We woke up on our third day in Italy reinvigorated after two days of relaxation at Emera Wine Resort and ready to continue our five-day Puglia road trip! Our next stop: Matera, the City of Caves. Matera wasn’t originally on our radar. In fact, I hadn’t even heard of it until I begin researching Puglia. But once I saw photos of the city built into the caves, I knew we’d have to check it out.
5-Day Road Trip Around Puglia, Italy: Day 3 in Matera
Morning & Drive to Matera
We began the day with a leisurely breakfast and espresso in the garden at Emera.
Around 9:30 am, we loaded up our rental car and hit the road for the approximately hour and a half drive from Lizzano, Italy to Matera. About 30 minutes into the drive, we made our first detour to the town of Taranto. We always hear about McDonalds in other countries being so much fancier so we had to check out the Italian offerings. The photo below says it all. If we hadn’t just had breakfast, I think I would have wanted one of each!
Morning in Matera
Upon arriving in Matera, we parked in a garage and walked about 15 minutes with our luggage to our Bed & Breakfast, Angolo del Poeta. It’s worth noting you can’t drive or park in the main area of Matera so you’ll likely need to transport your luggage through the streets and potentially up and down stairs to your accommodation. If you have any trouble, you may want to pre-book a porter to assist. Along the way to our B&B, we got our first glimpse of the Sassi di Matera.
Matera has two cliff districts known as the Sassi (translates to stone). The Sassi dates back thousands (yes, thousands) of years to when people first dwelled in the caves. I wish we had a chance to take a guided tour and learn more of the history, which is actually quite sad. As recently as the early 1950s, the Sassi was home to some of the poorest population of Italy who lived in the caves without heat or plumbing. Diseases were rampant and the conditions were terrible. In the later 1950s, the government started a relocation program but even that had many issues. Revitalization of the city began in the 80s but took quite awhile. These days, much of the area has been restored and a lot of the caves serve as hotels, restaurants, and shops.
Angolo del Poeta is a lovely B&B that has a modern design but still provides the feeling of staying in a cave. Check-in wasn’t until later in the afternoon but we were able to store our luggage in the room in the meantime.
We love exploring new places on foot especially when there’s a scenic hike to enjoy. Near the top of my list for Matera was hiking to the Ponte Tibetano della Gravina suspension bridge to check out the city from a different viewpoint.
The hike isn’t intense but there are a lot of loose stones when you’re making your way down the cliffside. Wear sneakers if you have them. I did the hike in sandals but I wouldn’t recommend.
You’ll start the hike from Via Madonna delle Virtu near Piazza Santa Lucia and it takes about 20-30 minutes to get down to the bridge. July in Italy is no joke, even early in the day. Be sure to put on plenty of sunscreen and bring a water bottle.
After the hike, we were ready for some shade and a snack so we headed to the famous Zipa Cafe with a lovely view of Matera. We ordered some appetizers and a cocktail. Mine was DELISH after hiking in the heat. If it’s still on the menu when you visit, order the frozen basil “Madonna and the Missionary.”
Afternoon Exploring Matera
Refreshed from our break at Zipa, we headed out to see more of Matera. Our first stop: Church of Saint Mary of Idris. We didn’t go inside the church as they were preparing for a wedding ceremony but it is quite beautiful from the outside with dramatic views of the cliffs and canyon below.
Wandering the alleys of Matera is a bit like being in a labyrinth, but using Google maps you can get around pretty easily. The fun part is there’s a scenic view around pretty much every corner! Just be prepared to traverse a lot of stairs.
There’s a small souvenir shop along Via Fiorentini where you can see Sassi in Miniatura, a panorama stone re-creation of Matera. Designed by artist Eustachio Rizzi, the miniature enables you to get a birds-eye view of the city. There are many souvenirs available in the shop and we took home a Christmas ornament. If you don’t buy anything, be sure to leave a donation for visiting the “museum.”
The views in Matera are so amazing, you’ll want to stop and enjoy a cocktail at every bar you pass. But there are certainly some with better views than others. The rooftop of the Quarry Resort is one of those more popular spots. That’s where we headed for our last stop before checking into our B&B. WC continued his Aperol Spritz tour of the Mediterranean… he had countless others during our prior week in the Greek Ionian Islands!
Dinner & Cocktail Bars in Matera
After the Quarry, we headed to the B&B (just steps away!) to shower and clean up for the evening. An hour or so later, we were back outside wandering the east side of Matera where we hadn’t spent any time earlier in the day.
The first spot we came across was Era Convivial Cave Restaurant and the bohemian vibes and fun music lured us in. Our drinks came with some of Puglia’s traditional apertivo snacks: olives, taralli, and roasted fava beans.
In between bites, I tried out the hanging egg chairs on the patio (with espresso martini in hand, of course!).
As nightfall arrived, the city really started to come alive. People were hanging out in the streets, and bar and restaurant patios started to fill up. We even stumbled upon a group marching through the streets playing music.
In my original planning for Matera, I thought we’d have dinner at one of city’s more famous restaurants. Vitantonio Lombardo is a Michelin star restaurant with a highly-rated tasting menu. Regiacorte restaurant is also well known for its 3-and 4-course dinner menus with stellar views. We held off on reservations, though, since we weren’t sure how tired we’d be after a full day sightseeing. It turned out to be the right option as neither of us felt like a fancy meal.
Instead we wandered into a restaurant with room for walk-ins and had dinner downstairs in the cave. I honestly couldn’t tell you which restaurant it was, but I remember enjoying the music and ambience and thinking the food was just OK.
After dinner, it was time for a nightcap at Area 8, a hip cocktail bar with an outdoor courtyard. They even gave us a welcome drink upon seating. It was a fun atmosphere but after such a long day, we were pretty exhausted and ready to turn in before midnight.
On the way back home, we got two final treats: first, the Piazza Vittorio Veneto lit up from the Festa Della Bruna which happened two days prior to our arrival.
Second: seeing the Sassi lit up at night. What a beauty!
And that’s how we wrapped up our day in Matera! Our Puglia road trip continues to Polignano a Mare, on Italy’s east coast, and we’ll share the highlights in our next post.
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