"Every August the small walled borgo of San Giorgio Morgeto in the Reggino Aspromonte hosts a medieval festival that unfolds through a long historical procession winding the principal streets of the village, with costumed guilds, artisan markets and period entertainments set against the backdrop of a Norman-era castle."
Festa Medioevale
"One of Italy's most beautiful villages, Montalbano Elicona dresses its medieval streets in Aragonese costume each August for a multi-day historical festival centred on the 14th-century royal castle of Frederick II of Aragon."
Feste Aragonesi
"Randazzo, a remarkably intact medieval town built entirely from black Etna lava stone, stages its annual historical festival with costumed processions and period markets through streets that survived every Etna eruption for 700 years."
Festa Medievale
"For one week every August, Volterra's alabaster-walled medieval centre transforms into a living 14th-century town with period costumes, medieval money, crafts demonstrations and food stands inside one of Tuscany's most atmospheric hilltop cities."
Volterra AD 1398
"A five-day celebration anchored in the Stelvio National Park, bringing together mountain guides, naturalists, local producers and community storytelling in the historic alpine town of Bormio at the foot of the famous pass."
Parco in Festa
"A four-day medieval living-history re-enactment that transforms the perfectly preserved walled borough of Finalborgo into a 15th-century scene, with costumed parades, artisan markets, falconry and evening spectacles."
Viaggio nel Medioevo
"Bitti, home of the polyphonic cantu a tenore tradition, opens its ancient stone courtyards to visitors for the first weekend of the Autunno in Barbagia circuit, showcasing weaving, bread-making, local cheeses and live tenore singing."
Autunno in Barbagia - Cortes Apertas
"The small village of Cerreto Guidi transforms into the 16th-century Medici court of 1570, with costumed re-enactors portraying the great figures who frequented the Villa Medicea, bringing Florence's Renaissance history vividly to life in the village streets."
Rievocazione Storica della Corte dei Medici
"This Pistoia Apennine village revives the ancient craft of chestnut cultivation for one autumn Sunday with guided grove walks, live demonstrations of traditional tools and techniques, and food stands serving the full range of Tuscan chestnut cookery."
Festa della Coltivazione della Castagna
"First created in 1986, this nativity scene uses the actual historic sailing boats of the Cesenatico Maritime Museum moored along the ancient Porto Canale, with more than 50 figures bringing the story alive on the water of the Adriatic fishing town."
Presepe della Marineria di Cesenatico
"This Umbrian village hosts one of Italy's most important nativity exhibitions, the 23rd edition of Presepi d'Italia, including a remarkable ice nativity with hand-carved statues kept at -17C covering more than 10 square metres."
Presepi d'Italia, Mostra Nazionale del Presepe Artistico
"More than 70 handmade nativity installations created by local craftspeople are set into the ancient fountains, wash-houses and alpine streams along the path through Crodo and its mountain hamlets, creating a five-week outdoor nativity trail in the Ossola valleys."
Presepi sull'Acqua di Crodo
"Cherasco's celebrated annual nativity exhibition, the Presepe del Viaggiatore, unfolds across the medieval town in a sequence of evocative scenes telling a journey through history and the human condition, staged in the historic buildings and streets of this well-preserved Langhe hill town."
Presepe del Viaggiatore - Cherasco
"One of Piedmont's longest-running nativity installations, now past its 45th edition, Cavallermaggiore's elaborate presepio fills over 300 square metres with hand-crafted scenery and figures, making it one of the most ambitious fixed nativity displays in the Cuneo province."
Presepio di Cavallermaggiore
"The 500-strong community of Postua, in the Sessera valley between Vercelli and Biella, sets up over 200 individual nativity scenes throughout the village each Christmas, transforming every corner of this tiny borgo into a record-breaking open-air nativity display."
Presepi di Postua - oltre 200 presepi nel borgo
"Pianfei's historic mechanical nativity in the Crusà cellars features hand-crafted moving figures built over generations, presenting one of the most accomplished examples of the Piedmontese presepe meccanico tradition in a small Cuneo foothills village."
Presepe Meccanico in Crusà di Pianfei
"Inside the nave of a 12th-century Cistercian abbey, one of northern Italy's most unusual infiorate unfolds across the stone floor each June, accompanied by concerts, exhibitions, and the Marcia del Tappeto Fiorito running race."
Infiorata del Corpus Domini all'Abbazia di Chiaravalle della Colomba