Two wonderful pearls set among the spectacular Lucanian Dolomites, mountains whose rocky outlines draw a unique landscape. Two villages separated by a breathtaking valley, to be admired during a thrilling, headlong flight.
Pietrapertosa and Castelmezzano are must-see stops on a trip to Basilicata, thanks to their strategic position that makes the two villages look like huge nativity scenes carved into the mountain.
A FLIGHT IN THE SHADOW OF THE LUCANIAN DOLOMITES
A poetic yet thrilling landscape, thanks to the “Volo dell’Angelo” (Angel’s Flight), one of the most interesting attractions in the region. It’s a steel cable linking the two villages that lets visitors fly between them, admiring the valley at a speed of over 120 km/h above a drop of about 800 metres! A unique thrill unlike anything else in Italy.
And then there are the historic centres: the American magazine Budget Travel called Castelmezzano “the best place on the planet that you’ve never heard of”, while Pietrapertosa boasts a Saracen stronghold at the top of the village and an ancient tradition linked to this faraway people. Both Pietrapertosa and Castelmezzano are listed among the “Borghi più belli d’Italia” (Most Beautiful Villages in Italy).
THREE GOOD REASONS TO VISIT PIETRAPERTOSA AND CASTELMEZZANO
1. THE LUCANIAN DOLOMITES
Pietrapertosa and Castelmezzano lie within the Parco Gallipoli Cognato Piccole Dolomiti Lucane, a green area covering 27,027 hectares. Equipped for hiking, orienteering and guided tours, the park is a must-visit destination for bouldering enthusiasts in Italy, thanks to the quality of the rock and the great variety of climbable problems.
2. ANGEL’S FLIGHT AND VIA FERRATAS
The big attraction for thrill-seekers is definitely the Volo dell’Angelo. An adrenaline-fuelled minute-and-a-half flight between the two villages, more than eight hundred metres above the ground, which you can do alone or in pairs!
You set off lying horizontally, strapped in face down, and after a few seconds you find yourself flying over a green valley surrounded by rocky mountains. A thrill that lasts just over a minute but stays in your heart for a lifetime!
Since 2015, mountain lovers visiting Pietrapertosa and Castelmezzano have also been able to tackle the via ferrata. It consists of two routes winding across the Lucanian Dolomites, through gullies and walkways, with two Tibetan bridges.
3. TRACES OF ARABS AND CRUSADERS
In these two villages, among narrow lanes cut into the rock and wonderful sheer drops, mysteries from the past lie hidden. At the time of the Crusades, Castelmezzano was an important stop for knights on their way to the Holy Land. You can find traces of this past in the symbols carved on the façade of the ancient church of Santa Maria dell’Olmo.
While Castelmezzano is linked to the Templars, Pietrapertosa has a Saracen past, as shown by the layout of the houses in the oldest quarter, known as the “Arabata”, by the remains of the ancient fortress built on top of the rocks and by a festival that every year, on summer nights, brings odalisques, fakirs and faraway scents back to the village’s alleys.
