Nevicando - Our Lady of the Snow Festival

A legend spanning over sixteen centuries

The Our Lady of the Snow Festival in Rocca Priora, a town in the Metropolitan City of Rome in the heart of the Castelli Romani, has its roots in one of the most poetic episodes of Marian tradition: the legendary snowfall of 352 AD. According to the story, it whitened the Esquiline Hill in Rome in the middle of summer, marking the spot where the Basilica of Saint Mary Major was to be built. Rocca Priora has embraced this memory for over four hundred years, celebrating the Virgin on the first Sunday of August with a procession that serves as both a religious rite and a collective identity for the town.

The August snowfall

The most anticipated moment arrives at sunset, when the venerated image of Our Lady of the Snow leaves the sanctuary accompanied by the Corbium marching band, local confraternities, and municipal authorities. The procession winds through the historic center—Via degli Olmi, Largo Pallotti, Via Roma, and Via Lazio—before returning to the church square, where the symbolic snowfall takes place: a white shower falling over the crowd on a summer evening, followed by the act of consecration. This scene attracts visitors from across the Lazio region every year. At over a thousand meters above sea level in the Alban Hills, it almost feels real: Rocca Priora is the highest town in the Castelli Romani, and it certainly knows snow in the winter.

Nevicando: art takes to the streets

Beyond the devotional aspect, the municipality has developed the Nevicando event in recent years, subtitled "art takes to the streets." For several evenings, Via degli Olmi becomes an open-air gallery: works by local artists are displayed along the route, accompanied by street performers, stilt walkers, mimes, jugglers, magic shows, theater, and live concerts ranging from Roman folk music to rock, swing, and international acoustic sets. Fireworks displays also light up the main evenings.

Flavors of the Castelli Romani

The culinary experience is hosted at stalls along the main street, featuring local businesses, associations, artisans, hobbyists, and local producers. Each year, the municipality opens a public call for exhibition spaces with the goal of enriching the cultural, artisanal, and gastronomic offerings of the event. Dinners, street food, and tastings showcase the cuisine of the Castelli Romani, a land famous for porchetta, porcini mushrooms, cheeses, cured meats, and local wines.

Night trekking in the woods

Among the events that have gained a loyal following is the night walk in the woods surrounding the town: a guided nine-kilometer route under the stars, accessible to moderately fit hikers, which concludes with a tasting of local products. It is the best way to discover the natural side of the Castelli Romani Park, among chestnut and beech forests that make Rocca Priora a cool destination even in the height of the Lazio summer.

A town in celebration

In the days leading up to the procession, the sanctuary hosts a three-day preparation period (triduum), with daily rosaries and Eucharistic celebrations dedicated to the sick, families, and couples renewing their wedding vows. The result is a dual-natured festival—sacred and popular—that involves the entire town: shops stay open late, streets are illuminated, and families and friends travel from Rome and nearby towns for a special evening. First-time visitors will discover a panoramic village overlooking the Roman countryside, with views that reach the sea on clear days.

Why visit

• Witness the August snowfall, one of the most evocative rites in the Lazio region.
• Stroll through art installations, live music, and street performances along Via degli Olmi.
• Taste the typical products of the Castelli Romani at the festival stalls.
• Discover the highest town in the Castelli Romani and its woods, less than an hour from Rome.