Italy · Basilicata · Matera
Sassi di Matera, Matera — Area Guide & Where to Stay
Two cave quarters of Matera, in Basilicata, cut into rock and lived in since the Paleolithic period. Matera Cathedral stands among them.
About Sassi di Matera
Where to stay in Sassi di Matera
Not every neighbourhood fits every trip — here's what each one is good for.
The choice is which church stands closest. Rooms inside the quarters are cut rooms, so one address differs from the next mainly in how many steps separate it from Matera Cathedral and how long the walk back runs after dinner. The Museo diocesano di Matera keeps to that side.
Castello Tramontano marks the far edge, where the ground levels out and the plainer hotel stock keeps a car within reach. Casa Grotta holds the unrestored version.
About Sassi di Matera
What are the main landmarks in Sassi di Matera?
Matera Cathedral is the fixed point of the two quarters. Below it the rock carries churches of its own: the cave churches in Matera were cut rather than built, and Santa Lucia alla Fontana and Chiesa dei Santi Pietro e Paolo sit among the dwellings. Castello Tramontano stands clear of the caves.
The museums run close together, from the National Museum of Matera to the Museo della Scultura Contemporanea and the Museo-laboratorio della Civiltà Contadina. Casa Grotta keeps one dwelling as it was.
What is the history of Sassi di Matera?
The caves outrun any founding date. Dwellings cut into the rock of the two quarters have been used since the Paleolithic period, which puts the beginning of the settlement far outside written record and well before any castle or cathedral. Worship followed the same method, cut rather than built, so the cave churches in Matera sit in the rock beside masonry ones like Chiesa di San Domenico and Chiesa di San Giovanni Battista.
Castello Tramontano and the convento di Sant'Agostino belong to later centuries. The quarters and their rock churches are grouped under the name The Sassi and the Park of the Rupestrian Churches of Matera.
Where is Sassi di Matera?
The name covers two quarters of caves. The Sassi di Matera occupy the rock on the flank of Matera in Basilicata, with Matera Cathedral at their head.
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Updated September 2026