If your dream is to visit Italy’s oldest city, and stay overnight in a famous Matera cave hotel, here’s everything you need to know. You’re even in luck if you want to bring your dog! There are many dog-friendly hotels in this incredible ancient city. But there are lots of things to consider.
We opted to stay for 2 nights at the Hotel Residence San Giorgio. The Matera caves, including cave restaurants, cave bars, cave hotels, and cave museums are all located in the Sassi which is the name for the two settlements located within the ancient city center of Matera. There is no parking available in the Sassi which is a little bit of a challenge when you arrive and leave, but you’ll be very glad you don’t have to deal with cars on the streets while you are exploring this amazing city.
Parking in Matera
There are many parking garages just outside the Sassi, and we chose the Parcheggio Nicoletti Michele on Via Cappelluti which sits just at the border of the pedestrian zone. Plan on €20 per day for secure parking. There was also a €10 service each way for a shuttle from the car park to the reception area of our hotel and back.
Before we had left our previous location in Italy, we reorganized our bags so we could carry only what we needed for our 2 night stay in Matera, and left everything else in the car. We felt like a walk after a long car ride, and we had chosen the car park closest to the hotel so we rattled off over the cobblestones with our roller bags, and passed on the shuttle.
If you don’t want to deal with lugging your bags, or using a shuttle, there are plenty of places to stay in Matera that fall outside the Sassi that will allow you to have more luggage, so you can walk unencumbered into the old city to explore. The more modern area of Matera has paved roads with cars, parking garages, and smooth sidewalks.
Cell Coverage in Matera Italy
Cell service is spotty in the Sassi, and you’ll see why. There are alleys, and passages, and little tunnels and stone walls everywhere. Getting a clear signal is the exception, not the rule.
Because of this, we got lost on our way to the hotel but immediately got approached by a local who showed us where to go and gave us our first introduction to the city and what it has to offer. We tipped him a few Euros for his kind efforts and he was appreciative.
The best thing to do is download everything you’ll need like your location on Google maps, and the Italian language on your translation app.
Our Matera Cave Hotel
The Reception Desk
Our first stop was the reception desk where we were greeted warmly and told to follow the concierge to our room. Here’s where the mechanics of staying in a cave hotel started to make sense. Each room is an entire former cave home where a family would have lived. The hotel really isn’t a hotel in the traditional sense, but more like a neighborhood, with each room taking up a former two-room residence.
Each “room” is unique, and located on the street a few blocks away from reception. The concierge offered to assist with bags from the reception desk to our room.
The Room in Our Matera Cave Hotel
After a few hundred feet, and a slight uphill cobblestone walk, we arrived at our door. All I can say is that I couldn’t even speak for several seconds while I absorbed the awesomeness of the space. We chose the Superior Suite for our stay and wow!
We had high vaulted stone ceilings, only one small transom window over the door so you could tell when it was daylight, a full dining table and kitchen, the bed in yet another vaulted section of the room, a nice bathroom with a jetted tub, and a window portal that looked down into the old water cistern. Matera is famous for these cisterns which even won them designation as a UNESCO world heritage site. You can read all about the city in my post Best Matera Walking Tour Brings 9000 Years to Life.
We discovered a flight of stairs down into yet another room which the concierge called the wine cellar. It was decorated with large glass bottles and the lighting was amazing. It called out for a table though, or some reason to go down there. I did end up using it a couple times just to cool off after a hot walk around the city. The underground cave part was a delightful, almost A/C-like experience, which I needed after a couple hot walks around the city.
Respiratory Issues in a Cave Hotel
As the concierge showed us the room, he brushed aside a little bit of white sandstone dust from the table, and said there might be a little of that during our stay. I mean, it’s a sandstone cave, and I was totally ok with that.
I do have asthma, though, and I did notice by the time we checked out that I was coughing more than normal, and our tour guide later in the day even mentioned that people with breathing issues shouldn’t stay for prolonged periods in the caves. I don’t know that I could stay for a week or more, but for a couple nights it was absolutely worth it for me. Also, Helga is a snub-nosed dog, but she showed no signs of any breathing issues.
But if you do have a serious respiratory issue you may want to think twice about staying in a Matera cave hotel, and enjoy Matera from the modern side.
Breakfast in the Matera Cave Hotel
Breakfast was provided in the room and restocked the following morning. Coffee, milk, orange juice, a bottle of prosecco (!), cheese and meat, a bowl of fruit, tomatoes, bread, jams, cookies, tea and honey. It was like a little picnic each morning.
Ambiance of the Matera Cave Hotel Room
Sleeping in a Matera cave hotel with my dog (and my husband!) was absolutely amazing. We’ve traveled a lot and it’s rare that my jaw drops at a hotel room, but this was an experience like no other. I got a fabulous night’s sleep, not only because the bed was comfortable, which it was, but it was completely quiet!
The place itself felt steeped in history and as I closed my eyes, I tried to imagine who might have lived there, and all the people who had fallen asleep there over the centuries. It felt like a combination of being a kid in a blanket fort, a spelunker, and having a sleepover in a museum!
Dog-friendliness of the Matera Cave Hotel
Helga absolutely loved the cave. She gets hot easily, just like me, and enjoyed the coolness of the room and the fact that she had so much space to roam around. It was easily the size of 3 regular hotel rooms. There were no bowls or blankets or dog bed provided, but it worked out all right for us because we brought our own.
⚠️ The only negative thing I have to say is that when we went to ask a question at the front desk, the concierge asked where our dog was. We said in the room, and he said that under no circumstances was the dog to be in the room alone at all. This was kind of a shocker because we’ve stayed in dozens of dog-friendly hotels and had not encountered this situation before. Helga is definitely used to her quiet down-time in the room during the day, doesn’t do well with a lot of stimulation, and can be reactive with other dogs she meets outside.
Dog Policies – Know Before You Go!
We were very glad for two things. First, that Matera itself is very dog-friendly, and second that we had brought along her over-the-shoulder carry bag. At 20 pounds, she’s topping the scales for a shoulder bag, but we made it work.
She was able to enter a couple of the little cave house museums, and a short film about Matera while in the bag. She was also allowed to sit with us in cafés and restaurants. We kept her in the bag there, too, and miraculously she did ok, minus barking at a couple waiters. (We tipped extra). But for some things, like entering churches (which never allow dogs), we had to take turns with one of us waiting outside with Helga while the other one went inside.
Needless to say, the knowledge that we couldn’t leave her in the room would have been good to know before we booked. So if you have a dog, be sure to confirm clearly with your hotel first to make sure that you can leave your dog in the room while you do things that are not dog-friendly. If you don’t have a dog, or if your dog goes everywhere you go, I would recommend Residence San Giorgio without hesitation.
And for a comprehensive article with lots of tips and tricks, read our article Staying in a Hotel With Your Dog – Top Tips!
The Good and the Bad of Staying in a Matera Cave Hotel
So, to summarize our stay in a Matera cave hotel with our dog:
✅ An absolutely unique and amazing experience
✅ A location and ambiance that can’t be beat
✅ Helpful staff and great breakfast
✅ Quiet room and comfy bed
🚨 Spotty cell service
🚨 Can’t leave dog in the room
🚨 May not be suitable for anyone with respiratory issues
🚨 May not be suitable for someone who wants a view (or windows)
