Almost everyone comes to Matera wanting to sleep in a cave, and almost nobody asks what that is actually like.
It is worth doing. It is also the one accommodation decision in Italy where the romantic version and the practical version pull hardest against each other, and the gap between them is stairs. This guide is about choosing well rather than talking you out of it.
The wider trip planning is in my complete guide to Matera.
What a cave room is actually like
The good ones are genuine. Not a themed room with a rough plaster finish, but an actual chamber cut into the rock, with the tool marks still on the walls and a vaulted ceiling that was carved rather than built.
Three things follow from that, and they are the whole decision.
They are dark. There is nowhere to put a window, so light comes from the door, sometimes one small opening, and otherwise from lamps and candles in wall niches. At eight in the morning a cave room is exactly as dark as it was at three. If you rely on daylight to wake up, or you want to sit and read by a window, you will not enjoy this.
They are cool. The rock holds a steady temperature, so a cave room in August is a genuine relief rather than a marketing line. This is the single best argument for one in summer.
They are quiet in an unusual way. Metres of stone absorb everything. It is closer to silence than most people are used to, and a few find it unsettling.
The best known of them has eighteen rooms in the Civita, the oldest part of the Sassi, facing the Murgia park across the ravine, with a former rock-cut church serving as the sitting room and candlelit dinners held in it. Stone floors, antique furniture, bed linen made from old cloth, and no televisions anywhere. It is expensive and it is not pretending otherwise.
Two honest notes about that end of the market, because the reviews are consistent about them and the photographs are not.
The bathrooms are often open to the room. A basin, or a bath, or a shower set into the chamber itself with a screen rather than a door. It photographs beautifully and it suits some couples and not others, and it is worth asking about specifically rather than discovering on arrival.
And candlelight is dimmer than it looks. Rooms lit deliberately, with very little electric light, are lovely to walk into and awkward to pack a suitcase in. If you want to read in bed, check there is a lamp that does it.
Neither of these is a reason to avoid a cave hotel. They are the reasons some people come away feeling the price did not match the night, and both are answerable with one email before you book.
The stairs, and what nobody tells you
This is the part I would want to be told.
The Sassi have almost no road access. Most doorways are reached only on foot, down flights of worn stone steps, and the polished paving is genuinely slippery in the wet. A hotel that is two hundred metres from a car park can be two hundred metres and ninety steps.
So before you book, ask the property two specific questions: where do I leave the car, and how far will I be carrying a bag. Good places answer plainly, and several will meet you and carry luggage down, which is worth more than any amenity on the list.
If anyone in your party has a knee, a hip, a pushchair or a large hard suitcase, this is the deciding factor. It does not mean you cannot stay in the Sassi. It means you should be on the upper edge of them rather than deep down in Caveoso.
Which part of town to choose
Sasso Barisano is the restored, comfortable half. More hotels, more restaurants, better paving, easier access from above. If it is your first visit, this is the sensible default.
Sasso Caveoso is steeper, rougher and more atmospheric, with the open cave mouths and the harder history. Wonderful to stay in if stairs are not a concern.
The Piano, the modern town on the plateau above, is where you get level ground, ordinary hotels, parking and lower prices. It is a five to ten minute walk down into the Sassi and a considerably longer one back up. Not romantic, entirely practical, and the right answer for some people.
What it costs, honestly
Matera is inexpensive to eat and visit and not inexpensive to sleep in.
Cave hotels are the town’s luxury product and priced accordingly, with the strongest demand in May, September and October, when the weather is best. Rooms in the good ones are few and go months ahead. August is hot enough that rates soften slightly even though the town is busy.
If the cave room matters more to you than the number of nights, and for most people it should, stay two nights in a good one rather than four in a compromise.
What to ask before you book
Five questions that will tell you more than any photograph.
Is the room actually cut into rock, or is it a conventional room in a converted building? How many steps from the nearest vehicle access? Is there any natural light? Is breakfast served somewhere with a view, since many of them are on terraces and that is half the pleasure? And is there air conditioning, which sounds absurd in a cave and matters in the few rooms that are not fully underground.
Read also: the Sassi of Matera, the best time to visit Matera, and my complete guide to Matera.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it worth staying in a cave hotel in Matera?
Yes, and it is the main reason to stay overnight rather than day-trip from Bari. The rooms are genuine chambers cut into rock, naturally cool in summer and unusually quiet. The trade-offs are darkness, since there is nowhere to put a window, and stairs.
Are cave hotels in Matera dark?
Very. Light comes from the doorway, occasionally one small opening, and otherwise from lamps and candles set in wall niches. A cave room at eight in the morning looks the same as it did at three. If you need daylight to wake up, choose a room with an external window.
Where is the best area to stay in Matera?
Sasso Barisano for a first visit, since it is the restored half with most of the hotels and easier access. Sasso Caveoso is more atmospheric but steeper. The modern town on the plateau above offers level ground, parking and lower prices, at the cost of a climb back up each evening.
Can you drive to your hotel in the Sassi?
Usually not. Most of the district has no road access and doorways are reached on foot down flights of stone steps. Ask the property where to park and how many steps are involved before booking, and take the answer seriously if you have heavy luggage or limited mobility.
Are cave rooms cool in summer?
Yes. The rock holds a steady temperature, so a cave room stays comfortable through August while the stone streets outside are radiating heat from nine in the morning until six at night. It is the strongest practical argument for booking one.
