera has been Unesco World Heritage since 1993, first Southern Italian city to receive this award, and in 2019 declared as European Capital of Culture.

But Matera is more than this. A journey in Matera and its surroundings will let you discover a touching story but also a hidden treasure of the only Italian Region with two names, Basilicata or Lucania, an ancient land where you can explore the History, through the traces of ancient civilizations that have taken place over the millennia: Enotrians, Greeks, Samnites, Romans, Barbarians, Byzantines, Saracens, Normans, Germans, French, Albanians and Spanish, who enriched customs and traditions that have merged, creating a set of traditions and cultures to be discovered.
A journey among the people, the villages, the sea, mountains, natural parks and the gastronomy of the Region is an unforgettable experience which will make you appreciate a little known corner of Italy.

If you are still eager to discover and travelling, less than 10 km kilometers away from Matera you can reach the nearby and also surpricing Puglia (Apulia), another old crossroads of civilizations and custodian of traditions and treasures to be discovered. 
Apulia has represented for centuries a big gate between East and West: two worlds, cultures and religions different from one another but complementary and which have built the History, which evidences remain intact on the territory.

Did I arouse your curiosity? Please contact me and I will be happy to tell you more!

Matera is located on the Murgia tableland among quarries, "gravine" (canyons/ravines) and plateaus. The ravines are deep, spectacular gorges carved over millennia by the erosive action of rivers in the limestone terrain, in whose terraced slopes have been found many archaeologal findings dated back to Paleolithic times.

The city is known worldwide for the urban layout of the “Sassi”, unique in its kind, and recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993, while in 2019 Matera was nominated as European Capital of Culture together with Plovdiv in Bulgaria. The Sassi, which meaning is “stones”, represent the old part of the town, carved in to the limestone, improperly called “tufa.”
They form a primordial way of living in caves evolved into today’s urban development. They are made up of closely tucked homes that shape a maze of staircases and courtyards. They conceal streets, alleys, arches, towers, gardens, terraces and caves, that were often shared with animals and used as dwellings until the ‘50s.

In the last decades Matera has been chosen as a natural movie set for more than 40 italian and international movies, such as “Il Vangelo secondo Matteo ("The Gospel according to Matthew”) directed by Pierpaolo Pasolini (1964), "C'era una volta" ("Once upon a time") directed by Francesco Rosi (1967), "Cristo si è fermato a Eboli" ("Chirst stopped at Eboli") directed by Francesco Rosi (1979), "King David" directed by Bruce Beresford (1986), “The Passion” directed by Mel Gibson (2003), the remake of "Ben Hur" directed by Timur Bekmambetov (2015), "Wonder Woman" directed by Patty Jenkins (2017) and "The story of Mary Magdalene" directed by Garth Davis (2017), 007 James Bond "No time to die" directed by Cary Fukunaga (2020) and much more, turning Matera into an international tourist destination and movie set.

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After a long period of complete abandon between the '60s and the '80s of last century, the Sassi from being an almost forgotten ghost town have come back to a new life thanks to a long and meticulous restoration, together with a rediscovery of their history and of their traditions. Declared European Capital of the Culture for 2019 Matera is proud to welcome you as its guests to be fully enjoyed!

The following itineraris can all be tailored and you can combine them according to your needs. Please do contact me to help you arranging your journey and make it unique!