Amorosi Corn Festival

A rural festival in the heart of Sannio

The Amorosi Corn Festival is one of the most well-known gastronomic events in the province of Benevento. It takes place in Amorosi, a village of just over 2,600 inhabitants overlooking the Volturno river in the Valle Telesina, about 30 kilometres from Benevento and 45 from Naples. The event is organised by the La Pannocchia Amorosina association with the patronage of the Municipality of Amorosi and transforms the town centre for several evenings, particularly Piazza Sandro Pertini and the area around Piazza Umberto I, into a large communal threshing floor.

The Amorosi corn, the absolute star

The sweet corn grown in the local fields is the true symbol of the event. The corn is roasted over glowing embers and served hot, golden, and fragrant, or boiled according to the oldest traditions. Alongside it, other corn-based culinary delights arrive at the table: fritters, rustic soups, polenta, and cornmeal pizzas, together with artisanal desserts prepared by the local women.

The food stalls also offer traditional Sannio specialties and local wines, in an area that includes some of the most important denominations of inland Campania. The result is a popular, simple menu at affordable prices, designed to be shared at outdoor tables.

Music, markets, and corn-kernel floats

The festival is not just about food. Throughout the evenings, the programme alternates live music with folk bands, popular music groups, and local artists, group dances, ballroom dancing, and Latin American rhythms that fill the square until late. There is no shortage of the most characteristic and photographed elements of the event:

• allegorical floats made with corn kernels, true vegetable mosaics built by hand;
• the exhibition of agricultural machinery, which tells the story of field work past and present;
• the market fair of typical products and local crafts;
• photography and painting exhibitions with a rural theme;
• traditional games, entertainment, and activities for children;
• meetings with agri-food experts and guided tastings.

Over thirty years of history

The event has a rare continuity for a village festival: in 2017 it celebrated its twenty-fourth edition, in 2024 its twenty-ninth, and in 2025 its thirtieth, with four days from August 30th to September 2nd. Born as a harvest festival and a meeting point for emigrants returning to the village at the end of summer, it has become over time a small engine for territorial promotion, capable of attracting visitors from all over the Valle Telesina, the Alto Casertano, and the city of Benevento.

Amorosi and the Valle Telesina

Those who arrive for the festival will find a village worth a stroll: the church of San Michele Arcangelo, the town's patron saint, and historic buildings such as Palazzo Maturi and Palazzo Piscitelli define the centre. All around opens one of the most fertile agricultural landscapes in Campania, amidst the vineyards of the Valle Telesina, the thermal baths of Telese, and, further north, the Matese Regional Park. The festival is therefore also a good excuse to discover an area of Sannio often overlooked by major tourist itineraries.

Useful information

Admission to the event is free: you only pay for what you consume at the stalls. The evenings generally begin after 8:00 PM, when the heat of late August subsides and the embers are lit. For updated dates and programmes, it is advisable to follow the channels of the organising association and the communications of the Municipality.