Il Palazzotto | Residence & Winery — Hotel in Matera

Palazzotto Residence & Winery - Matera, Italy||REVIEW TITLE: Magical & historic “do not miss” boutique hotel.||OVERALL RATING: Exceptional life memory stay. Exceeded all expectations from the common space to the room. ||The entry lobby is really several co-joined soaring, huge, exquisitely decorated and lite cave rooms. Living room - wine room - dining/breakfast room. It took my breath away how beautiful the space was - how historically magical. From art to furnishings to fireplace to decor to lighting. Each inch was so carefully decorated. We knew we had arrived somewhere very special. It is rated 3 stars - I can’t imagine why it is not 4 stars. It is high end - but so very comfortable. A magic combination. ||REVIEWER BACKGROUND: Fortunate to travel extensively. I have done travel advising for years. We are always looking for that “magic stay” and we found it certainly here. ||DATES OF STAY: 1 night in May 2025||ROOM/S: Suite (#7). This is a boutique hotel set in historic cave residences of the past. Each room is different. We stayed in one of the 2 suites. The suite was magical and honeymoon worthy.||I toured several other rooms. In all my travels, this hotel is special beyond words. The rooms are as pictured - exquisite - romantic - high end. Our suite for example had a free standing tub in the middle of the very large bedroom space. The sink in the oversized bathroom was the entire length of the room and was the old water trough for livestock in days of old. ||LOCATION: “Perfect” to see Matera. Matera overall is not large. We could walk anywhere and around the walls in short order. It is a few steps from the Cathedral and 10 minutes from the city center. The entire town of Matera is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Matera is sited as the second oldest continually inhabited civilization on earth, after Petra. ||VIEW: Suite #7 was stunning with its views onto the central front courtyard of the hotel - and even more importantly a view of the Sassi - the so famous white cave ruins of Matera.||BREAKFAST: Included in the room rate. Of all our world travels, the setting for the breakfast was a life memory. Breakfast was set in the back large high ceiling cave room/s as you entered the hotel. The cave room/s in this area were lite with precision - even for breakfast - to invoke a magical setting of all the nooks and crannies in the stone. The various components of a typical European buffet breakfast (warm and cold entrees) were set in various little areas of that back cave. Magically atmospheric. ||STAFF: Thank you best in glass General Manager Antonio Giugliano. So very professional, funny, charming. Entering the lobby area was always a joy. Kudos for that. ||NICE TOUCHES: Upon arrival, we were offered each a glass of their winery’s rose and seating in the truly stunning lobby & living room area. Every hotel of this level up should do this - few do. Upon departure, the General Manager gifted me a bottle of their winery’s new release Rose wine. All noted and much appreciated as such a classy touch.||SUGGESTION: Put a picture of each of the rooms on the website. They are exceptional and each should be pictured as each is unique. ||PARKING: Parking is a precious commodity in largely pedestrian Matera. As such the hotel offered several options for parking. We chose one of those - TA&CO Autoparking. Suggested by the Palazzotto, I arranged parking by WhatsAp directly with TA&CO. They exceeded expectations. Parking for 1 day was Euros 25. We drove directly to the parking - about 10 minutes outside of Matera. They were ready for us with a lovely van and professional driver at arrival - and off we drove the 10 minutes to our hotel. The parking van has special driving access into town and was able to drop us 1/2 block from our hotel. We let them know what time we wanted to be picked up in the morning - as it was only a one night stay in Matera. Precisely 5 minutes before pick-up time, I got a WhatsAp from the driver that he was ready for us to take us the 10 minutes back to our car. Highly recommended. ||OUR BEST EXPERIENCES: |-If you can say your hotel is the best experience of the visit…..then indeed it is a magic place. Yes, Palazzotto Residence & Winery was the highlight. Historically significant gem of a stay.|-Dinner or lunch at the front corner patio table of Keiv Ristorante. This is the “best view table in Matera” in my opinion. See my separate Tripadvisor review.||Thank you for the life memory stay - exceptional Palazzotto Residence & Winery. Bravo to the management &...

Sulle pareti della camera c'erano diverse macchie di muffa notevole e si sentiva anche l'odore. Alla reception c'era un solo dipendente che si è rifiutato di muoversi e venire in camera nostra a dare un’occhiata la situazione, e non ha offerto alcuna soluzione. Abbiamo discusso alla reception che a distanza di solo 10 metri dalla camera per due ore e lui si è ancora rifiutato di controllare le condizioni della camera. Quando ci siamo lamentati di questo servizio deludente con un’altra staff, lui ha detto che non potevamo giudicarlo… Siamo rimasti scioccati e delusi da questo servizio atteggiamento scortese che ha rovinato i nostri piani e il nostro umore per l'intera giornata. Era il mio hotel preferito. Va anche detto che gli altri staff che abbiamo incontrato in hotel e alla reception il giorno successivo sono stati cordiali, quindi questa recensione non ha nulla a che fare con loro, anzi, l’unica stella che ho lasciato è per loro. 这家酒店曾经是我在马泰拉最爱的酒店。2017年底我第一次和朋友们来马泰拉玩偶然选择了它，酒店设施氛围和服务人员的专业素养曾经都无懈可击给我们留下深刻印象，2018年和我的妈妈来入住。 但是美好回忆在这次和一位酒店前台人员的交涉中遭到了毁灭性的颠覆。这我第三次来马泰拉，庆祝朋友的生日。我们在几周前毫不犹豫地通过Expedia订了这家酒店，提前跟酒店沟通过如果有空房的话请允许我们early...

The place is unique and the room we had was very attractive set within the cave. As some have pointed out, there are no doors to the bathroom toilet or shower, so one must be comfortable using those with a partner. One significant complaint I have is that the room is very damp and musty smelling. We got accustomed to it as we spent the night, but entering again, it is quite noticeable.

A very small complaint is that the keys are the old style and the doors are VERY difficult to open. Nearly every time I tried entering, it could take several minutes of frustration trying to open the door. Our neighboring room also had challenges, and we helped them to open their.

Unfortunately, the main gentlemen that checked us in seemed as though his job was just that: a job or a chore. We did not feel welcomed, and there was no real hospitality. We had a welcome drink of a glass of wine delivered somberly without explanation or warmth. It felt uncomfortable sitting in the foyer “enjoying” The wine and experience of being in a cave. Be prepared for a cool demeanor at check in.

The breakfast had too many sweet breads with few proteins. Everything is cold, as their is no kitchen to prepare eggs or hot breakfast items.

Even with those shortcomings, I’m not disappointed we stayed, but I wouldn’t stay...