Festival of Saint Anthony the Abbot

In 2025, the external feast of Saint Anthony the Abbot animated Nicolosi, on the slopes of Etna in the province of Catania, around the first Sunday of July. The festivities, spread between Friday and Monday, followed the usual course: the Friday procession from the Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie to the Mother Church, Holy Mass and the unveiling of the statue on Saturday eve, the triumphant exit of the float on Sunday at noon amidst bells and fireworks with the blessing of animals in Piazza San Francesco, and finally the Cantata, the A'cchianata 'a sciara, and the blessing of vehicles on Monday.

The edition confirmed the centrality of the festival in the town's identity, linked to the memory of the 1886 eruption when the lava stopped, sparing the town, and attracted devotees and visitors with religious rites, musical performances, and popular traditions.