Cave of Marina di Maratea, Natural cave in Marina di Maratea, Italy.
The cave of Marina di Maratea, also called Grotta delle Meraviglie, is a single hall about 50 metres long, set along a fault in Lower Cretaceous limestone of the Giagola and Gada mountains. Its entrance lies at 72 metres above sea level on the SS18 Tirrena Inferiore. Inside, stalactites, stalagmites, columns and thin spaghetti stalactites fill the one room, where a built staircase leads down to the floor.
The cave was discovered in 1929 by construction workers during road development and has been recognized as part of Italy's national heritage since then. This accidental find brought attention to the site and made it accessible to visitors.
The cave is also called grotta delle Meraviglie (Cave of Wonders) or grotta di Marina. Since the 1980s it has been run as a show cave, and guided tours were organised by Maratea's Azienda Autonoma di Soggiorno e Turismo. Its single hall is framed by columns and sheets of stalagmite.
The cave opens directly along the SS18 Tirrena Inferiore between Maratea's centre and Marina, at 72 m above sea level. A staircase built inside leads down to the floor of the single hall, and the artificial lights are switched off once visitors leave. The interior stays at about 19 °C, so a light jacket helps.
The artificial lights inside are switched off as soon as visitors leave, to prevent mosses from forming on the stalactites and stalagmites. The cave has been run as a tourist site since the 1980s, after management passed from the State to Maratea's tourist board.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 92,794 contributors worldwide.
