Christmas in Verona

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Verona is a wonderful place to visit at any time of the year but there is nothing like Christmas for the magic which infuses every part of the city. With its colourful lights, Christmas trees, decorations and traditional sweet treats, it is very much the most wonderful time of the year!

Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love. (Hamilton Wright Mabi)

Christmas markets and traditional delicacies

The Christmas celebrations are focussed on the two squares next to Piazza Erbe, which are Piazza dei Signori (also known as Piazza Dante) and the Courtyard of the Mercato Vecchio, the old market. Every year, from mid-November until 26 December, they host the Christmas market with a nod towards our partner city of Nuremberg in Germany, the homeland of this tradition. Even the biggest Scrooge will be filled with the Christmas spirit when wandering around the wooden stalls, stacked high with artisan products of all kinds. You are sure to find something to delight you on the market, with products ranging from traditional Christmassy gifts to handmade souvenirs (wooden and woollen items, costume jewellery, ceramics and more), from handmade soaps to liqueurs, from luxury chocolate to German-style bretzels and bratwurst. Not forgetting a huge range of confectionery, plus sausage sandwiches and steaming-hot pearà, a creamy sauce served with pork sausage and rustic bread. And to wash it all down, do not forget a mug of mulled wine, known as vin brulè in Italy, and the outstanding craft ales.

A Christmas treat

Christmas is a feast for all the senses and for all ages here in Verona. A stroll through the city offers the chance to be beguiled by the twinkling lights and to be intoxicated by the aromas of Christmas, one of which is pandoro, the famous Christmas cake was created in Verona in 1894 by the the patissier Domenico Melegatti. Did you know that this cake has an even older ancestor? It was baked to celebrate the first Christmas in Verona under the rule of the Della Scala family. I am talking about Nadalìn, a more compact star-shaped cake which you can still find in all of Verona’s patisseries. A slightly rarer and more niche offering comes in the form of the Offella, a luxury cake invented at the end of the 19th century by Giovanni Battista Perbellini.

The Feast of Saint Lucy

To experience an authentic Verona Christmas, do not miss the feast of Saint Lucy. This saint’s day, celebrated on 13 December, is even more keenly anticipated here in Verona than the arrival of Father Christmas.
According to tradition, the patron saint of the blind would descend from the heavens on a cart stacked high with presents, drawn by a donkey, to give gifts to good children. Her annual feast day is one of the city’s oldest and best-loved traditions: every year in Piazza Bra the traditional stalls are set up under the famous guiding star sculpture, designed by Rinaldo Olivieri, based on an idea by Alfredo Troisi, which has illuminated the square at Christmas time since 1984. This Christmas market is jam-packed with sweets, toys and gifts of all kinds for young and old.

Festive events

There is more to the city than just the markets, with a huge number of events on offer!

Christmas concerts, theatre and ballet shows, the Christmas Run, New Year’s Eve in Piazza Bra, the New Year’s concerts, the international exhibition of nativity scenes in the archways of the Arena, which draws a million visitors every year, and many other events besides which bring the city and region to life in the run-up to 25 December and which continue until Epiphany on 6 January, when the festivities close.

Get into the Christmas spirit with a spot of shopping and a hot mug of mulled wine at this magical time of year when everyone looks to the future and people come together to celebrate.

Long live Christmas, for young children and big kids!