Your free walking tour of the cave-dwelling city, custom-built around the stairs and which Sasso you'd descend into. Tell us a story, theme, or vibe and your audio tour is ready in 30 seconds. Works offline, 9 voiced languages, 30 free minutes on signup.
Piazza Vittorio → Sasso Barisano → Civita cathedral → Sasso Caveoso → Belvedere.
The older Sasso. More raw, more troglodytic. Cave houses, Madonna delle Virtù.
The more 'urban' upper Sasso. Boutique cave-hotels, restored facades, San Pietro Barisano.
The rocky spur between the two Sassi. Romanesque cathedral, the original Greek-Lombard core.
San Nicola dei Greci, Madonna delle Virtù, Santa Maria de Idris. Byzantine frescoes in caves.
A real cave-house preserved as it was in 1956. Family of 11, donkey in the back, well in the floor.
'No Time to Die' (2021). The Aston Martin chase, the parachute jump, the cathedral square.
Cross the Gravina ravine to the cave-churches with original frescoes. 90 min, dramatic.
1952: 'la vergogna nazionale'. 1993: UNESCO. 2019: Capital of Culture. The arc of Matera.
Belvedere Murgia Timone, across the ravine. The Sassi glow gold then light up at dusk.
Type a theme, an angle, a question - we'll build the walk in 30 seconds.
Local knowledge
The stuff you only learn after you've walked it.
01
The Sassi are now full of cave-hotels - rooms cut into the rock, sometimes 1,000+ years old. €€-€€€. Sextantio Le Grotte della Civita is the iconic one. La Dimora di Metello and Locanda di San Martino are mid-range. The experience is essential to understanding Matera; one night minimum.
02
Matera is built into a ravine. The Sassi involve hundreds of steps and steep cobbled lanes. There are no flat routes. Polished-leather sandals are dangerous; sneakers are minimum; trail runners or hiking shoes ideal. Don't try this in heels.
03
30-min walk or 5-min taxi to Belvedere Murgia Timone, across the Gravina ravine. The Sassi cliff-face glows orange at sunset then lights up at dusk. The most-photographed view of Matera. Stay until dark - the city becomes a Christmas-card scene from across the canyon.
04
The 2021 'No Time to Die' opens with the Aston Martin DB5 driving through Piazza Vittorio Veneto and the Sassi. The parachute jump is into Civita's piazza Duomo. The cathedral square shoot-out is at the actual cathedral. Bond walking tours leave from Piazza Vittorio Veneto, 90 min, €25.
05
06
Alberobello (the trulli town, conical-roofed houses) is 1 hour east. Both UNESCO, both rock-built, both feel ancient. Lecce (Baroque city) is 2 hours south-east. A 3-4 day Puglia + Basilicata circuit from Bari covers all three with a hire car.
How it works
Three things, in 30 seconds.
01
Any Sasso, theme, or vibe. "Rock churches", "Bond chase", "Sunset Belvedere". iWander writes you the walk in 30 seconds.
02
Palaeolithic shepherds, Byzantine monks, the 1952 forced evacuation, Carlo Levi's 'Christ Stopped at Eboli', the 2019 Capital of Culture year. Stories whispered as you climb the steps.
03
Whose church is this? When was this cave dug? Why this cistern here? Point your camera, ask out loud, or type. Your guide answers in seconds.
Works offline · 9 voiced languages · 30 free minutes on signup
Questions
Practical info
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Updated 19 May 2026 by the iWander local team · Curated for accuracy