CELEBRATING THE NEW YEAR IN ITALY

Italians are known for their love of celebrations, which includes welcoming in the New Year with great passion. The focus shifts from being solely about family (as seen at Christmas), to getting together with friends. They enjoy fireworks, food, BIRRA MORETTI, open-air concerts, dancing until dawn and lots of eccentric age-old customs.

NEW YEAR IN ITALY

If you’re looking to add an authentically Italian flair to your New Year festivities, here are some of Italy’s most popular New Year traditions and celebrations, through to the more unusual.

LA FESTA DI SAN SILVESTRO

Food is central to every occasion in Italy - no matter how big or small. A traditional ‘la vigilia di Capodanno’ (New Year’s Eve) dinner with family and friends on ‘La Festa di San Silvestro’ (St. Sylvester’s feast day) is customary, and features pig’s trotters (or regular pork) as the main dish.

Pig’s trotters are traditionally eaten as ‘zampone e lenticchie’ (pig’s trotter and lentils). The high fat content symbolises abundance, while lentils are thought to bring wealth, good luck and prosperity. A more modern take on this traditional meal is ‘cotechino e lenticchie’, a sausage made using the meat of the trotter, served with lentils.

For dessert, a traditional New Year’s Eve favourite is dried fruit and grapes - 12 for each month of the year, eaten for luck. If you’re looking for a fruit-based dessert twist, why not try our baked nectarine recipe.

DISCOVER OUR BAKED NECTARINE RECIPE HERE

ITALIAN NEW YEAR CUSTOMS

Italians are highly superstitious, with many still holding onto traditional New Year customs believed to bring good luck. In Southern Italy, people can be seen throwing old and unwanted items from upstairs windows and balconies (anything from pots and pans to clothes) onto the street below at midnight to make room for the ‘new’. Whereas is Northern Italy, they smash crockery outside the front of houses to frighten off ‘bad’ spirits.

Wearing gifted red underwear on New Year’s Eve (a tradition dating back to ancient Roman times), is also popular. It’s believed to encourage health and power, but only if thrown away on ‘Capodanno’ (New Year’s Day).

To encourage good luck and prosperity, Italians strictly save greetings of ‘Buon Anno’ (Happy New Year) until just after midnight on New Year’s Day. They also make sure that they leave the house on New Year’s Day with money in their purse, wallet, or pocket as it’s thought to ensure ongoing wealth throughout the year.

OUTDOOR CONCERTS, PARTIES & FIREWORKS

After dinner, Italians head out to open-air concerts and parties held in the local streets and piazzas before enjoying an impressive display of ‘fuochi d’artificio’ (fireworks). Believed to chase away bad spirits, they’re mesmerizingly bright, beautiful, loud, and exhilarating – perfect for one of the biggest Italian celebrations of the year.

BIGGEST NEW YEAR CELEBRATIONS IN ITALY

Regional celebrations are seen across Italy, with many towns adding their own unique twist to New Year’s Eve festivities.

Some of the biggest New Year celebrations in Italy, include:

Re-enactment of the 1554 Este Castle fire, Ferrara town: A 15-minute show of dramatic pyrotechnics cascading from the castle, alongside concerts featuring international musicians.
World’s Largest Christmas Tree & Piazza Grande concert, Gubbio: This medieval town hosts a concert in Piazza Grande, followed by impressive fireworks. It keeps its Christmas Tree (made from colourful lights and thought to be the largest in the world) on Mount Ingino until mid-January, providing the perfect background for the New Year’s Eve celebrations.
The Vecchione Bonfire, Bologna: Claimed to be one of the most spectacular New Year’s Eve celebrations, it sees a giant puppet called ‘Vecchione’ (the old one) stuffed with firecrackers and burned on a bonfire to mark the end of the year.
Luci d'Artista (Artist Lights), Salerno: The city of Salerno is lit up with a dazzling array of lights and displays in the streets, piazzas and gardens. Italians are also drawn to a famous concert in Piazza Giovannu Amendola (set to take place in the new Piazza della Libertà for 2021).

These are some of the biggest New Year celebrations enjoyed across Italy. However, many Italians love to simply stay local – visiting piazzas with friends where there are plenty of festivities to see in the new year together.

BUON ANNO!

If you’re looking to celebrate like an Italian this New Year’s Eve, why not host an Italian feast for friends, or head out to a local Italian restaurant serving BIRRA MORETTI? It’s the perfect start to the evening before making your way to a New Year’s Eve party. However you decide to see in the New Year, get ready to clink chilled down bottles of BIRRA MORETTI with friends as you wish them ‘Buon Anno’ (Happy New Year).