What is Cusano Mutri known for?

Porcini festival from mid-September to mid-October, more than forty editions and over 100,000 visitors a year through the centro. The medieval fabric stands because the 1688 Sannio earthquake spared Cusano while it leveled Cerreto Sannita and Civitella Licinio next door. Flower-petal carpet tradition that fills the lanes of the borgo in early summer, part of the Infioritalia national network.

Where is Cusano Mutri?

Cusano Mutri is a comune in the province of Benevento, Campania region of Italy, about 76 kilometers from Napoli.

Campania · Benevento

Cusano Mutri

A Sannio hill borgoon the south face of the Matese, the only town in the area spared by the 1688 earthquake.

76 km / 47 mi

Nearest hub (Napoli)

3,763

Population

Apr–Oct

Best time to visit

Recognised as

Why come

Cusano Mutri sitson the south-facing slope of the Matese massif, in the Parco Regionale del Matese and at the historical border of Sannio Pentro with what is now Molise. The territory climbs from the Lavella gorgeto Monte Mutria, a vertical kilometer in less than ten of road. The 1688 Sannio earthquake destroyed nearby Cerreto and Civitella Licinio; Cusano Mutri was the rare town in the area to come through with its medieval fabric standing, which is why the stone houses, arches, and stepped lanes of the centro look the way they do today. The commune joined the Borghi più belli d'Italia in 2006. The Sagra dei Funghi runs from mid-September to mid-October and draws more than 100,000 visitors a year for porcini gathered on the Matese slopes. The Infioritalia carpets fill the streets in early summer.

The slow-trip planner

Building a trip? Find where Cusano Mutri fits in a slow Italy circuit.

Answer five questions. We will shape a geographically coherent slow trip from the 1,000 Italian towns most travelers skip. Yours to save and share.

Plan your trip

Gallery

8 photos · scroll →

Known for

Centro storico di Cusano Mutri
Medieval old town of stone houses, arches and stepped lanes that came through the 1688 earthquake intact while neighbouring towns fell.
Monte Mutria
1,823-meter peak on the Campania-Molise border, the highest point of the commune and the head of its trekking routes.
Gole di Caccaviola
Narrow limestone gorge cut by the Titerno torrent, with footbridges, waterfalls and a via ferrata used in summer.
Chiesa di San Giovanni Battista
Eighteenth-century parish church in the centro, with a Baroque interior rebuilt around the medieval core.
Parco Regionale del Matese
Mountain park of beech and chestnut woods on the south Matese slopes, with porcini gathered every autumn for the Sagra dei Funghi.

When to visit

Best months · Apr–Oct

Best
Hot or crowded
Quiet
Mostly closed

May, June, September and October are the strongest months: cool evenings at 475 meters, walks in the Gole di Caccaviola, and porcini on the Matese in autumn. July and August can climb past thirty degrees in the daytime, though the mountain altitude keeps nights bearable; the centro fills in the second half of August for the Festa del Vino. The Sagra dei Funghi runs from mid-September to mid-October and is the busiest stretch of the year. November through March is quiet. Snow falls on Monte Mutria from December into early spring and the Bocca della Selva ski station above the town runs short winter seasons.