Palazzo Gattini Luxury Hotel

Practically everything in Italy is old. But there’s old like the Sistine Chapel, and then there’s old like the ancient cave dwellings in the southern village of Matera: dating from around 9,000 years ago, they’re quite possibly the earliest human settlement on the peninsula. Carved into the volcanic hillsides, the Sassi of Matera are the main attraction here — so it makes sense that the best hotels in town incorporate some of that native stone right into the architecture.

Palazzo Gattini is one of these. On first glance, it’s another grand old palace. Indeed, for more than six centuries, it was the home of the Gattinis, one of Matera’s noblest families. Nice, but not exactly a rarity in Italy. Then you step inside, where it’s cool and quiet, cathedral-like. That’s because Palazzo Gattini was built with the region’s famous stones. And they haven’t been reserved just for the showy public spaces: each of the twenty rooms and suites has stone walls and ceilings, and a magnificent stone-lined bathroom where you’ll be tempted to linger a while longer in the tub. Especially once you’ve laid eyes on the luxurious all-natural bath products from Côté Bastide in Provence.

Suites are particularly, well, palatial, with high arched ceilings carved in decorative patterns and tubs that look more like Roman fountains. One suite even has a large terrace with its own swimming pool. L'acqua è vita, as they say: downstairs, the spa, set in the palazzo’s original cisterns, features a Turkish bath. Dry off before dinner at Don Matteo, Palazzo Gattini’s signature restaurant, with terrace seating overlooking the historic cave dwellings, or a couple of apertivi at the rooftop bar. When the sun goes down, Matera is a sight to see, as floodlights and lanterns flicker on, illuminating the limestone walls of the old city. Wander the streets yourself, or have the hotel book you a private guide, but don’t miss a stroll through these ancient cobblestone passageways.