Villages
Ancient Villages Still Alive Today
Matera in southern Italy has been inhabited continuously for 9,000 years — among the oldest still-occupied human settlements on Earth. The Sassi cave dwellings, carved into the limestone ravine, were declared a 'national shame' in 1952 by Italian PM De Gasperi and forcibly evacuated. By 1993 UNESCO had listed them; by 2019 they were European Capital of Culture. Many of the same families have returned to the caves, now as B&Bs.
These eight villages are not museums. They have postmen, primary schools, and weekly market days. Some date to the Neolithic, some to the Bronze Age, all to a time before nation-states were invented.
Below: the right month to visit, where to sleep, and the local dish that has not been refined since 800 BC.
Late afternoon light, looking east. Photo by our regional correspondent.
Why This Place Matters
Matera, Italy — 9,000 years of continuous occupation in the same cave system, recolonised after 1980s heritage laws allowed permanent residence again.
Şirince, Turkey — Greek Orthodox village near Ephesus, founded by freed slaves around 1410, depopulated in the 1923 Greek–Turkish population exchange, repopulated by Macedonian Turks who never quite changed the architecture.
Mestia, Svaneti (Georgia) — high-Caucasus village at 1,500 m with 175 medieval stone tower-houses (machubi), still used as winter shelter against avalanches.
A Short History
Pyrgi, Chios (Greece) — a medieval village where every facade is decorated with geometric 'xysta' patterns scratched into white plaster over black, a technique imported by the Genoese in 1346. The technique has continued unbroken.
Ayit Roof Village (Berber), Morocco — kasbah villages in the Atlas built from rammed earth (pisé), still inhabited by Amazigh families who farm walnuts in terraced orchards below.
Sani Top, Lesotho — Basotho village at 2,876 m, at the top of Sani Pass. The Basotho still wear the seanamarena blanket as everyday clothing; the village's pub (Sani Mountain Lodge) is the highest in Africa.
What You Will Actually See
Matera — Sasso Caveoso (the older, lower of the two Sassi districts), the rock-cut Madonna de Idris church, and dinner at Le Tre Pizzole inside an actual sasso.
Şirince, Turkey — wine cooperative (the village makes nine kinds of fruit wine), Greek school converted to museum, walks down to Ephesus through fig orchards.
Mestia, Svaneti — Margiani family tower (climbable, 11th century), Svaneti Museum of History and Ethnography, kubdari (Svan meat pie) at Café Laila.
Pyrgi, Chios — Plateía Pyrgou with its xysta-decorated houses, the Genoese tower in the centre, mastic-flavoured ice cream at any kafenio.
Khimi, Bhutan — fortified Drukpa village at 2,700 m in the Phobjikha valley; visited only with a Bhutanese tour permit.
Castelluccio di Norcia, Italy — Apennine village at 1,452 m, devastated by the 2016 earthquake, slowly rebuilding; the lentils of Castelluccio bloom in the surrounding plain every June.
Cudillero, Asturias (Spain) — fishing village whose houses cascade down a ravine to a single small harbor; eat sea bass at Marisquería El Faro.
Bukchon Hanok Village, Seoul — 600 Joseon-era hanok houses still used as private residences in central Seoul; visit before 5 pm and respect the 'silence requested' signs in residents' alleys.
The kind of detail you only notice on the second visit.
Interesting Facts
A few quick notes on ancient villages still alive today before the section below.
These are the details our correspondents most often get asked about by readers planning a trip.
Practical Information
Matera — stay in a Sasso (Sextantio le Grotte della Civita, restored caves with no electric lights, only beeswax candles); avoid mid-July to mid-August Italian holidays.
Şirince — best in October, when the wine and quince harvests overlap. Stay at Nişanyan Houses (built by linguist Sevan Nişanyan).
Mestia — fly via Tbilisi to Mestia (1-hour flight, weather-dependent) or 9-hour shared marshrutka from Zugdidi. Stay at Chubu Family Guesthouse, founded in a Svan tower.
Bukchon — visit before 11 am; later it becomes a hanbok-rental tourist zone.
Interesting Facts
- Matera has been continuously inhabited for approximately 9,000 years, making it one of the three oldest still-occupied human settlements on Earth (alongside Jericho and Aleppo).
- Pyrgi's xysta facade technique uses lime, sand, and volcanic ash; the patterns are scratched in while wet, exposing the black under-layer.
- Svaneti's tower-houses (machubi) were built from the 9th to 13th centuries; about 175 still stand in Mestia and Ushguli, with original log floors and central hearths.
- Şirince was depopulated in the 1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange — 1,800 Greek residents were sent to Greece, replaced by Turks from northern Greece.
- Sani Mountain Lodge in Lesotho is officially the highest pub in Africa at 2,876 m above sea level and produces its own 'Highest Pub in Africa' brand of brandy.
Most travellers walk straight past this corner. Stop and look up.
How To Visit
Bari → Matera: 1h20 by FAL train, €5.
Izmir → Şirince: 1h drive south to Selçuk, then 8 km uphill on minibus.
Tbilisi → Mestia: Vanilla Sky 19-seat plane, GEL 100 if booked early; or marshrutka 9 hrs.
Seoul → Bukchon: Anguk station (line 3), exit 2.
Final Thoughts
Living ancient villages are fragile. Tourist money keeps them alive; tourist behavior can sterilise them.
Stay one night. Eat dinner. Talk to whoever serves it.
If you only do one: Matera in autumn. The light on the limestone is best in October, the festival of Madonna della Bruna (July 2) is the year's biggest, but go in October when the heat breaks.
If you read this article and noticed something we got wrong, please write to us. Reader corrections shape what we publish next.
Julien Beaumont
Regional correspondent for WIGO Trips. Writes about overlooked places and quiet histories.
