What's on in Catania (Etna), Italy through the year

Peak crowds — Christmas to Epiphany, Christmas holidays in Italy

• Hazard

  Etna ash and airport closures

  1 Jan – 31 DecVolcanic activityClosures

  Etna produces paroxysms several times a year with no season to them, and when the ash blows south the airport shuts for hours and the cars turn grey. Check INGV before assuming a flight will go. Source ↗

Still on: Blood orange harvest (15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually)), Skiing on Etna (20 Dec – 31 Mar (usually)), Christmas to Epiphany (24 Dec – 6 Jan)

Peak crowds — Carnevale di Acireale, Festa di Sant'Agata

• Festival

  Carnevale di Acireale

  1 Feb – 5 Mar · usuallyCarnivalCrowded

  Sicily's flower-and-papier-mache carnival runs for about ten days up to Shrove Tuesday in the baroque town fifteen kilometres north, reachable on the local train. Source ↗

• Festival

  Festa di Sant'Agata

  3–5 FebReligious feastCrowdedClosuresBook early

  Three days in early February when the whole city, in white sacchi, hauls the saint's silver bust through the streets overnight. Traffic and normal life stop; hotels go months ahead. Source ↗

Still on: Etna ash and airport closures (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Blood orange harvest (15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually)), Skiing on Etna (20 Dec – 31 Mar (usually))

Busy — Carnevale di Acireale, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

• Holiday

  Easter and Pasquetta

  4–6 AprEaster & Holy WeekCrowdedClosures

  Easter Sunday and Easter Monday (Pasquetta) are public holidays, and Italians use the long weekend for short breaks and day trips: trains and hotels fill, old towns and sights are busier than the weeks around, and many shops and some restaurants close on Easter Sunday. Source ↗

Still on: Etna ash and airport closures (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Carnevale di Acireale (1 Feb – 5 Mar (usually)), Blood orange harvest (15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually)), Skiing on Etna (20 Dec – 31 Mar (usually))

Peak crowds — Easter and Pasquetta, Easter holidays in Italy

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: Etna ash and airport closures (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Easter and Pasquetta (4–6 Apr), Blood orange harvest (15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually))

Busy — school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in May.

Still on: Etna ash and airport closures (1 Jan – 31 Dec)

Busy — Summer holidays in Italy, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Season

  Sea warm enough to swim

  10 Jun – 25 Oct · usually

  One of the longest swimming windows in Europe. The lava coast at Aci Trezza is the better water; the sand at Playa is where the city goes.

Still on: Etna ash and airport closures (1 Jan – 31 Dec)

Busy — Summer holidays in Italy, school holidays in 6 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in July.

Still on: Etna ash and airport closures (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Sea warm enough to swim (10 Jun – 25 Oct (usually))

Peak crowds — Ferragosto, Summer holidays in Italy

• Holiday

  Ferragosto

  5–25 AugSchool holidaysClosuresCrowded

  The city's own restaurants close for a fortnight while everyone moves to the coast, and flights and ferries are at their dearest of the year around 15 August. Source ↗

Still on: Etna ash and airport closures (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Sea warm enough to swim (10 Jun – 25 Oct (usually))

Busy — Summer holidays in Italy, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Etna ash and airport closures (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Sea warm enough to swim (10 Jun – 25 Oct (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in October.

Still on: Etna ash and airport closures (1 Jan – 31 Dec), Sea warm enough to swim (10 Jun – 25 Oct (usually))

Quiet — travelers describe it as quiet, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in November.

Still on: Etna ash and airport closures (1 Jan – 31 Dec)

Peak crowds — Christmas to Epiphany, Christmas holidays in Italy

• Nature

  Blood orange harvest

  15 Dec – 15 Apr · usually

  Tarocco and moro oranges come off the volcanic plain north of the city through winter, which is the argument for eating here between January and March.

• Season

  Skiing on Etna

  20 Dec – 31 Mar · usuallySki season

  Nicolosi and Piano Provenzana run a handful of lifts on the volcano in a normal winter, an hour above a coast where the oranges are being picked.

• Holiday

  Christmas to Epiphany

  24 Dec – 6 JanChristmas & New YearClosuresCrowded

  Christmas Day, Santo Stefano (26 December), New Year's Day and Epiphany (6 January) are public holidays. Many museums, shops and restaurants close on the 25th and some on the 26th and 1st, while the days between bring Italian families out to nativity scenes, lights and markets. Source ↗

Still on: Etna ash and airport closures (1 Jan – 31 Dec)