Christmas in Italy's major cities

Christmas in the city follows a familiar calendar. It starts in November with the first lights and the paid-entry villages, gets going with the Immacolata long weekend (in 2026 8 December is a Tuesday, so many people take Monday 7th off and enjoy four days), peaks between 24 December and 1 January and ends on 6 January with the Epiphany. In 2026 25 December falls on a Friday and 26 December on a Saturday: many state museums and shops stay closed on the 25th, which makes Christmas morning the perfect time to stroll through empty city centres.

This page covers the eight cities where most Christmas trips are concentrated. For each one you will find what is on, the 2026-27 dates published by the organisers and, where the programme is not yet out, the figures from the previous edition, clearly marked as such. For the markets themselves, see the page Christmas markets; for the artists' lights, Christmas lights and light art; for New Year, New Year in Italy.

The dates to note down

Rome

At Christmas Rome is above all a city of nativity scenes and liturgy. The surest fixture in the 2026 calendar is 8 December: at 16:00, in Piazza di Spagna, the Pope pays tribute to the statue of the Immacolata on the column erected in 1857; in 2025 Leo XIV revived the tradition for the first time and the Holy See has announced that it will be repeated. If you want to see the ceremony, arrive early: the square fills up well before the hour.

As for markets, Piazza Navona hosts its stalls from 1 December to 6 January 2027, with the Befana arriving in the square on 6 January together with the Fire Brigade and its band. Other villages: Christmas World at Villa Borghese (28 November - 10 January) and Christmas Garden at the Orto Botanico (19 November - 10 January, every day 17:00-23:00).

For nativity scenes, the main reference is the "100 Presepi" exhibition under the colonnade of St Peter's: in 2025 it ran from 8 December to 6 January and was in its eighth edition; the 2026 dates have not yet been announced (information on the website 100presepi.va). You can in any case visit the nativity scenes of Santa Maria Maggiore and Ara Coeli, and the Presepe dei Netturbini, a permanent display since 1972.

The lights of Via del Corso (in 2025: 1.8 km with about 500,000 micro-LEDs) and the fir tree in Piazza del Popolo (over 20 metres tall, 100,000 LEDs) are the classic evening walk. In 2025 they were switched on on 8 December; the 2026 switch-on date has not yet been announced.

Tip: book the Vatican Museums online and avoid the last weekend before Christmas. See Rome and the Turismo Roma portal.

Milan

In Milan Christmas begins on 7 December, the feast of Sant'Ambrogio, the city's patron saint and a local holiday (schools and offices closed, shops open). That is the day of the Prima della Scala: the 2026-27 season opens with Verdi's Otello, conducted by Myung-Whun Chung in his debut as music director and directed by Damiano Michieletto. Main cast: Brian Jagde (Otello), Eleonora Buratto (Desdemona) and Luca Salsi (Iago). The evening is broadcast live on Rai 1. The repeat performances run from 10 December to 5 January 2027; the Under30 preview on 4 December is sold out. The theatre's website is the only official sales channel.

From 5 to 8 December, from 8:30 to 21:00, the Castello Sforzesco hosts Oh Bej! Oh Bej!, the Sant'Ambrogio fair, with stalls selling sweets, roasted chestnuts, crafts and minor antiques. The Piazza Duomo market (over 60 chalets) runs from 1 December to 6 January, from 9:00 to 21:00; the tree in the square is sponsored this year by Eli Lilly Italia and the official switch-on is usually in the first few days of December, with no date yet announced.

For families there is the Villaggio delle Meraviglie in the Giardini Indro Montanelli (Porta Venezia): from 20 November to 10 January, every day 10:00-21:00, with a double ice rink and fairground rides.

Tip: on 7 December the centre is heavily policed and trams are diverted, so use the metro. Details on Milan and on the website of the Teatro alla Scala.

Naples

Naples celebrates Christmas in the street, and its heart is Via San Gregorio Armeno, the alley of shepherd figurines and handmade nativity scenes, in the Decumani. The workshops operate all year round, but in 2026 the fair opens on 1 November, earlier than usual at the request of the craftsmen and with the council's agreement, and continues until the Epiphany; weekends and the period 20-30 December are the busiest, so much so that the flow of people effectively becomes one-way. The advice is to go on a weekday morning, before 11:00.

The official side is in Piazza del Plebiscito (tree, lights and, in 2025, the New Year's Eve mega-concert with Elodie, Serena Brancale, Lda, Franco Ricciardi and Gigi Finizio), and on the Lungomare by Castel dell'Ovo, where midnight is celebrated with fireworks. The 2026-27 council programme, including the New Year concert, has not yet been published.

Tip: for lunch on the 25th, book weeks in advance. Struffoli, roccocò and mostaccioli are bought in the historic pastry shops. See Naples and, for sweets, The Christmas table.

Florence

In Florence Christmas is understated and centres on Piazza Santa Croce, where a German-style market is held every year: in 2025 it was open from 15 November to 21 December; the 2026 dates have not yet been announced. It is the other typical elements that make the city: the tree in Piazza del Duomo, the lights in Via Tornabuoni and Via dei Calzaiuoli, and the nativity scenes in the churches and workshops of the Oltrarno.

The official calendar can be found on Feel Florence. For the city, see Florence.

Tip: book the Uffizi and the Accademia for the period 27-30 December; the Santa Croce market is crowded on Saturday afternoons.

Venice

Venice is the city where the festive season costs the most and where you can also enjoy it most quietly, because Venetians mostly celebrate at home. The city council and Venezia Unica publish the "It's Christmas Time" programme in the autumn; for 2026 the programme is not yet published: check Venezia Unica before you leave. In 2025 the programme included the tree and lights in Piazza San Marco, "Murano Illumina il Mondo" (twelve artist-designed Murano glass chandeliers under the Procuratie Vecchie, from 21 November to 1 March), the parade of Father Christmases on the Grand Canal (21 December) and ice rinks at Campo San Polo, Mestre and Marghera. The 2026 programme is not yet published.

On 6 January the Regata delle Befane takes place on the Grand Canal, with rowers dressed up as old ladies: it is Venice's way of closing the festive season (see Epiphany and the Befana). In December high water (acqua alta) is frequent: bring rubber boots. Details on the city: Venice.

Turin

Turin has a Christmas of light. From 23 October 2026 to 10 January 2027 the Luci d'Artista are lit, in their 29th edition: 31 installations in streets and squares, including new works by Flavio Favelli at the Musei Reali (Piazzetta Reale), by Tony Oursler (a video projection on the façade of the Politecnico) and the special project by Samson Young in the courtyard of the OGR. The route can be done on foot in one evening, from Piazza Castello to the Quadrilatero.

For the markets of Piedmont, see the page Christmas markets. The 2026-27 New Year programme has not yet been announced: on 31 December 2025 the San Silvestro mega-concert was held at the Inalpi Arena, moved out of the centre because of building works near Piazza Castello. The organiser's official website is the Fondazione Arte CRT. See also Turin and the page Christmas lights and light art.

Tip: crowds are thinner on weekdays; for the Museo Egizio, book your time slot online.

Bologna

Bologna is the city with the densest and best-documented calendar of markets for 2026. The Antica Fiera di Santa Lucia, in Strada Maggiore, runs from 6 November to 27 December and is the oldest of Bologna's Christmas fairs, with terracotta whistles and wooden toys. Then there are: the French Christmas Village in Piazza Minghetti (5-8 December), Natale a Porta Galliera in Piazza XX Settembre (19 November - 6 January), the Christmas Fair in Via Altabella (20 November - 6 January), the antiques fair at the Voltone del Podestà (12-24 December), the Christmas tree market in Piazza Trento e Trieste (6-24 December) and the Fiera dell'Epifania in Via Indipendenza, Via Rizzoli and Via Ugo Bassi (2-6 January 2027).

Bologna also has a New Year's Eve in the square, the Vecchione: a giant effigy is burned in Piazza Maggiore at midnight, with a concert. In 2025 the burning took place on 31 December at 23:00, with Piazza Maggiore open from 21:30 and access limited to 9,000 people; the 2026 date and programme have not yet been announced. Official information is on Bologna Welcome; the city is described in Bologna.

Palermo

In Palermo Christmas has a strongly sacred and street-life character. The oratories of Giacomo Serpotta (San Lorenzo, del Rosario in San Domenico, del Rosario in Santa Cita) have stucco work that can be seen in an hour; in December it is best to book. In 2025 the Palermo Christmas Village doubled its space, with an ice rink and a food market, and there was a nativity scene in Piazza Marina. The 2026-27 council programme has not yet been published; the council usually announces it in early December on its official website.

Food is part of the trip: buccellato, cassata, frutta martorana and cannoli are bought in the pastry shops in the centre. In December the climate is mild compared with the rest of the country, but not beach weather: bring a jacket. See Palermo and Sicily.

Itinerary on the map

1. Piazza di Spagna, Rome: 8 December, 16:00: the Pope's tribute to the Immacolata
2. Piazza Navona, Rome: Christmas market from 1 December to 6 January 2027
3. Teatro alla Scala, Milan: 7 December: Prima della Scala with Otello
4. Castello Sforzesco, Milan: Oh Bej! Oh Bej!, 5-8 December
5. Via San Gregorio Armeno, Naples: Nativity scene workshops
6. Piazza del Plebiscito, Naples: New Year concert
7. Piazza Santa Croce, Florence: German market; 2025: 15 November - 21 December
8. Piazza San Marco, Venice: Tree and lights; Murano Illumina il Mondo (2025)
9. Piazza Castello, Turin: Luci d'Artista from 23 October to 10 January
10. Strada Maggiore, Bologna: Antica Fiera di Santa Lucia, 6 November - 27 December
11. Piazza Maggiore, Bologna: New Year's Vecchione (2025: 31 December, 23:00)
12. Oratorio di San Lorenzo, Palermo: Serpotta's stucco work