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.

When is the best time to visit Cusano Mutri?

Apr–Oct. 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.

Where is Cusano Mutri?

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

How do I get to Cusano Mutri?

From Napoli, Cusano Mutri is roughly 76 km by road.

Campania · Benevento

Cusano Mutri

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

Known for

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

When to visit

Best · Apr–Oct

Best
Hot or crowded
Quiet
Mostly closed

The festa: Nicola di Bari, 6 December

Why come

Cusano Mutri sits on 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 gorge to 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 Sunday letter

We haven’t written Cusano Mutri’s letter yet.

One town every Sunday, with the photo, the food, the festa. Be there when this one comes up. Free, by Peter & Sophia from Pietrasanta.

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What to see

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.

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Living here

Population 3,763
Off the beaten pathi
Pharmacy in town
High school within a 30-minute drive
Nearest airport Naples / Salerno, 1 h 31 min drive
Regional capital Napoli, 1 h 36 min drive

Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources

Recognised as

The numbers

Elevation: 475 m
Population: 3,763
Surface area: 58.86 km²

On the map

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These figures were compiled from public directories — ISTAT, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata — and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.

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