Five spectacular once-a-year Italy events

 

If someone asked, "I can go to any place in Italy, any time of year. When and where should I go?", I'd suggest planning a trip to coincide with one of the five amazing events below. Culturally significant and unique to Italy, each happens only at a specific time and place each year. Any of them will give you memories to last a lifetime. 

 

In order of easiest to plan:

 

The Verona Opera Festival (June, July, August)

The Roman amphitheater in Verona seats 20,000 people and hosts operas six nights a week (not Mondays) between June and early September every year. The operas are long, so plan to stay overnight in Verona - you won't be able to get a train to anywhere after the performance. And trust me, it's worth splurging on the poltronissima seats, so you're sitting on a cushion (as opposed to a rock) during the 3-hour show. The reason this is pretty easy to plan is that there are many, many tickets, which you can buy online, the shows run practically the entire summer, and there is so much to see in the area (Venice, Lake Garda, Verona, Palladio's villas, the Veneto region, and more) so it's somewhere you'd want to visit anyway.

 

 The Infiorata (May or June)

Infiorata is simply flower petal art - or more eloquently, a flower tapestry - on the streets, as you can see from the photo above. Artists start with a chalk drawing and arrange flower petals on top to create absolutely stunning designs on streets and in front of churches and abbeys. The creations take about 2 days to prepare, and often a religious procession walks along the flower petal carpet after they're done. Infiorata are usually on the Sunday of Corpus Domini, 9 weeks after Easter and the most famous ones are probably in Noto Sicily or Spello Umbria, but they are found all over the country. 

 

 Carnival in Venice or Acireale, Sicily (Jan, Feb, or Mar)

The final party before Ash Wednesday and Lent, Carnevale is held around February every year, though exact dates vary (in 2012 it's February 21st). The celebrations start about 3 weeks beforehand, when people hit the streets to celebrate dressed in opulent costumes and masks. In Venice, carnival means more crowds, lots of tourists, (more) expensive hotel rooms, and packed-to-the-gills trains. I've had a fabulous time at Venice's carnival both times I've been. But for a more cultural experience with fewer tourists, consider spending carnival in Acireale, Sicily - the town is known for having the best carnival on the island. 

 

The Palio in Siena (July and Aug)

This incredible horse race attracts huge crowds, and must be booked well in advance. Siena's main square or campo is covered in dirt to become a racetrack just twice a year. The race is highly competitive as each horse represents one of Siena's 10 neighborhoods or contrade. And even though the actual race lasts less than 2 minutes, the preparation and competitive energy last all year. The Palio happens twice each summer, on July 2nd and August 16th, but if you're in Siena another time of year, you can take a guided tour of the Contrade or neighborhoods to understand some of the history and culture. 

 

 

 The London-Venice-Rome or Rome-Venice Orient Express (Sept 29 & Oct 2, 2011)

Make no mistake about it: you can take the train between Rome and Venice for a tenth of the price of a ticket on the Orient Express. But that's not really the point. On September 29th, 2011, the Orient Express departs London for Venice, and 2 days later leaves Venice for Rome. Tickets are $3,830, not including Venice accommodation. Or, you can just buy a ticket for the Venice-Rome leg departing October 2nd, 2011 at 9.35 am, arriving Rome at 5.22 pm. A one-way ticket is $950. Rome-Venice departs at 7.45 pm and arrives Venice the next morning.

 

I was a guest on the Bella Vita radio show recently to talk about these events, in addition to other Italy travel advice. Click here to listen to the 1-hour August 11th show. Our Italy chat starts about minute 26.

 

 

Palio photo by the bbp; Orient Express photo by Annie Mole; infiorata photo from istockphoto.com; Venice carnival photo and Verona Opera photos by Sanjay Jhawar.

 

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Comments

[Angela]

Great events, shame on me I haven't been to any of them. I would add to the list also some in Sardinia, there are many in every period of the year :)

[Madeline]

Angela, you're so right! I considered adding a Sardinian festival to this list, but couldn't narrow it down. I will have to do a separate post on Sardinian festivals alone, they are so unique! Thanks for your comment.

[Anji]

Curiously enough in India too they have a this floral art as they make rangolis made out of flowers! I was suddenly transported back to India when I saw your picture! Interesting that in spite of the distance, we aren't all that different after all!

[Tom]

I'd happy if i could visit Siena and watch the most famous historical horse race in the world with my own eyes too. A friend of mine in Spain sends me video with the most remarkable moments of this event. Hope i could travel there soon.