Incontri d'Autore
The summer literary salon of the Alpe Cimbra in Lavarone
About Incontri d'Autore
A literary salon in the mountains of Lavarone
Incontri d'Autore is one of the longest-running and most appreciated summer literary festivals in Trentino. It takes place in Lavarone, on the Alpe Cimbra plateau, and is organized by the Municipality of Lavarone in collaboration with the Sigmund Freud Municipal Library. Active since the 1990s, the event transforms the small mountain town into a vibrant meeting point for authors and readers every summer, placing books and reading at the heart of the plateau's vacation experience.
The connection with Sigmund Freud
The festival was also born to celebrate one of Lavarone's most illustrious guests: Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis, who stayed on the Cimbrian plateau several times, drawn by the gentle landscape and the cool summer air. The municipal library is named after him and, together with the Municipality, oversees the organization of the meetings. This cultural bond gives the event an identity that goes beyond a simple calendar of appointments.
Authors, journalists, and the great themes of the present
Every year, the program brings together writers, journalists, essayists, and Italian cultural figures, invited to present their books and engage with the public on current affairs: literature and fiction, mountains and the environment, history, psychology, science, food, and society. The meetings, mostly hosted in the Gionghi Congress Center hall, are usually held in the late afternoon and are open to everyone with free admission, creating a dense calendar that accompanies residents and tourists throughout the entire summer season.
A summer-long appointment in Lavarone
Spread over several weeks between July and September, the festival is now a staple of the cultural offerings of the Alpe Cimbra, in the municipality of Lavarone and the Autonomous Province of Trento, in Trentino-Alto Adige. The formula of meeting the author in a quiet and hospitable alpine setting combines the quality of editorial proposals with the pleasure of a high-altitude holiday, making Lavarone a small summer capital of reading.
Incontri d'Autore — edition 2026
Incontri d'Autore 2026: "Everything returns"
The 2026 edition of the Lavarone literary festival runs from July 11 to September 3 with 19 events, mostly at the Gionghi Congress Center, generally at 5:15 PM (with some exceptions at 4:30 PM and in the evening). Admission is free.
Opening the program on July 11 is Caterina Manfrini with "Sette volte bosco". Among the many guests are Giorgio Zanchini with "Lockerbie", Tiziana Ferrario, Enzo Iacchetti with "25 minuti di felicità", Tamara Lunger, Sigfrido Ranucci with "Il ritorno della casta", Catena Fiorello Galeano, and Maurizio de Giovanni with "Il tempo dell'orologiaio". The festival closes on September 3 with Mariapia Veladiano and "Dio della Polvere".
The program alternates between fiction, investigative journalism, mountain themes, science, and current affairs, confirming Incontri d'Autore as one of the most anticipated cultural events of the summer on the Alpe Cimbra, in the municipality of Lavarone.
Programme Incontri d'Autore 2026
- July 11 – Caterina Manfrini, "Sette volte bosco"
- July 18 – Giorgio Zanchini, "Lockerbie"
- July 23 – Tiziana Ferrario, "Anna K."
- July 25 – Enzo Iacchetti, "25 minuti di felicità"
- July 28 – Riccardo Bertoldi, "Tutto inizia quando smetti di aspettare"
- July 30 – Nello Cristianini, "Forma mentis"
- August 1 (4:30 PM) – Francesco Vidotto, "L'abete e la betulla"
- August 2 – Piero Badaloni, "La RAI che ho vissuto"
- August 5 – Raffaella Calgaro, "Non abbiamo più paura"
- August 6 – Giacomo Panozzo, "Perché succederà ieri?"
- August 8 – Marco Pozza, "Il miele e le cipolle"
- August 12 – Cristina Tomasi, "La rivoluzione del metabolismo"
- August 14 – Tamara Lunger, "Una donna che cammina con il vento"
- August 18 – Sigfrido Ranucci, "Il ritorno della casta"
- August 20 – Gianluca Ruggieri, "Le energie del mondo"
- August 22 – Catena Fiorello Galeano, "Serenata Salentina"
- August 23 – Maurizio de Giovanni, "Il tempo dell'orologiaio"
- August 29 (9:00 PM) – Massimo Gaggi and Tamara Jadrejcic, "America dentro"
- September 3 – Mariapia Veladiano, "Dio della Polvere"
Highlights Incontri d'Autore 2026
Prices Incontri d'Autore 2026
Practical information — Incontri d'Autore
Where
The meetings are held primarily at the Gionghi Congress Center, in the civic complex of Lavarone (Gionghi district), on the Alpe Cimbra, in the Autonomous Province of Trento.
Admission
Free admission to all events, subject to availability.
Hours
Most meetings take place at 5:15 PM, with some exceptions in timing (4:30 PM or evening sessions).
Information
Sigmund Freud Municipal Library of Lavarone, tel. +39 0464 783832, email [email protected].
How to get there
Lavarone can be reached by car from the Valsugana or Vallagarina valleys; the Gionghi district houses the town hall, the library, and the congress center. Ample parking is available nearby.
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Where does it take place — Incontri d'Autore
Centro Congressi di Gionghi
Via Gionghi 107, 38046 Lavarone