Festa del Pescatore - Sagra dei SS. Pietro e Paolo di Scardovari

The fishermen's festival of the Po Delta

The Festa del Pescatore - Sagra dei SS. Pietro e Paolo is the quintessential summer event in Scardovari, a hamlet of the municipality of Porto Tolle, in the heart of the Po Delta in the province of Rovigo. Organized by the Comitato Fiera SS. Pietro e Paolo (Festival Committee of Saints Peter and Paul) together with the Pro Loco Porto Tolle, it is one of the longest-running and most attended festivals in the entire Polesine region: in 2023, it reached its 74th edition, a sign of a tradition rooted in the lives of the fishermen of the Sacca di Scardovari.

The fish from the Sacca takes center stage

The heart of the event is the large food stand, open every evening from 7:00 PM, where you can taste fresh lagoon fish: mussels and clams from the Sacca di Scardovari, fried fish, sardines, eel, and the seafood specialties that have made the Delta famous. Alongside the dining area, there are dancing nights, live music, exhibitions set up in the village school, markets, and a funfair for families.

The boat procession

The most evocative moment falls on the last Sunday, coinciding with the feast of the patron saints Peter and Paul: after the Holy Mass, a procession reaches the fishing port and continues by boat along the Sacca di Scardovari, where a wreath of flowers is thrown into the water for the blessing of the sea and the fishermen. It is a rite that unites religious devotion and an ancestral bond with fishing.

A living tradition of Polesine

Thanks to the commitment of the volunteers from the Committee and the Pro Loco, the Festa del Pescatore has grown to become a benchmark for the entire Delta region, attracting visitors from all over the province of Rovigo every summer in search of good fish, music, and the authentic atmosphere of a fishing village.