Basilicata Cross-Country Adventure: 8-day trekking itinerary

When Carlo Levi, during his forced journey that led him to exile in Aliano, saw the Alburni Mountains for the first time, he had the sensation of entering another world, a different world where not even Christ had arrived! From the Naples station, we will head towards Basilicata, and around Eboli (does it ring a bell?), in the middle of the Battipaglia plain, you begin to glimpse in the background the angular and imposing shapes of the Alburni Mountains: the gateway to rural life. It is here that Carlo Levi found inspiration for the title of his famous novel: ‘Christ Stopped at Eboli.’ After those mountains, he faced a backward and isolated world. That isolation, which for many years has been the Achilles’ heel of southern regions, is now transforming into an invaluable resource. It allowed us to resist modernity, preserving ancient rituals and traditions, genuine agri-food recipes and products, and a more relaxed way of daily life. We are still far from being a destination overrun by global mass tourism; tourists are rare and, for this reason, are still considered guests.

With this journey, we will explore a wild and sometimes unknown region. The itinerary forms a loop starting in the north-western part of Basilicata, bordering Campania, traversing the interior of the Lucanian Apennines through the Little Lucanian Dolomites. After the obligatory stop in the marvelous Matera, a UNESCO heritage site and the European Capital of Culture in 2019, we will visit Craco, a ghost town featured in numerous cinematic successes. The last part is dedicated to the Pollino National Park with an excursion to the Garden of the Gods, one of the most beautiful places in Italy! We conclude with a seaside swim on the coast of Maratea: the pearl of the Tyrrhenian Sea!