Colle Sannita Carnival

The Colle Sannita Carnival, the most anticipated winter festival

In the heart of the upper Sannio, at an altitude of nearly 800 meters, Colle Sannita experiences its most festive time of the year between February and March. The Colle Sannita Carnival is the event that, for over a decade, has filled the town's streets with allegorical floats, costumed groups, confetti, and streamers, attracting families and curious visitors from across the province of Benevento and the border municipalities between Campania, Molise, and Puglia. This is more than just a parade: it is a celebration of collective identity, prepared in the months prior inside garages and workshops where papier-mâché is crafted, structures are assembled, and costumes are sewn.

Who organizes and builds the floats

The event is organized by the Colli in Festa Association, under the patronage of the Municipality of Colle Sannita. However, the floats are not born in a single workshop; they are the work of the town's districts and neighborhoods, with groups of young people, adults, and children competing every year with their creativity. In recent years, the number of floats has exceeded fifteen, leading the local press to describe Colle Sannita as discovering itself like Viareggio in a Sannio version.

• Floats built in the districts and neighborhoods of Colle Sannita, including the Decorata hamlet.
• Participation from outside the town: Castelpagano, Cuffiano (a hamlet of Morcone), and, in 2024, three floats from Castelvetere in Val Fortore.
• In 2025, the debut of the parish oratory group, participating for the first time.
• Large crowds from neighboring towns: Circello, Castelpagano, Reino, and Riccia in Molise.

The route: from the town entrance to Piazza Flora

The day's schedule is well-established and has remained the same for several editions. The floats gather in the early afternoon at the entrance to the town: in previous years on via delle Lame in the industrial zone, while for 2026 the meeting point was set at the IES gas station. Around 3:00 PM, the procession begins, slowly moving through the main streets of the center, with a final stop and gathering in Piazza Flora, the town's main square. The slow pace is intentional, allowing those watching from balconies and sidewalks to follow every detail of the floats and enabling the costumed groups to draw the public into the dancing.

Music, dancing, and Carnival sweets

The Colle Sannita Carnival does not end with the parade. Each day extends into an evening in the square with musical performances and entertainment. In recent years, artists like Massimo Style and Andrea Desiato have taken the stage, while in 2024, the folk segment was entrusted to the flag-wavers and musicians of the Federiciani Puer Apulae group. There is no shortage of traditional Carnival sweets and local gastronomic products offered along the route—an important part of the festival in an area where peasant cuisine remains a daily heritage.

Colle Sannita, between the Fortore and Tammaro rivers

With just over two thousand inhabitants, the Municipality of Colle Sannita is one of the highest villages in the province of Benevento, in Campania, overlooking the Fortore and Tammaro valleys. It is a town with strong peasant and artisanal traditions, also known for woodworking and a deeply rooted calendar of festivals: from the patron saint Saint George the Martyr on April 23rd to the evocative feast of the Madonna del Carmine on August 4th, when the districts carry grain floats in procession, now pulled by tractors and decorated with miniature reproductions of civil and religious monuments. The Carnival is the winter version of this same collective ability to build something together to show off.

Why it's worth a visit

Those looking for an authentic Carnival, without tickets or barriers, will find here one of the most genuine experiences in Sannio. The scale is that of a small town, but the care put into the floats and the participation of the people recreate the atmosphere of the great parades. It is also a perfect opportunity to discover an inland area of Campania often off the tourist circuits, featuring hilly landscapes, mountain cuisine, and family-style hospitality.