Carnival in Italy

Yesterday was Fat Tuesday.  Fat Tuesday is the culmination of two weeks of parties and celebration before Ash Wednesday comes and people try to be 'good' for a few weeks.  As Italy is a predominantly Catholic country, so obviously Ash Wednesday is an important religious day.  Hence Carnival is celebrated in many different Italian towns in many different ways.

Venice

Arguably the most famous of the celebrations takes place in Venice.  Hotel rooms and events are booked up months in advance to make your reservations this summer for next year's Carnival events.  For the two weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday there are costume balls, concerts, special dinners, mask parades and on the last day of the Carnival celebration there is an awesome fireworks celebration in the main center of the city.

Find more information including videos of the latest Carnival events, the weather forecast and a calendar of events at the Carnival of Venice website.

Viareggio

Viareggio is a town located on the Versilian Coast of Tuscany.  Primarily a beach resort, the town has come alive during the two weeks of Carnival for over a century.  Viareggio's events are more family friendly than Venice's.  Annually the Viareggio Carnival brings about 800,000 to the beach town.  The Viareggio is most famous for its parades.  You can see some parade highlights online at various sites.  There are several parades during the two weeks and admission is charged.  The cost is not much.  In 2008 prices were euro15 for adults and euro10 for children (10-12 years).  Under 10 years old are free.  Reserved seats will cost an additional euro15 per person.  For most recent ticket prices visit the Viareggio Carnival Web Site.  The town also has a museum which shows the process of building the floats and masks used during the Carnival parades.  The museum has very limited hours though so it's best to check the web site to avoid disappointment.

There are also several other Carnival celebrations all over Italy including the Ivrea Orange Throwing Carnevale, a Roman Carnevale in the Aosta Valley of northern Italy, Brazilian Carnival in Cento, a small town in Emilia Romagna.

For more information about the above Carnival events and more follow the above links and see a comprehensive list at About.com. 

If you would like to share your own personal Italy Carnival experiences leave a comment below.