A romantic cave hotel in rural Italy where past meets present in a spectacular and unforgettable setting
Le Grotte della Civita is a truly unique hotel, set in the troglodytic, Unesco-listed town of Matera. Its old quarters (sassi) are built into and over limestone caves, and interwoven by narrow cobbled streets. Inhabited since prehistoric times, these remarkable underground spaces include rock-hewn churches and many half-carved, half-built dwellings looking out onto the arresting Gravina gorge.
The hotel itself consists of 18 such cave rooms and a restaurant, all renovated over 10 years with obsessive attention to detail and utter respect for the past. We arrived on a misty night and opened our gnarled wooden door to find a 6-metre high vault flickering with 100 candles, like our own private cathedral - a truly sensational first impression. Recycled wooden furniture, carved crosses and cosy nooks are the only visible decoration; but closer examination reveals concealed spotlights in the walls, underfloor heating beneath the time-worn cobblestones, and an oversize egg-shaped Starck bathtub in the depths!
With fantastic breakfasts, friendly English-speaking service from Michele and Roberta, wonderful trattorie and gelaterie on your doorstep, and ancient rock churches to explore in the gorge, it's a fantastic and restorative break from your day-to-day travails.
Rooms
There are 18 rooms, divided into 3 standard rooms, 9 superior rooms and 6 suites. As they are all caves, dimensions aren't uniform and they are all a little different, some with 160sq.m of floorspace, others with ceilings over 6m high. Standard rooms are slightly smaller than superior rooms and all have double beds and a shower or bath.
Suites are vast with vaulted ceilings, windows looking out on to the valley and its prehistoric landscape, plus kingsize beds, baths and showers. We hear that Suite 13 is a particular gem, part of a deconsecrated church with angel-shaped indents in the walls, flooded with natural light from a balcony overlooking the dramatic valley beyond.
Taking your heavy key in hand, you’ll be led down to your cave where a large bowl of cherries, bottle of chilled water and roaring fire await. The designers employed extreme attention to detail to create rooms that combine contemporary comfort with historical detail, so you’ll find antique wooden blanket boxes and wardrobes, beds laden with handmade linen, much of it from dowries, and handcrafted natural soaps and scented essential oils stand in beautiful apocathery-styled glass bottles. The walls are bare and unadorned and the furniture is plain, allowing the space to speak for itself - but central heating ensures you'll be snug in your cave. Clusters of cream-coloured pillar candles are lit as dusk falls and fires roar in their ancient grates.
Bathrooms are a nod to the new however; the previous inhabitants didn’t have any. They are minimal, using simple, formal elegance to create something that doesn’t clash with the ancient beauty of the caves; so white egg-shaped baths rest in the corner of the bedroom alongside large ceramic basins.
Location
Le Grotte della Civita is set in the ancient cave network of the Sassi de Matera, which is the old part of the town of Matera in Basilicata. It's in southern Italy, 255km southeast of Naples and 65km from Bari.By Air
The nearest airport is Bari. The main hub for travel from the USA and Canada to Italy is Rome; from there, ongoing flights to Bari are numerous. Click on the links below for a list of airlines serving these airports.
From the Airport
The hotel can arrange a transfer from Bari - see Rates - or you can self drive. It takes about an hour.
By Train
You can get the bus or train to 'Matero centralo' then walk to the hotel (70m). See Trenitalia for more details.
By Car
If you want to hire a car, see our car rental recommendations.
By Coach
The Marino bus runs from Matera to Milan, Bologna, Naples, Novara, Parma, Reggio Emilia, and Urbino. It also runs to cities outside Italy. The Marozzi and Liscio service connects Matera to Rome, Florence, Pisa and Siena with 2 daily trips and 1 night coach. The route from Rome takes 7 hours.
***
0 comments:
Post a Comment