← Barletta Marathon·2 nights

Matera: Two Nights in the Sassi

Two nights among the cave dwellings and stone steps of Basilicata, reached by train through Bari and best kept for runners whose legs are recovering well.

Duration2 nights
TransitRegional train to Bari, then Ferrovie Appulo Lucane to Matera, about 3 hr in total
DepartsBarletta

After the Barletta Marathon: Matera

The Route: Barletta → Bari → Matera → Bari Airport (BRI) Logistics: Regional train from Barletta to Bari Centrale, then a Ferrovie Appulo Lucane train to Matera Centrale. Allow about three hours in total. Marathon Month: February Duration: 2 nights

Barletta ──(50-70 mins train)──> Bari Centrale ──(about 90 mins FAL train)──> Matera Centrale
                                      │                                             │
              Bari Airport (BRI) ◄──(rail link)◄──(return through Bari)◄───────────┘

The Barletta Marathon finishes on a Sunday in February and Matera is best planned as a Monday-to-Wednesday trip. It is a city cut into the rock: the Sassi districts sit on the side of a ravine, with houses and churches carved into the limestone and linked by stone steps. It is striking, but it is a poor choice for the first two days after a marathon. Choose it if your legs are moving well.

February in Matera: the town sits at about 400 metres and is colder than the coast, with daytime temperatures often in single figures or the low teens, and rain or occasional frost. Stone surfaces can be wet and slippery. Pack a proper coat and shoes with grip. The crowds are thin in winter, which helps.

The journey takes two trains. From Barletta take a regional service to Bari Centrale, which takes somewhere between 50 and 70 minutes. Then take the Ferrovie Appulo Lucane train from Bari Centrale to Matera Centrale, which takes about an hour and a half. Check the timetable at ferrovieappulolucane.it, as the services are less frequent than on the coast and engineering works sometimes replace trains with buses.

Nights one and two: the Sassi

Matera Centrale station is on the modern side of town. The Sassi are about a 20-minute walk from the station and mostly downhill on the way in, which becomes uphill on the way out. A taxi from the station to your hotel saves the walk on the first evening.

The primary asset is the Sasso Barisano and Sasso Caveoso, the two districts where the cave dwellings and rock churches are. The lanes are stone-paved and steep, with long flights of steps, and a runner in the first 48 hours after a marathon should take the descents slowly and avoid the steepest sections. The upper terraces around the cathedral offer level walking with wide views across the ravine, and they are the easiest way to see the Sassi without climbing. The Cattedrale di Matera, in the Apulian Romanesque style, stands on the ridge at the top. Check its hours at the door.

Many churches and house museums in the Sassi charge small entry fees, and opening times vary in winter, so plan on checking before you commit an afternoon.

For a hotel, the Sextantio Le Grotte della Civita is a hotel converted from cave dwellings in the Sasso Barisano, and the Palazzo Gattini Luxury Hotel is another option in the historic centre. Both appear in hotel listings; confirm that each is open and check what the walking route from the station involves.

For dinner, the Antica Trattoria Lucana serves the food of the Basilicata region. Ask about Matera bread and the dried peppers of the area. Check its opening days in winter.

Getting to Bari Airport (BRI)

Return by the Ferrovie Appulo Lucane train to Bari Centrale, then use the airport rail link to Bari Karol Wojtyła Airport (BRI). Allow at least three hours between leaving Matera and a flight departure, since the FAL trains are not frequent and a missed one costs a long wait.