Italy Festivals Calendar
Italy's festival year ranges from winter street theatre and fireworks to summer opera, horse races and lagoon celebrations. Use the season, city and fixed dates below to shape a trip around an event rather than trying to fit an event into an already crowded itinerary.
Plan around the calendar
- ✦Book accommodation ahead for Capodanno on Capri and expect Venice Carnevale to bring very heavy crowds and higher prices.
- ✦Treat April as a particularly busy month: Florence, Verona, Venice and Milan all have major events, while the Biennale alternates art and architecture by year.
- ✦For fixed-date celebrations, build the day around the event's city centre, square, river or lagoon rather than assuming normal opening hours and traffic.
- ✦Check the linked official event website before travelling for the current programme and ticket instructions.
Winter events
Capodanno on Capri
Capri welcomes New Year's Eve with live music, DJ sets, acrobatics and fireworks, all focused around Piazza Umberto I. The square becomes intensely crowded, so accommodation on the island needs to be arranged well in advance.
Carnevale in Venice
Venice's Carnevale lasts about 15 to 17 days and finishes on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. More than half a million people come for concerts, theatre, street shows, masquerade balls, historical processions, fashion events and contests. The tradition regained its full force in the 1970s after Venice had become famous for 18th-century masked revelry. The official Carnevale website is the place to check the programme.
Spring events
Festa di San Marco in Venice
April 25 honours Venice's patron saint and is also Italy's National Liberation Day, a public holiday. The traditional gift is a bòcolo, a long-stemmed red rose offered by men to the women they love; the longer the stem, the stronger the sentiment is said to be. A Venetian legend connects the roses with a soldier wounded in a distant battle and a doge's daughter. Flower sellers appear throughout the city, while the stand in Piazza San Marco supports the Red Cross.
Scoppio del Carro in Florence
On Easter Sunday, a huge decorated carriage pulled by two oxen travels through central Florence and arrives in Piazza del Duomo. A dove-like device is sent from the cathedral towards the baptistery, triggering fireworks that pour from the cart. The official Tuscany tourism site carries information about this spectacular Florence tradition.
Vinitaly in Verona
For several days in April, Verona hosts Vinitaly, an international wine and spirits gathering with more than 4,000 exhibitors from two dozen countries. The opening event, Opera Wine, presents the top 100 Italian wines selected by Wine Spectator at the Palazzo della Gran Guardia in Piazza Bra. See the official Vinitaly website for the event information.
Biennale di Venezia
Every two years, in even-numbered years, Venice's Giardini pavilions, Arsenale warehouses and scattered palazzi fill with contemporary art. In odd-numbered years, the focus shifts to architecture and the world's leading architects. The official La Biennale di Venezia site covers both the art and architecture programmes.
Milan Design Week
For one week in April, Milan becomes a meeting place for the international design world. The Salone del Mobile anchors the programme at the vast Fiera Milano, while many other venues across the city join in. The official Salone del Mobile site is the reliable starting point for the fair.
Regata Storica delle Antiche Repubbliche Marinare
This historical pageant brings four boats onto the water, each rowed by eight oarsmen representing one of the medieval maritime republics: Amalfi, Pisa, Genoa and Venice. The winning prize is a gold-and-silver scale model of an antique sailing ship. The official maritime republics website provides the event details.
Summer events
Arena di Verona Opera Festival
From June through August, opera fills Verona's ancient arena. Up to 16,000 people sit either on the original stone terraces or in modern cushioned stalls for large-scale productions such as Aida and Turandot. Tickets can be ordered by phone or through the official Arena di Verona website. If you choose the cheaper terraces, take or rent a cuscino for the stone seats.
Festa di San Giovanni in Florence
Florence celebrates its patron saint on June 24. Many shops and bars close, and the city gathers at night for fireworks above the Arno, a display that draws thousands. The official Tuscany tourism site has the event information.
Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto
Umbria's Festival dei Due Mondi runs from late June into mid-July in Spoleto. What began as a classical music festival now brings together modern and classical music, theatre, dance and opera, with smaller cinema producers and their films also part of the programme. Visit the official Festival dei Due Mondi website for the current schedule.
Luminaria in Pisa
On June 16, Pisa honours its patron saint, St. Ranieri, with the Luminaria feast. White lights outline the palaces along the Arno and fireworks complete the evening. The event appears in the official Pisa tourism calendar.
Palio in Siena
Siena's famous bareback horse race takes place twice a year, on July 2 and August 16. The riders race around the city's main square, turning the medieval centre into the stage for a deeply local contest.
Festa del Redentore in Venice
On the third Sunday in July, Venice builds a pontoon bridge across the Canale della Giudecca to commemorate the doge's annual visit to Palladio's Chiesa del Santissimo Redentore after the end of a 16th-century plague. The main celebration begins the evening before, when Venetians and visitors set tables along the canals and boats decorated with coloured lanterns gather on the water. About half an hour before midnight, fireworks burst over the Bacino. Good viewing points include Riva degli Schiavoni, Zattere near Punta Dogana and the Zitelle end of the Giudecca. The official Redentore website has the event information.
Fall events
RomaEuropa in Rome
For six weeks in early fall, RomaEuropa spreads avant-garde performing and visual arts across multiple venues in Rome. International artists form the heart of the programme. The official Romaeuropa website publishes the festival information.
Venice Film Festival
Film stars, critics, entourages and movie fans meet on the red carpet on the island of Lido and at cinemas around Venice. The water entrance of the Excelsior Hotel is a good place to watch for arrivals by water taxi. The official La Biennale di Venezia site publishes the festival programme.
Roma Jazz Festival
Throughout November, Rome's Auditorium Parco della Musica hosts the Roma Jazz Festival, with performances by local and international jazz musicians. Check the official Roma Jazz Festival website for the programme.