Matera

Sorry. Didn't get back to this soon enough. I was wading through the pages looking if the subject had been covered.

We can go anytime. I've read about Matera and was wondering if anyone else had visited and would like to tell me their experience. We're going to visit Sorrento, Naples and Rome. I would like to see someplace off The beaten path and read a book about 20 years ago about Matera and another city nearby. We won't drive.

I'd like to hear others' experiences, if anyone has visited Matera.

Thank you.

I was there on a Rick Steves tour of Southern Italy. It is a fascinating city. To see it requires walking. Go and take a walking tour. I wasn't crazy about sleeping in a converted cave, but it was ok. There are hotels and restaurants in caves. I think there are other hotels and restaurants in the town. I think transportation there is by bus. There was a topic recently about transportation to Matera. I suppose a rental car might work well.

I go to Matera every year. There are lots of non-cave accommodations (cave hotel was a bit damp for me). You can take a tour of the Sassi, and a small van tour out to the Murgia. The town has a compelling, sad history.

You can get there by bus or regional train. Parking in the town itself is challenging during peak season.

Another vote for yes, go to Matera. I loved it and also like the Hotel Sassi - I thought our room was great. I was on an RS tour, so we had a walking tour of the area and several of the old cave homes. I think the Sassi area looks beautiful illuminated at night.
Several nice restaurants

Also a lot to do that part of Italy.

I would certainly recommend visiting Matera as it's a fascinating place with an interesting history. As others have mentioned, I also visited on a RS tour, so didn't have to worry about transportation. In addition the group was provided with a very interesting tour of the Sassi with a local guide. Staying in a cave room at Hotel Sassi was an unusual experience, and I quite enjoyed it.

Getting to Matera is possible via public transit. One of the easiest solutions will be to travel from Bari (which you can reach via Trenitalia trains) and then to Matera Centrale. In Bari you'll need to transfer to the smaller local railway.....

http://ferrovieappulolucane.it/en/

Trenitalia now has bus service between Matera and Salerno, currently twice a day.

Miccolis also has bus service from Naples, Pompei & Salerno. The site is in Italian but easy to figure out.

http://www.miccolis-spa.it/le-nostre-linee/statali

As others have said it is an interesting place with a sad history. We took the train from Bari to get there and spent two nights which was enough time as we didn't find much to do other than walk around, and feed some of the hundreds of stray cats.

Thank you, everyone. I'm going to convince my partner to do this.