Basilicata
It's impossible not to fall in love
Here in Basilicata, the customs of its inhabitants intertwine with the rhythms of nature. A small corner of Italy brimming with history, culture, flavors, and breathtaking landscapes that are impossible not to fall in love with.
Unspoiled landscapes, sleepy and quiet villages, enchanting beaches. Basilicata is a region in southern Italy with an incredible variety of landscapes: mountains that run the length of the region all the way to Pollino, unspoiled nature, vast expanses of land, national parks, forests, beaches, and lunar-like landscapes.
The Distilleries of Pietragalla
The Parco dei Palmenti in Pietragalla is characterized by unusual structures that seem to belong to an enchanted world. The name “Palmenti” derives from the Latin “Paumentum,” meaning the act of crushing or pounding: in fact, the Parco dei Palmenti consists of a complex of structures carved into the rock beginning in the 19th century for winemaking. Inside, the areas where wine was produced are still visible, from the tanks used for pressing and fermenting the must to the storage areas and the niches designed to hold the lanterns that illuminated the spaces.
Matera
A city of contrasts, competition, and fusion between landscapes, civilizations, and cultures.
In Matera, nature and man are the protagonists and key players in history, landscape and traditions. From cave dwellings to Byzantine origins, the arrival of the Normans, Romanesque, Renaissance and Baroque styles, the last eight centuries of construction and refinement of the city have attempted to shape and overcome the natural resistance of the pre-existing cave habitat, helping to create an urban structure of particular quality and uniqueness.
The inimitable architecture of the Sassi di Matera demonstrates man's ability to adapt perfectly to the environment and natural context, skilfully utilising simple features such as the constant temperature of the excavated rooms, the calcarenite rock itself for the construction of above-ground dwellings, and the use of slopes for water control.
- In 1993 UNESCO declared the Sassi di Matera a World Heritage Site
- The Sassi di Matera is the 6th site in Italy chronologically, the first in the south.
- On October 17, 2014, Matera was designated European Capital of Culture for 2019
Lucanian Dolomites
The Lucanian Dolomites park, in the center of the region, is characterized by a mountain system with spectacular peaks and shapes that have inspired imaginative names such as the golden eagle, the anvil, the great mother, and the owl. It also includes timeless villages like Castelmezzano and Pietrapertosa, connected by the famous “Flight of the Angel” or by a scenic trail known as the Seven Stones Path.
Christ of Maratea
Arriving from Biella in 1953 for business reasons, Count Stefano Rivetti di Val Cervo was so fascinated by Maratea that he decided to invest in the area and promote it in his own way. With the help of the Cassa del Mezzogiorno, he conceived and financed what would later become the centrepiece of tourism in Maratea: the statue of Christ the Redeemer of Maratea, also known as the Christ of Maratea.
The monument stands on the highest point of Mount S. Biagio. Its summit, overlooking the sea from several hundred metres above, dominates the port of Maratea.
Second in size only to Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, the statue is 21 metres high, with an arm span of 19 metres and a face measuring 3 metres. The whole structure weighs around 400 tonnes.
The statue has its back to the sea and its face turned toward the mainland, as if watching over the people of Maratea and the surrounding territory. Because of the particular shape of the face, an unmistakable landmark for sailors, it gives distant observers the impression that its gaze is turned toward the sea, even though in reality it is not.
