Free Walking Sightseeing Tour #2 in Matera, Italy

Legend

Churches & Art
Nature
Water & Wind
Historical
Heritage & Space
Tourism
Paid Tours & Activities

Tour Facts

Number of sights 19 sights
Distance 8.3 km
Ascend 772 m
Descend 713 m

Explore Matera in Italy with this free self-guided walking tour. The map shows the route of the tour. Below is a list of attractions, including their details.

Activities in MateraIndividual Sights in Matera

Sight 1: Madonna de Idris e San Giovanni in Monterrone

Show sight on map

The church of Santa Maria di Idris, also known as "Santa Maria de Idris" or "Madonna de Idris", is located in Matera, inside the Sassi. It is a rock church, that is, carved into the rock.

Wikipedia: Chiesa di Santa Maria di Idris (IT), Website

172 meters / 2 minutes

Sight 2: Casa Grotta nei Sassi

Show sight on map

The Sassi di Matera are two districts of the Italian city of Matera, Basilicata, well-known for their ancient cave dwellings inhabited since the Paleolithic period.

Wikipedia: Sassi di Matera (EN)

61 meters / 1 minutes

Sight 3: Chiesa dei Santi Pietro e Paolo

Show sight on map

San Pietro Caveoso, also known as "Saint Peter and Saint Paul Church" is a Catholic church situated in the Sassi of Matera.

Wikipedia: San Pietro Caveoso (EN)

419 meters / 5 minutes

Sight 4: Chiesa di San Francesco d'Assisi

Show sight on map

The church of St. Francis of Assisi is a Baroque-style Catholic place of worship in Matera, located in the central Piazza San Francesco.

Wikipedia: Chiesa di San Francesco d'Assisi (Matera) (IT)

191 meters / 2 minutes

Sight 5: Museo Archeologico Nazionale Domenico Ridola

Show sight on map

The Domenico Ridola National Archaeological Museum is an Italian state museum, located in the former convent of Santa Chiara in Matera and is one of the two locations of the current National Museum of Matera.

Wikipedia: Museo archeologico nazionale Domenico Ridola (IT), Website

68 meters / 1 minutes

Sight 6: Chiesa del Purgatorio

Show sight on map

The Church of Purgatory is a Baroque-style church located on Via Ridola in the city of Matera.

Wikipedia: Chiesa del Purgatorio (Matera) (IT)

342 meters / 4 minutes

Sight 7: Castello Tramontano

Show sight on map

Castello Tramontano is a 16th-century fortification in Matera that was built to control the local population.

Wikipedia: Castello Tramontano (EN)

495 meters / 6 minutes

Sight 8: Palazzo dell'Annunziata

Show sight on map

The Palazzo dell'Annunziata is a historical building in Matera, Italy.

Wikipedia: Palazzo dell'Annunziata (EN)

158 meters / 2 minutes

Sight 9: Chiesa di San Domenico

Show sight on map
Chiesa di San Domenico Georges Jansoone / CC BY 2.5

The Basilica of San Domenico is one of the major churches in Bologna, Italy. The remains of Saint Dominic, founder of the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), are buried inside the exquisite shrine Arca di San Domenico, made by Nicola Pisano and his workshop, Arnolfo di Cambio and with later additions by Niccolò dell'Arca and the young Michelangelo.

Wikipedia: San Domenico, Bologna (EN)

172 meters / 2 minutes

Sight 10: Chiesa di San Giovanni Battista

Show sight on map

The Chiesa di San Giovanni Battista is a Roman Catholic church dating to the 13th and 18th centuries, located in Matera in the Italian region of Basilicata, and dedicated to Saint John the Baptist. Like the Duomo, the church is an important example of Apulian Romanesque architecture.

Wikipedia: San Giovanni Battista, Matera (EN)

419 meters / 5 minutes

Sight 11: Museo Laboratorio della Civiltà Contadina

Show sight on map
Museo Laboratorio della Civiltà ContadinaSpleen1981 Museo Laboratorio della Civiltà Contadina di Matera - ONLUS / CC BY-SA 3.0

The Museo-laboratorio della Civiltà Contadina is an ethno-anthropological museum of Matera, situated in the ancient Sassi district. The Museum has been created by Donato Cascione and it’s managed by the homonym cultural association.

Wikipedia: Museo-laboratorio della Civiltà Contadina (Museum-workshop of the Peasant Culture) (EN), Website

506 meters / 6 minutes

Sight 12: Cattedrale della Madonna della Bruna e di Sant'Eustachio

Show sight on map

Matera Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Matera, Basilicata, Italy. It is dedicated to the Virgin Mary under the designation of the Madonna della Bruna and to Saint Eustace. Formerly the seat of the Bishops, later Archbishops, of Matera, it is now the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Matera-Irsina.

Wikipedia: Matera Cathedral (EN), Website

307 meters / 4 minutes

Sight 13: Musma

Show sight on map

MUSMA is an Italian museum located in Matera and dedicated to sculpture. It was inaugurated in 2006 and is located in Palazzo Pomarici, on the highest part of the Sassi district.

Wikipedia: MUSMA (IT), Website

754 meters / 9 minutes

Sight 14: Ponte sulla gravina

Show sight on map
Ponte sulla gravina Travus / CC BY-SA 2.5

The Gravina di Matera is a river in the Apulia and Basilicata regions of southern Italy. Its source is between Altamura and Gravina in Puglia in the province of Bari. The river flows southeast and curves east before again flowing southeast. It then flows into the province of Matera and is joined by a left tributary at Matera. The river forms the border between the province of Matera and the province of Taranto near Montescaglioso and Ginosa. Finally, it joins the Bradano as a left tributary in the province of Taranto.

Wikipedia: Gravina di Matera (EN), Website

825 meters / 10 minutes

Sight 15: Chiesa Rupestre Madonna degli Angeli

Show sight on map

The church of the Madonna degli Angeli is an ancient rock church in the Sassi of Matera.

Wikipedia: Chiesa della Madonna degli Angeli (Matera) (IT)

458 meters / 5 minutes

Sight 16: Chiesa Rupestre Madonna di Monteverde

Show sight on map

The rock churches of the territory of Matera, founded mainly in the early Middle Ages, are buildings carved into the rock. Initially born as religious structures, over time they have undergone several transformations of use, becoming homes or shelters for animals. They are an important testimony of the presence of communities of Benedictine, Lombard and Byzantine monks.

Wikipedia: Chiese rupestri di Matera (IT)

646 meters / 8 minutes

Sight 17: Madonna delle Vergini

Show sight on map

The Madonna delle Vergini is a rock church located in the Murgia Materana, on the opposite side of the Gravina stream from the Sassi di Matera.

Wikipedia: Chiesa della Madonna delle Vergini (IT)

1629 meters / 20 minutes

Sight 18: Chiesa Rupestre di San Falcione

Show sight on map

The church of San Falcione is a rock church located in Matera.

Wikipedia: Chiesa di San Falcione (IT)

650 meters / 8 minutes

Sight 19: Belvedere di Murgia Timone

Show sight on map
Belvedere di Murgia Timone Travus / CC BY-SA 2.5

The Natural Historical Archaeological Park of the Rupestrian Churches of Matera, also called the Murgia Materana Park, is a protected natural area in Basilicata established by regional law no. 11 of 3 April 1990. Since 2007 the definition "Sassi di Matera" in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites has been expanded to include "The Sassi and the Park of the Rupestrian Churches of Matera".

Wikipedia: Parco della Murgia Materana (IT)

Share

Spread the word! Share this page with your friends and family.

Disclaimer Please be aware of your surroundings and do not enter private property. We are not liable for any damages that occur during the tours.

GPX-Download For navigation apps and GPS devices you can download the tour as a GPX file.