National Holidays
Celebrations in Italy
January
1 Jan - New Years Day (Public Holiday)
6 Jan - Celebration of the Epiphany (Public Holiday): The Pope will lead a Mass in St Peter’s Basilica as the country celebrates the ‘Feast of the Epiphany’.
February/March
First half of Feb - Almond Blossom Festival (Agrigento, Sicily): First half of February, folk festival of song, dance, costumes and fireworks.
Feb/Mar - Venice Carnival (Venice, Venento): A masquerade celebration with music, mimes and fireworks in the streets and squares.
Feb/Mar - Carnival in Viareggio (Viareggio, Tuscany): Highlight of the carnival festival is the procession of spectacular and colourful floats.
Feb/Mar - Battle of the Oranges (Ivrea, Piedmont): Involves thousands of townspeople, divided into nine teams, who throw oranges at each other.
17 Mar - Unification of Italy (Public Holiday)
April
Good Friday - Procession of the Mysteries (Trapani, Sicily): 20 sculptures representing Christ are carried along the main streets.
Easter Sunday - Explosion of the Cart (Florence, Tuscany): A pyramid of fireworks set off by a mechanical dove from the altar in the cathedral square during mass.
Easter Week - Celebration of the Holy Week (Assisi, Umbria): Calendimaggio, celebration of spring with flamboyant costumed parades, jousting and other medieval fun.
25 Apr - Liberation Day (Public Holiday)
May
1-4 May - Festival of St. Efiso (Cagliari, Sardinia): One of the most colourful processions as pilgrims follow a statue of the saint on foot and horseback.
2 May - Palio-San Secondo (Asti, Piedmont): A 700-year-old ceremony of medieval origin that culminates with a bareback horse race.
7 May - Sagra Di San Nicola (Bari, Apulia): When the Saint is returned to his Basilica the bells will ring out and the celebrations start.
15 May - Race of the Candles (Gubbio, Umbria): A procession of tall shrines are raced by teams to the church on top of Mount Igino.
Last Sunday in May - Sardinian Ride (Sassari, Sardinia): A traditional procession of more than 3,000 people in Sardinian costumes.
Last Sunday in May - Palio of the Archers (Gubbio, Umbria): An archery competition in which the cities of Gubbio and San Sepolcro compete in the main square.
June
2 Jun - Anniversary of the Republic (Public Holiday)
First Sunday in Jun - The Battle of the Bridge (Pisa, Tuscany): An iron cart is set up in the centre of the bridge with the aim to conquer the enemy’s side.
Sunday following 22 Jun - The Lily Festival (Nola, Campania): This week-long festival honours San Paolino, the town’s patron saint, in the towns streets.
24-28 Jun - Historic Soccer Match (Florence, Tuscany): Revival of a historic 16th-century football and rugby match in medieval costume.
July
19-26 Jul - Festa De’Noantri (Rome, Lazio): Folklore festival of Old Rome in Trastevere, including a colourful procession for the Vergine del Carmine.
August
First Sunday in Aug - Joust of the Quintana (Ascoli Piceno, The Marches): A jouster competes to skewer nine rings against one rider from each of the ten districts of the city.
6 Aug - The Palio di Siena (Siena, Tuscany): The infamous horseback race where jockeys make
three treacherous laps in the piazza amongst the crowd.
27-30 Aug - Feast of the Redeemer (Nuoro, Sardinia): Locals congregate at Nuoro’s Cathedral to follow a bronze, seven-metre-tall statue of Christ the Redeemer.
September
First Sunday in Sep - Historical Regatta (Venice, Veneto): A parade of colourful ceremonial boats followed by a traditional gondola race up the Grand Canal.
Second weekend in Sep - Living Chess Game (Marostica, Veneto): A game of chess using live pieces reenacts a fictional story of two rival lovers in the main square.
19 Sep - Festival of San Genarro (Napoli, Campania): A religious ceremony honouring the patron saint of the city with a procession from the cathedral.
Last week of Sep - Salone del Gusto (Turin, Piedmont): An international gastronomy exhibition that strives to preserve traditional and regional cuisines.
October
Nine days in Oct - Eurochocolate (Perugia, Umbria):A must for all chocolate lovers! With imaginative laboratories and produce stands lining the streets.
November
1 Nov: All Saints Day (Public Holiday)
December
7-9 Dec - Oh Bej! Oh Bej! (Milan, Lombardy): Milan’s patron saint is celebrated with a beautiful Christmas market at the Church of St. Ambrogio.
In addition, each city celebrates a public holiday on its “Saint Day”