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Castelmezzano: what to see, where to stay and how to get around

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Castelmezzano is a village of fewer than a thousand people, its houses packed into a cleft between sandstone peaks. The rocks around it are called the Lucanian Dolomites, after the Alps, although they are not dolomite at all. This walk climbs from the square to the Norman steps and out along the path to Pietrapertosa. About three hours with the path; the lanes are steep, so wear proper shoes.

Castelmezzano

The ten best sights in Castelmezzano

  1. Chiesa di Santa Maria dell'Olmo
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    Chiesa di Santa Maria dell'Olmo

    The mother church in the heart of the village, below the rocks

  2. Fortezza Normanna
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    Fortezza Normanna

    All that is left is a stairway cut into the rock; climb it for the view, with care in wind

  3. Castello di Pietrapertosa
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    Castello di Pietrapertosa

    Castle carved into the rock at the top of the next village, 10 minutes by car

  4. Chiesa Madre di San Giacomo
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    Chiesa Madre di San Giacomo

    Pietrapertosa's mother church, on the way up to the castle

  5. Campomaggiore Vecchio
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    Campomaggiore Vecchio

    Ghost town abandoned after a landslide; walk among the ruins, not inside them

  6. Parco della Grancia
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    Parco della Grancia

    Summer evening show about the brigands, staged in the open air; book ahead

  7. Tricarico
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    Tricarico

    Hill town with a Norman tower and old Arab quarters, 20 minutes away

  8. Sassi di Matera
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    Sassi di Matera

    The cave city is an hour east — a long but worthwhile day trip

  9. Volo dell'Angelo
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    Volo dell'Angelo

    Fly on a cable to Pietrapertosa and back; book online and check the weight limits

  10. Piazza Emilio Caizzo
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    Piazza Emilio Caizzo

    The village square; park below and walk up

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Tours in Castelmezzano →

A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in Castelmezzano:

Castelmezzano on foot

Free walking tours in Castelmezzano

Castelmezzano on foot

Castelmezzano is a village of fewer than a thousand people, its houses packed into a cleft between sandstone peaks. The rocks around it are called the Lucanian Dolomites, after the Alps, although they are not dolomite at all. This walk climbs from the square to the Norman steps and out along the path to Pietrapertosa. About three hours with the path; the lanes are steep, so wear proper shoes.

  1. Piazza Emilio Caizzo · Castelmezzano is a member of I Borghi più belli d'Italia, the club of Italy's most beautiful villages. The name is usually traced to the Latin castrum medianum, the middle castle.
  2. Chiesa di Santa Maria dell'Olmo · The peaks behind the church are sandstone, laid down on an ancient sea floor and later pushed up and worn by wind and rain into teeth and spires. Some have names from their shapes, such as the Owl's Beak.
  3. Fortezza Normanna · The Normans built a fortress on the rock above the village, and nothing of its walls survives. What remains is the stairway the builders carved into the stone to reach the top, worn smooth by centuries of feet.
  4. Via Ferrata Salemm · The village has two via ferratas, Salemm and Marcirosa, where climbers clip onto steel cables fixed to the rock. They were built to give the village a second life as an adventure destination, and they draw climbers from all over Italy.
  5. Ponte Nepalese · The bridge is a Nepalese-style crossing: a few cables strung across a gap, one to walk on and others to hold, with a safety line above. It hangs over a drop of many metres between two rock walls.
  6. Sentiero delle Sette Pietre · The path between Castelmezzano and Pietrapertosa is laid out in seven stages inspired by Vito ballava con le streghe, a novel by Mimmo Sammartino about local tales of witches. Each stage has a stone or sculpture with a line from the book.

The flight and the highest village

Castelmezzano and Pietrapertosa face each other across a valley, and since 2007 a steel cable has joined them. This route crosses on it, explores the higher village and its rock castle, then drives into the oak forest beyond. Book the flight online and check the weather: it closes in strong wind. Half a day, or a full one with the forest.

  1. Volo dell'Angelo · You fly face down in a harness, hung from a cable more than a kilometre long, at speeds of up to about 120 km an hour. There are two lines, one each way, so the return flight brings you back to the village you started from.
  2. Volo dell'Angelo (Pietrapertosa) · The flight was created to bring visitors to two villages that were emptying out. It worked: the angel's flight turned two almost unknown hamlets into one of the best-known destinations in Basilicata.
  3. Pietrapertosa · At about 1,088 metres Pietrapertosa is the highest town in Basilicata. Its name means pierced stone, after a hole in the rock that rises above the houses.
  4. Castello di Pietrapertosa · The castle is carved into the rock at the top of the village, and its rooms and cisterns are half cut, half built. Below it lies the Arabata, the oldest quarter, whose name recalls the Arab raiders who held strongholds in this region in the 9th century.
  5. Chiesa Madre di San Giacomo · Like many hill villages of the south, Pietrapertosa lost most of its people to emigration in the 20th century, to northern Italy and the Americas. The mother church still holds the village's main feasts, when emigrants' families come home in summer.
  6. Gallipoli Cognato Regional Park · In the forest town of Accettura, at Pentecost, villagers cut a tall oak and a holly top in the park's woods and marry them in the square: the Maggio, a tree wedding that may go back to pagan fertility rites. Then young men climb the joined trunk.

Around the Basento valley

The villages of inland Basilicata were among the poorest in Italy, and their story is one of brigands, landslides and emigration. This drive loops through a ghost town, a hill town with Arab quarters, a park where the brigands are remembered on stage, and the regional capital, Potenza. It is a long day of winding roads, about 150 kilometres. Time it to end at the Grancia for the evening show in summer.

  1. Campomaggiore Vecchio · Count Teodoro Rendina built the village in the 18th century as a planned, orderly town for his farm workers. In 1885 a landslide destroyed it, and the people rebuilt Campomaggiore on safer ground, leaving the ruins as they fell.
  2. Tricarico · Tricarico keeps two medieval quarters with Arab names, the Rabata and the Saracena. Every January its carnival opens with men in masks of cows and bulls, wearing cowbells, who parade through the town.
  3. Parco della Grancia · The park's summer show, La Storia Bandita, tells the story of the brigands who fought in these hills after Italian unification, above all Carmine Crocco. It is staged at night in the open air by hundreds of local volunteers.
  4. Ponte Musmeci · The engineer Sergio Musmeci designed this bridge, finished in the 1970s, as a single thin shell of concrete rising in four arches. It is studied by engineers worldwide and is now protected as a cultural monument.
  5. Torre Guevara · The round tower is the last piece of Potenza's medieval castle, named after the Guevara family, Spanish nobles who ruled the town. The rest of the castle was pulled down over the centuries.
  6. Lago del Pantano di Pignola · The marshy lake is a WWF reserve, one of the few wetlands in the mountains of Basilicata. Herons and ducks stop here on migration between Africa and Europe.
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Getting to Castelmezzano and getting around

  • Potenza Centrale · Nearest mainline station, about 45 minutes by car; there is no train to the village
  • Potenza Terminal Bus · Regional buses leave from here, but very few reach the village — a car is close to essential

Cheap eats in Castelmezzano

Castelmezzano is a mountain village, and its food is shepherds' and farmers' food: lamb, sausage, beans, and hand-made pasta. There is no street-food scene, just a few bars and pizzerias, so plan lunch rather than counting on finding it. Prices are low, well below Tel Aviv.

  • Streetfood · Panini and fried snacks at the village entrance, about 4-8 €
  • Pizzeria · Pizza on the square, about 6-10 €
  • Bar da Nino · Coffee and a sandwich in Pietrapertosa, about 2-5 €
  • Baronetto Pizzeria · Pizza in Pietrapertosa, about 6-10 €

Museums in Castelmezzano

  • Sassi di Matera · Cave houses and rock churches; a long day trip
  • Museo Archeologico Nazionale della Basilicata · Finds from the Lucanians and Greek colonies, in Potenza
  • Campomaggiore Vecchio · Ruins of a planned 18th-century village
  • Parco della Grancia · Open-air history show on summer nights
  • Torre Guevara · Medieval tower in Potenza's old town

Nature and day trips near Castelmezzano

  • Sentiero delle Sette Pietre · Easy path between the villages, about an hour each way
  • Gallipoli Cognato Regional Park · Turkey-oak forest, trails and picnic spots
  • Lago del Pantano di Pignola · Wetland reserve with bird hides
  • Ponte Nepalese · Rope-bridge crossing on the via ferrata

Things to do in Castelmezzano with kids

  • Volo dell'Angelo · For older kids and teens; there are age and weight limits
  • Parco della Grancia · Daytime activities and the night show
  • Sentiero delle Sette Pietre · Short path with sculptures to find
  • Volo dell'Angelo (Pietrapertosa) · The other end of the flight, with a ticket office

Where to eat in Castelmezzano

  • Al Vecchio Scarpone · Trattoria on the square
  • il Becco Della Civetta · Hotel restaurant with local cooking
  • Peperusko · Casual dinner on the square
  • La Locanda di Pietra · Dinner in Pietrapertosa
  • Le Rocce · Local food with views, Pietrapertosa
  • Alberto Il Frantoio · Restaurant in the lanes of Pietrapertosa
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Frequently asked questions about Castelmezzano

What is there to see in Castelmezzano?

The top sights in Castelmezzano are Chiesa di Santa Maria dell'Olmo, Fortezza Normanna and Castello di Pietrapertosa. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.

How many days do you need in Castelmezzano?

Three to four days are enough to see the best of Castelmezzano without rushing, including at least one walking tour.

Is there a free walking tour in Castelmezzano?

Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in Castelmezzano, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: Castelmezzano on foot.

How do you get to Castelmezzano and get around?

The main ways are Potenza Centrale and Potenza Terminal Bus. Full details are in the transport section on this page.

Where to stay in Castelmezzano, and for how much?

sleepntrip shows only rooms in Castelmezzano that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.

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