Events calendar Italy

The Parco della Musica auditorium in Rome celebrates the Christmas holidays by hosting the Christmas festival in the auditorium (Natale Auditorium). The site, designed by the famous architect Renzo Piano, looks like a Christmas village with many activities, gastronomic or local craft stands and an ice rink. There are many concerts to attend, including the Roma Gospel Festival, which features the best contemporary gospel choirs, as well as shows (tales, puppets, classical orchestras, etc.).

In summer, Rome seems a little deserted and, apart from the tourist attractions, everything runs slowly... But in recent years, the "Estate Romana" festival has clearly boosted the city during the summer season by offering an open stage with a rich calendar of events and shows. Open-air cinema, concerts, theatrical performances: the programme is interesting and allows you to spend beautiful summer evenings! To consult the program, note that their Facebook page is much more up-to-date than their site.

In Italy, for the night of San Lorenzo, also known as the "Night of Tears of San Lorenzo", tradition dictates that we gather on the beach to admire the shooting stars, sparkling at this time of year. In Rome, there is no beach but a San Lorenzo district celebrating its patron saint! For the occasion, fireworks are fired, processions take place and bands march. San Lorenzo is one of the most authentic districts in Rome, even more so during this popular and festive festival.

A joyful popular celebration that has come back in vogue recently. On Via Andrea Doria, in the Trionfale district (northwest of Rome), donuts (the famous bigné di San Giuseppe) and sweet fried food are sold to the crowd to celebrate Saint Joseph's Day, which is also Father's Day in Italy. Sports events are organized as well as parades of bands and animations for children (make-up...). It is an important event for the inhabitants of the district who gather in large numbers in a good-natured atmosphere.

Today we celebrate the commemoration of the consecration of the first basilica, which dates back to 356, and the successive buildings on the Esquiline, dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The Virgin Mary would have appeared one day to Pope Libera to ask him to build a basilica where the snow would fall. The next day, flakes bleached the area of the current basilica. It is this miraculous event that is celebrated in Rome and, for the occasion, white flower petals are thrown in rain into the Pauline Chapel during a ceremony.

On the occasion of the feast of the Immaculate Conception, the Pope goes in the afternoon to Piazza di Spagna, at the foot of the Column of the Immaculate, since 1854. A religious ceremony and a blessing are performed there. Please note that the feast of the Immaculate Conception is a holiday in Italy. It is therefore likely that some restaurants or stores will be closed. It is also the day when Italians traditionally decorate their Christmas tree.

Every Wednesday evening, during the months of July and August, the Trinità town hall, a few kilometres south of Isola Rossa, offers wine tastings of the region's typical products.

Whether as a preview or retrospective, from a short auteur film to a blockbuster, all film lovers are invited to meet on the island of Tiberina for this major open-air film festival. Sessions are offered all summer long and very often directors or actors are involved. It is the ideal place to refresh yourself while revising your Italian and international film classics. Consult the program to identify the VO sessions if you do not speak Italian. However, it should be noted that they are quite rare.

In Castelrotto, the snow-covered mountains of Trentino-Alto Adige are the setting for a popular festival: the famous Saint Nicholas' Day costume parade, with the dreadful Krampus as a bonus! It's a bit like the local "Père Fouettard", dressed in animal skin, his emaciated face is surmounted by large horns. His disciples, wearing terrifying masks, wander alongside him in the streets of the village, torch in hand, to the sound of bells... in search of the bambini cattivi (wicked children).

In Storo, the local culinary art is celebrated with dignity through an authentic event: polenta is in the spotlight. Four recipes are revisited. Visitors and villagers share the polenta, starting with the basic recipe: the classic polenta, then the polenta macafana ("lava" in local dialect), cooked with mountain butter and chicory. As for the polenta coudre, it is the traditional dish of mountain farmers cooked with butter and a good dose of melted cheese! Finally, the most daring will dare to try the polenta carbonara style.