December Festivals & Events:
| Borgo San Dalmazzo (Cuneo) - Snail Festival (Dec. 1st-5th) A fair believed to have been established by Filiberto di Savoia, it celebrates snails and includes gastronomical shows and a variety of entertainment. |
| Trieste Fair of San Nicola (Dec. 2nd-8th)A traditional fair, with stands lining Viale XX Settembre. |
| Brisghella (Ravenna) - Olive Festival (Dec. 5th) Features stands where all types of typical local products are sold. |
| Pollutri (Chieti) Fava Bean Festival (Dec. 5th-6th) On the feast of San Nicola fava beans are cooked in large copper pots in front of the church of San Nicola in memory of a famine during the 15th century. |
| Bari San Nicola (Dec. 6th) Religious observances and folk celebrations of the patron saint's feast day. |
| Mezzojuso (Palermo) - Feast of San Nicola (Dec. 6th)Traditional blessing and distribution of the panuzze, small loaves of bread with the saint's image stamped on them. |
| Vipiteno, Sterzing (BolzanoBozen) - Fair of San Nicola (Dec. 6th) Christmas parade in honour of the saint and various types of entertainment. |
| Bagni di Lucca (Lucca) Immocolata Concezione (Dec. 8th) The feast of the Immaculate Conception is the occasion of a fair in the Fornoli area. |
| San Bartolomeo in Galdo (Benevento) Sausage & Polenta Festival (Dec. 8th)The feast of the immaculate Conception is marked here by a typical gastronomic festival. |
| Loreto (Ancona) - Festa alla Venuta (Dec. 9th-10th) The miraculous arrival of the Holy House on the hill of Loreto is commemorated in the evening by the lighting of bonfires in the countryside. Around 10 p.m. religious ceremonies begin in the church and culminate with a procession. The statue of the Virgin Mary is carried by aviators for she is their patroness. |
| Verona Toy Fair (Dec. 10th-13th) A traditional toy fair of varied merchandise, gifts and toys is held in the vast Piazza Bra on the Feast of Santa Lucia. |
| Belpasso (Catania) Feast of Santa Lucia (Dec. 13th) The feast day of the town's patron saint is celebrated with a parade of floats, a procession and the unveiling of the Christmas crib, with its antique figurines. |
| Lecce dei Marsi (L'Aquila) - Feast of Santa Lucia (Dec. 13th) This is a traditional celebration featuring religious observances, a fair and a variety of events. |
| Siena - Feast of Santa Lucia (Dec. 13th) Ceremonies are held in the church of Santa Lucia and an outdoor pottery fair fills the adjacent streets with stands displaying ceramics and terra cotta of al types. |
| Siracusa Feast of Santa Lucia (Dec. 13th) The city's patron saint is honoured with a procession; a silver statue of Santa Lucia is carried from the cathedral to the church which bears her name and is returned eight days later with much pomp and festivity. |
| Portacommaro (Asti) - Feast of San Lazzaro (Dec. 17th) In keeping with tradition, dishes of tripe and chickpeas are served to the public. Fireworks and dances complete the feast day. |
| Treviso - Red Radicchio Show (Dec. 18th) A traditional show of this red-leaf salad is held in the arcade of the Palazzo dei Trecento on the Tuesday before Christmas.
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| Lanciano (Chieti) - Festa della Squilla (Dec. 23rd) In the evening all the town's bells are rung to wish all a happy Christmas season. |
| Agnone (Isernia) - Nocturnal Procession of the 'Ndocciata. (Dec. 24th) This is a traditional procession that traverses the town, with farmers carrying tall fire torches as much as three meters long. In the main square a "bonfire of brotherhood" is lighted. |
| Assisi (Perugia) - Liturgical Celebrations (Dec. 24th) Christmas cribs are set up in all the town's churches and in the streets and squares as well. The liturgical rites in the Franciscan churches are highly evocative. |
| Calatabiano (Catania) - Lighting of the Log (Dec. 24th) During the night the traditional lighting of the Christmas log takes place, and there is a torchlight procession. |
| Camporgiano (Lucca) - Tree's Burning (Dec.24th) Traditional bonfire of evergreen branches as the large bell of the church of San Giacomo peels out. |
| Canneto Sull'Oglio (Mantua) - The Shepherdess' Torchlight Procession (Dec. 24th) Folk songs and traditions derived from local shepherd's lore. |
| Castelletto D'Orba (Alessandria) - Nocturnal Torchlight Parade (Dec. 24th) This procession passes thru the streets of the town and ends with the offering of roasted chestnuts and mulled wine in the main square. |
| Castro (Lecce) - Christmas Crib (Dec. 24th) Every year in the evening a Christmas Crib is set up in the Zinzalusa grotto, the most interesting in Apulia, and remains there until the Epiphany. |
| Chambave (Aosta) - Nativity Tableau (Dec. 24th) Numerous people in local costume take part in the Christmas tableauu |
| Greccio (Rieti) - Franciscan Crib (December 24th) This event recalls the first Christmas crib, an innovation of San Francesco in 1223. The program includes a torchlight parade in 13-century costumes with riders on horseback. After the cortege reaches the Franciscan monastery, there are tableaux and medieval chants. |
| Grottaglie (Taranto) - Midnight Mass (Dec. 24th) At midnight in the Buccito grotto the nativity is reenacted by numerous participants in costume. |
| Laveno (Varese) - Underwater Christmas Crib (Dec.24th) An underwater crib is set up in the waters of the lake of Laveno and remains until the Epiphany. |
| Nardo (Lecce) - Nativity Tableau (Dec. 24th) A Christmas tableau is staged in the Capelvedere grotto, in the Santa Caterina district. |
Baiano (Avellino) - Festa del Maio (Dec. 25th-26th)
black"> A large chestnut tree, cut in the mountains on Christmas Eve, is brought to town and set up in front of the church of Santo Stefano, amid the sound of firecrackers and general merriment. A procession takes place in the square until the Epiphany, when it is auctioned off to local artisans. |
| Prato (Florence) - Exhibition of the Sacra Cintola (Dec. 25-26th) On Christmas day the relic of the Holy Waistband is shown from Donatello's pulpit at the cathedral. The feast of Santo Stefano follows, with celebrations in honour of the city's patron saint. |
| Lama dei Peligni (Chieti) - Ballo della Pupa (Dec. 26th) The pupa is a paper-mache figure that is at the centre of festivities in honour of Santa Barbara, which begins on the preceding evening with a fireworks display. |
| Nizza Monferrato (Asti)- Santo Stefano Sotto Il Campanon (Dec. 26th) At noon the large medieval bell on the municipal tower tolls to recall an episode that occurred during the french occupation in 1798. |
