Sesto Fiorentino Carnival – The Land of Toys

The Sesto Fiorentino Carnival

In the heart of the Florentine Plain, just a few kilometers from the Tuscan capital, the Municipality of Sesto Fiorentino (Metropolitan City of Florence, Tuscany) celebrates Carnival with a widespread, popular event titled "The Land of Toys". The name is a clear homage to Pinocchio and the famous Land of Toys from Collodi's fairy tale: for several Sundays in February, the city becomes a vast space for play, masks, and fun, where children and families are the true protagonists.

Where and when

The beating heart of the festival is Piazza Vittorio Veneto, the central square of Sesto Fiorentino, which for the occasion fills with stalls, stages, shows, and confetti. The activities take place in the afternoon, generally from early afternoon until evening, and are spread across several days between the Sundays of February and Shrove Tuesday, the highlight and conclusion of the carnival period.

A Carnival for families

The Sesto festival is an authentically local celebration, far from the large allegorical floats of Tuscany's most famous carnivals and designed primarily for the little ones. The program alternates between:

• Open masquerades for all ages, with costume parades through the streets and squares of the center;
• Shows and entertainment for children, featuring theater companies and street performers;
• Baby dance, music, and DJ sets that turn the square into an open-air dance floor;
• Food stalls with typical Carnival sweets — bomboloni, fritters, cotton candy, crepes — and the essential hot chocolate;
• Workshops and animated readings at the library and themed dinners at the city's social clubs.

A rediscovered tradition

The event, revived with this format around 2010, is organized by the Pro Loco of Sesto Fiorentino (Pro Sesto APS) with the patronage of the municipal administration and the collaboration of numerous local associations: Fratres, Croce Viola, the Red Cross, Arci clubs, theater and music groups, and the scouts. It is precisely this blend of volunteering and participation that gives the Sesto Carnival its character as a community festival. In recent years, the event has linked its identity to the theme of Pinocchio through dedicated artworks, such as the ceramic piece created by artist Stefano Innocenti.

Why it's worth it

For those visiting Florence and its surroundings during the Carnival period, "The Land of Toys" is an opportunity to experience a genuine, free, and child-friendly Tuscan festival, far from the crowds of the tourist circuits. An afternoon of confetti, fried sweets, and music in the square of a town that, for a few days, decides to return to childhood.