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Rock church of San Nicola all'Ofra.
Panoramic view over the ravine.
The caves of karst origin.
The corridor of the Bat Cave.
The corridor of the rock church.

Excursion to the Gravina di Matera and the Bat Cave

By Viandanti del Sud
Free cancellation available
Price is AU$67 per adult* *Get lower prices by selecting more than 2 adults
Features
  • Free cancellation available
  • 3h
  • Mobile voucher
  • Instant confirmation
  • Selective hotel pickup
  • Multiple languages
Overview

A panoramic excursion in rocky habitats, flanking the Gravina di Matera and its stream which extends for 20 km, from the foot of the city of Matera, made famous for its Sassi and declared a world heritage site by UNESCO.
We will follow the stream along the ridge of one side of the ravine, enjoying the landscapes of the Murgia Materana Regional Park.
First by exploring the rock church of San Nicola all'Ofra, a farmhouse with its rooms dug into the cliff that communicate with each other: tunnels, stairways, cisterns, churches, developing on 3 levels of height.
And then the karst Bat Cave, among the oldest evidence of human life in this area, a series of corridors, a breeding site for flying mammals, a place that hides the treasure of King Barbarossa between history and legend and where thanks research carried out in recent centuries revealed Palaeolithic tools and fossils of extinct animals, such as the cave bear.

Activity location

  • Gravina di Matera
    • 75100, Matera, Basilicata, Italy

Meeting/Redemption Point

  • Piazza delle Costellazioni
    • Piazza delle Costellazioni
    • 75100, Matera, Basilicata, Italy

Check availability


Private Tour to the Gravina di Matera and the Bat Cave in Multilingual
  • Activity duration is 3 hours3h3h
  • Opening hours: Mon 6:00 am-11:00 pm
  • English

Pickup included

Price details
AU$66.74 x 1 AdultAU$66.74

Total
Price is AU$66.74

What's included, what's not

  • What's includedWhat's includedPrivate transport
  • What's includedWhat's includedPick-up

Know before you book

  • Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
  • Not recommended for travellers with spinal injuries
  • Not recommended for pregnant travellers
  • Service animals allowed
  • Public transport options are available nearby
  • Suitable for all physical fitness levels

Activity itinerary

Gravina di Matera
  • 1h
This ravine of karst origin and carved over time by its torrent extends for almost 20 kilometres, from the foot of the city of Matera, made famous for its Sassi (houses dug into the calcarenite and used for millennia by the locals) and declared a world heritage site by UNESCO. The ravine rich in caves, once strategically inhabited by the local population, flows southwards and touches the town of Montescaglioso, then flows into the Bradano river and finally flows into the Ionian Sea. We will go up the path of the stream along the ridge of one side of the ravine, enjoying the landscapes of the Murgia Materana Regional Park.
Chiesa Rupestre di San Nicola all'Ofra
  • 1h
The journey continues and reaches the rock church of San Nicola all'Ofra, a farmhouse with its rooms dug into the cliff that communicate with each other: tunnels, stairways, cisterns, churches, frescoes, developing on 3 levels of height. The cluster of caves overlooks the ravine of Matera and the stream that crosses it. A very suggestive place, in a breathtaking landscape, where the steep rocky walls also represent the typical habitat for the rare black stork, a wonderful bird at risk of extinction, which for some years has sensationally returned to nesting in the Lucanian territory.
Grotta dei Pipistrelli
  • 1h
A complex of karst caves composed of large entrances and long, narrow tunnels, an important breeding site for fascinating flying mammals. In this place where research had already previously been carried out to find the legendary treasure of King Barbarossa, in the 19th century the local archaeologist Domenico Ridola found Palaeolithic tools, ceramics, tombs with skeletons and fossils of extinct animals: such as the ancient ox and the 'cave bear. Today exhibited in the Domenico Ridola National Archaeological Museum of Matera:

Location

Activity location

  • LOB_ACTIVITIESLOB_ACTIVITIESGravina di Matera
    • 75100, Matera, Basilicata, Italy

Meeting/Redemption Point

  • PEOPLEPEOPLEPiazza delle Costellazioni
    • Piazza delle Costellazioni
    • 75100, Matera, Basilicata, Italy

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