We have to find our way from Matera to Rome on Oct. 2 of this year. We will fly out of the airport on the morning of Oct 3 and have a hotel booked which I am quite excited about however we are debating how to make our way from Matera to Rome. We will have a rental car however we wonder if we should make our way to Bari and leave the car there and then take a train to Rome or should we drive from Matera to Rome or is there some other route we have not yet thought of? Would be grateful for all suggestions; especially if someone has made this trip and has some thoughts which we'd benefit from. Thanks to all.

I think you are better off driving all the way, not a train from Bari.

It's about five hours driving to Rome, if you go to Bari it's about 4.5 hours on the train, after an hour drive to Bari. I'd drive.
Where are you supposed to return your car?

If you want to spend another day in the area to see Lecce of other places you can take an overnight train as I did from Bari to Rome - for info on night trains and trains in general check www.seat61.com - www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com. For fares and discounted tickets check www.trenitalia.com.

Night trains ain't for everyone but you can get a private compartment, bring any food and drink aboard, etc and save on the cost of a hotel, a day's car rental perhaps and cost of driving.

The night train takes 6 hours and 15 minutes to travel from Bari to Rome. Considering that you'd need at least 15 minutes to get ready to sleep, and that you'd have to get up at least half an hour before getting to Rome, you'd be lucky to get 5 hours of sleep, even assuming you wouldn't be awakened at the seven intermediate stops.

I say to drive.

Actually a good solution would be to avoid a punishing drive and stay in Bari overnight. There is a train at 7:14AM arriving at 11:23.

Italo has a service from Mmatera to Rome. They run a bus shuttle from Matera to Salerno that connects you to their train on to Rome. You can only purchase the bus in combo with the train. Trenitalia offers a similar service but I don't care for their time connections.

That's Italo not Italia which is a reseller. Trenitalia calls theism Freccialink.

The night train takes 6 hours and 15 minutes to travel from Bari to Rome.>

Actually schedules I've seen say there is no more a direct night train from Bari - I took one a few years back but apparently no more- so scrap that idea anyway.

we are staying overnight in Matera and need to be in Rome the next day as we have one more night in Rome before flying home the following day. Looks like driving from Matera to Rome is what we will do. I have tried finding rental cars in the outskirts of Roma. Wow...that's hard to do. You have to map each rental location and try to determine if the driving will be any less chaotic than elsewhere. We are reluctant drivers in Rome although I was quite proud of how I did driving in Florence. I think it's a different thing to drive in Rome.

Matera looks great in pictures but why go all the way there to see a bunch of ruined houses? Stay in Rome.

FYI- between matera and napoli, there are several detours. The highway is not in the best of shape and sections are closed. I've been through here in the last week.

You can return a rental car at Ciampino or Fiumicino airports. Both are just off the Ring Road (GRA) and wouldn't require driving into Rome. From Fiumincino, you can take a train,taxi, or bus into Rome; from Ciampino, bus or taxi.