Pianese Carnival

The Pianese Carnival, the winter festival of the Alto Casertano

The Pianese Carnival is the most anticipated winter event in Piana di Monte Verna, a small town in the province of Caserta, located in the inland part of Campania overlooking Mount Verna and the Volturno Valley. For two days, the town sets aside its daily routine and transforms into an open-air stage: allegorical floats, masked groups, music, and street performers fill the town center and the main square.

Who organizes the festival

The event is promoted by the Pro Loco Pianese, which includes it as a staple of its recurring events, in collaboration with the Municipality of Piana di Monte Verna. In past editions, the Carnival has also received support from the Campania Region as part of regional programs to promote local identity events. Behind the two days of celebration lies the hard work typical of village festivals: months of preparation to build the floats, costume workshops, and the involvement of local schools, youth, and associations.

Allegorical floats, costumes, and street performers

The heart of the Pianese Carnival is the afternoon parade of allegorical floats, which travels through the town streets before converging in Piazza XXI Maggio 1860, where masked groups perform their choreography for the public. Alongside the floats, costumed participants, dance groups, and street performers entertain the crowds, with activities specifically designed for children.

In recent editions, the program has been progressively enriched with:

• DJ sets and concerts in the late afternoon, following the parade;
• folk and traditional groups linked to the musical heritage of Campania;
• a Carnival mascot, introduced in 2024 and created by local high school students;
• tastings of typical products from the Caserta hinterland and traditional Carnival sweets.

A town-sized Carnival

Visitors arriving in Piana di Monte Verna will not find the scale of Italy's major carnivals, and that is precisely its charm: the festival remains authentic and participatory, built by the community for the community. Families watch the parade from the sidewalks, children in costume mingle with the performers, and groups stop to dance in front of the town's cafes. It is the classic model of a popular Campanian festival, where hospitality matters as much as the show, and no ticket is required to participate: the event takes place along the streets and in the squares, with free access.

When it takes place

The Pianese Carnival follows the movable Carnival calendar and is traditionally centered on Carnival Sunday and Shrove Tuesday, with some editions extending to the preceding Saturday. The 11th edition has been announced for February 15 and 17, 2026; the tenth edition took place on March 2 and 4, 2025, while the 2024 edition was spread over three days in February, with part of the parade postponed due to bad weather. Exact dates and times are announced each year by the Pro Loco Pianese, usually a few weeks in advance, via their social media channels.

The surrounding area

Piana di Monte Verna is located in a hilly area north of Caserta, just a few kilometers from Caiazzo and the Volturno River, in a landscape of olive groves, vineyards, and small villages. It is a territory known for its agricultural production and genuine gastronomic traditions, featuring cured meats, cheeses, homemade pasta, and extra virgin olive oil. The Carnival thus becomes an opportunity to discover a corner of Campania far from the most beaten tourist paths, a short distance from the Royal Palace of Caserta and the gates of the Matese mountains.