Discover Matera, the ancient city - English tour
Recommended by 98% of travelers
Matera, Italy
- 2 to 3 hours (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Matera is home to the Sassi cave churches and dwellings that make up one of the oldest cities in the world. Join your guide for an in-depth tour of the Sasso Caveoso and Sasso Barisano districts to learn about their unique history and evolution. Discover rupestrian structures, stroll the steep and narrow lanes, and gain a deeper understanding of how this town, once called the “Shame of Italy”, is now a UNESCO-listed treasure.
- Tour Matera with a guide for insights into this unique cave city's evolution
- Admire the top sights without getting lost in the confusing warren of alleys
- Visit rupestrian churches and homes and admire views over the valley
- A small-group experience for more personal attention and a relaxed pace
What's Included
- Entrance to the Diver
- Visit to cave house
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting points
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End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.Itinerary
Piazza San Pietro Caveoso (Pass By)
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Most travelers can participate
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.9
based on 1,913 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
The tour guide Renato was extremely clear & very informative telling us the history of how his ancestors and families of Matera had evolved and lived over the years. He explains the true meaning of Matera in a light hearted energetic & memorable way. Great fun.
Great walking tour of Matera! So much info was learned and the pace perfect! Our guide, Gaetano, was so knowledgeable, humorous and caring! He checked in often to make sure everyone was enjoying the tour and asked if we had any questions! Totally recommend Gaetano and his tour!
The guide was local and very entertaining. His local knowledge was a great asset as he explained things thoroughly and showed us where his grandfather lived before being moved, a fantastic experience.
Great overview of Matera. Lots of history and knowledge of the area. Thoroughly enjoyed it! Highly recommend.
Roberto was very entertaining.
Interesting stories and history.
Slow paste.
Didn’t look at the big tourist attractions, but did get to see a cave house and cisterns .
I loved this tour!! I learned so much history about Matera from Gaetano who was a fabulous tour guide. He added history with a little bit of humour and was so attentive to everyone. Will recommend this tour to anyone coming to Matera.
Renato was a great guide, very funny and informative. Tour was just the right length and Renato was very knowledgable
Gaetano was very knowledge of the city and moved through the tour at a good pace. Worth the time to do the tour.
It was very interesting and informative and a great insight into the history of Matera. Our guide was excellent and easy to listen to. Highly recommend.
Lots of steps! And difficult to locate meeting place but well worth the effort. Highly recommend! One of the best tour guides we’ve ever had. Excellent English and humore
Renato was so educated, funny, easy to understand. Loved that his grandfather was born in Matera so he had so many funny & great stories to share w our group. He even took us to see where his g father was born. A fantastic tour. So great I forwarded his card to travel agents in ny/nj area.
Tani was a great guide touring us around the Matera. Very informative & funny as well even though it’s hot. He gave us on good recommendations like restos which I enjoyed a lot ( La Lopa) . I highly recommend the tour to learn more about Matera.
Lots of stairs made of stone. They can get slippery. Where a proper walking shoe. And if in the summer or in September as in our case be ready for the heat.
Renato was the perfect tour guide; animated, knowledgeable and funny! The fact that his family had actually lived in the caves, and that he knew a lot about the local culture back then, made the experience even more fascinating and interesting. If you visit Matera this is a must.
Informative and engaging walking tour with a local guide. It was hot but our guide Renato kept us in the shade when possible. Was lovely to hear his familly’s heritage.
Gaetano was a fantastic tour guide. We thoroughly enjoyed the content of the tour, which was based on the evolution of Matera and the “Sassi”. We also got an idea of how the inhabitants lived and how the Caves were constructed which was fascinating. Gaetano was very knowledgeable and very considerate of his guests spending most time in the shade in the heat! We would highly recommend this tour! Thank you
Guetani was an excellent guide. He was knowledgeable and enthusiastic, and we learned so much about Matera’s unique history!
It is an incredible city - Gaetano was an excellent guide and brought Matera - its history, stories and intricacies-to life wonderfully.
The most interesting and informative tour we took in our time in the area! Gaetano was funny and factual. So informative on how Matera formed, the history and how it became a UNESCO site. It was hot but we expected that in August! Take this tour and w Gaetano who is a local! That makes a difference! He even showed us a tiny focaccia shop towards the end of our tour that we went back to and bought some focaccia from the owner. The best!
Tour was wonderful. Tour guide was also wonderful!!!!! Learned a lot. Would highly recommend to every one
Tour guide never showed up and when I called him he said he cancelled but we were never notified. It was too late to book another tour so a wasted day in Matera.
Response from Host, Aug 2026
I'm apologize for the miserunderstand, but i don't know why Viator no tell you
Very personal and engaging experience. Learned a lot about how people lived and the architecture and history.
It was a very informative tour, in spite of the heat! The guide, Gianni, was very knowledgeable, and focused on one area of Sassi. He also made sure we were protected from the heat, and showed us an extra cave.
Such an incredible tour! Matera is such a unique and fascinating city. Renato was excellent at sharing its history. Highly recommend.
This was a fabulous tour and our guide, Renato, was part of what made it so terrific. He was not only informed that he had a personal connection with this city, and it was that personal insight and connection that really brought the experience to life the city itself is incredible with a rich history and learning about the people and the way they lived was fascinating. I highly recommend this tour.
This was a great tour provided by a very knowledgeable guide with first hand family experience of living in the old town. He brought it to life. Unique experience.
Was very hot so wear a hat and take water, bumpy uneven ground.
A memorable 2-hour tour. It was full of interesting information and thanks to the personality of our guide, it kept us fully engaged in spite of the hot weather.
I would recommend you wear comfortable shoes and begin your stay in Matera with this tour.
Wonderful tour with exceptional knowledge. We did the 1030 in the morning tour which meant the rest of the day we had already orientated ourselves. He was very knowledgeable and entertaining and brought to life the history of this wonderful place. It’s a must do if you are visiting Matera.
Wonderful tour with Renato! The very best! Incredibly informative with references to his personal experiences of family/desendants who inhabited the caves of Matera.
Renato was a great guide, very knowledgeable and has a personal history to the Sassi of Matera. (We took the English Tour). Wear comfortable shoes (sound advice for all of Matera!)
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up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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