Autumn is a great time to visit Italy. It’s less hot and crowded than in the summer and there’s lots going on. From food festivals and sporting events to niche local celebrations.
 
Although some of the best Italian events are in the summer, whatever you’re into and whichever region you’re visiting, you’ll be sure to find an autumnal event that’s right up your street.
 
Here are 6 of the most interesting events in Italy in autumn:
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Faenza is famous for producing Maiolica, a type of tin-glazed pottery. On the first weekend in September every two years, the city is home to the Argillà ceramics festival. People from around 20 countries all over the world flock to the festival to sell their ceramic products. As well as stalls and exhibitions, there are events focused on the techniques used to make pottery, activities for kids and even a Worldwide Potter’s Wheel Championship. Hidden courtyards in the city are opened exclusively for the festival.

Like history, chess and fancy dress? Then head to the Marostica Scacchi in the second weekend of September. Every two years, Marostica holds a giant chess match with human chess pieces! Why? They’re re-enacting a famous fifteenth-century chess game where two warriors competed to decide who would marry the eldest daughter of the Castellano di Marostica. Aside from the huge chess game in the Piazza Castello, the weekend is filled with costume parades, music and fireworks.

The largest international festival of comics in Italy and Europe is held in Lucca at the end of October every year. The historic city, with its fortified walls, sees people from around the world come together, usually in fancy dress, to celebrate comics, board games and animations. You can listen to and meet famous comic book writers, fantasy authors and illustrators, browse shops or compete in a cosplay competition. 

If sport is more your thing, check out the Sports Festival in Trento. A relatively new event, the Festival dello Sport promises four days of debates, seminars, sporting activities and sports camps. Local and international sports stars attend the event and you can listen to talks from Olympic and Paralympic athletes, technicians and sporting experts. From basketball to indoor rowing, there’s something for everyone. 

Possibly the most famous of the many Italian sagre, this international food festival, held throughout October and November, is an annual celebration of the Tartufo Bianco, or white truffle. As well as sampling regional produce, you can embark on a truffle walk, attend cooking shows, or watch a medieval parade and donkey race!

Planning an event in Italy this autumn and want to attract a local audience?
 
As an Italian translator and content writer, I can translate your information into Italian to make sure it grabs attention and persuades the right people to attend.
 
Get in touch for a free translation quote today.
 
Running a sporting event? Check out my top tips for acing your sports translation.

If you’re visiting Italy in autumn, the chances are you won’t be far away from a sagra. Sagre are festivals or fairs that celebrate local customs and produce. They’re usually focused on a particular type of food.
 
Sagre typically have produce stalls, giant outdoor tables for people to sit and eat together and many restaurants put on special menus to mark the occasion. It’s not all about the food though. There’s often music, competitions and costume parades too.
 
Attending a sagra can help you get to know Italy further and mix with the locals. Keep your eye out for the colourful posters that advertise the festivals, or head to the nearest tourist office for information.
 
Autumn is a particularly good time to visit an Italian festival as there are hundreds to choose from.
 
Here are a few to look out for:

Every August near Savona in the north west of Italy, it’s all about the eggplant (or aubergine) as locals get together to celebrate the Sagra della Melanzana Ripiena. With a focus on sustainability, there’s lots of veggie and vegan food and volunteers prepare the aubergine mains, sides and sauces using local raw materials.
 
If you’re not a fan of aubergine, don’t worry. There are also ravioli and other delicacies to devour, as well as local Ligurian wines and desserts.

If you’re in Puglia in the last weekend of September, check out the Zampina festival in Sammichele. The town is well-known for its Zampina, a grilled sausage in a spiral shape. The festival serves up zampina with wine and balls of mozzarella, known as bocconcino. Aside from sampling the food, there’s music and entertainment in the evenings.

At the end of September in Le Marche, look out for the Festa del Vino Cotto. This festival is a celebration of the region’s sweet red wine that is traditionally cooked in a cauldron. During the festival, locals participate in wine tastings and enjoy live music. A similar festival takes place in the town of Loro Piceno in August.

Dating back as far as 1925, the Sagra dell’uva, or grape festival, is a quirky festival set in Marino, a medieval town in the Alban Hills. The region is famous for its wine and, on the first Sunday of October, the locals celebrate their favourite tipple with food, fireworks and a medieval costume parade. The town’s love of wine goes as far as changing their biggest public water fountain into a wine fountain during the sagra!

The Festival of Forgotten Fruits in Casola Valsenio celebrates regional fruits that used to be popular but are no longer commonly used. During the festival, restaurants put on seasonal menus with dishes made using ‘forgotten fruits’ like mulberry, gooseberry, sorb apple, quince and vulpine pears. Various stalls sell these fruits too in the hope that they’ll make a comeback into local cuisine.

This unique sagra held in Tuscany in the last weekend in October translates into English as the Feast of the Thrush. The festival is a re-enactment of a medieval tournament and its main focus is an archery competition between the 4 districts of the city. Aside from the main event, there’s also folk dancing, jousting tournaments, falconry displays and medieval banquets. The locals serve up wine and traditional foods like wild boar, pappardelle and various grilled meats.

The International White Truffle Festival held in Alba throughout October and November is possibly the most famous of the many Italian truffle festivals. Tartufo Bianco is a white truffle that grows in the region and the festival gives you the chance to really get to know it. There are hundreds of dishes made with truffle, truffle walks and even a Palio race with donkeys.
 
If you still want to experience a truffle festival, but want something a bit more low key, there’s a white truffle festival in Sant’Agata Feltria in Emilia-Romagna every Sunday in October.

Planning your own festival or event in Italy and need to persuade local people to attend? Perhaps you can take inspiration from Italian sagre and advertise your event using posters or social media!
 
Either way, your event information will need to be translated into Italian to connect with your target audience, bearing in mind local dialectal terms.
 
As an Italian translator and content writer, I can translate your information into Italian to make sure it grabs attention and persuades the right people to attend.
 
Get in touch for a free translation quote today!