Venice festivals accentuate what is already an eventful schedule in this city in northern Italy. Even as Venice’s population barely exceeds 270,000, the city averages a startling 50,000 tourists every day. They come to see the city that has been called the City of Bridges, and the City of Canals. Venice is one of the most beautiful cities in the world no matter when you travel there. If you are traveling during one of the festivals in Venice Italy, you can plan on there being quite a bit more tourist congestion, but the festivities and exciting atmosphere should more than make up for this certain eventuality.

There are a wide variety of Venice events that take place throughout the year, but several stand head and shoulders above the rest as the best known and most popular. Carnival, or Carnevale, has to be the single biggest and and most wild of all the festivals in Venice Italy, and the most recognizable, as the Venice Carnival pictures are iconic for the beautiful costumes and masks. For the eight days preceding Lent, residents and many tourists celebrate in grand style with endless concerts, parades, parties, and general craziness. People line the streets of St. Mark’s Square and huddle into the luxurious Venetian palaces for some of the most sought-after Venice events all year long. People really let loose during Carnival, with many residents and repeat visitors donning the ubiquitous Carnival masks to conceal their identity. Many tourists take part while many others just stand off to the side and watch the festivities unfold before their eyes. Carnival is without a doubt the most raucous and wild of all the Venice festivals. In fact, the city does not host a similar event throughout the year after it has wrapped.

Venice Map

La Biennale di Venezia has been celebrated every odd numbered year in Venice since 1895. It has celebrated, displayed, and promoted the best in emerging Italian art and architecture, including painting, sculpture, design, film, and much more. One of the other most popular Venice events, the Venice Film Festival, is wrapped into the festivities on the years when the Biennale is celebrated. There is also a portion of the Biennale that is completely dedicated to the art of dance known as the International Festival of Contemporary Dance.

Of all the festivals in Venice Italy throughout the year, this may be the one that involves the most people around the community in the festivities. Indeed, many more people than just the local residents attend the Biennale. People come from all over Italy and beyond to enjoy this contemporary art exhibition that has featured the likes of Jackson Pollock, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, and many more in the past. It is held in the Giardini Park where there are a number of national pavilions where artists that represent countries from around the world put their individual exhibitions on display. This is one of the most unique and coolest parts of the Venice Biennale. In many cases, the individual pavilions that represent the different countries were designed by architects from those respective countries. If you happen to be in town for this most celebrated of all the Venice festivals, you will be in for an amazing cultural experience. Other notable Venice events include Festa di San Marco, Regatta della Befane, and the Festa del Redentore.