Village of Wishes

Village of Wishes: St. Lawrence's night in Savignano Irpino

Every August 10th, on the night of St. Lawrence, the municipality of Savignano Irpino, in the province of Avellino, takes part in "Village of Wishes", a widespread initiative promoted by the I Borghi più belli d'Italia association. From sunset to dawn, as the Irpinian sky fills with the trails of the Perseids, the village invites residents and visitors to write down a wish and entrust it to the magical spot designated by the town.

A collective ritual shared with over 150 villages

Each year, the initiative involves more than 150 certified villages across sixteen Italian regions, from the Aosta Valley to Sardinia. In Campania, the 2026 edition features four villages: Savignano Irpino, Montesarchio, Monteverde, and Summonte. Each community chooses its own "magical place" to collect visitors' wishes: a well, a secret garden, or a historic fountain. It is a simple concept that requires no elaborate staging, focusing entirely on the atmosphere of the village at night.

The Fontana Angelica, the place of wishes in Savignano

In Savignano Irpino, the chosen spot is the Fontana Angelica, known by locals as the fountain of the ducks due to the three cast-iron ducks from whose mouths the water from the Monte Sant'Angelo springs flows. A symbol of the town located at the entrance to the historic center, the fountain was for generations the community's water supply point, back when water was carried home on shoulders or delivered by acquaioli (water carriers). On the evening of the Village of Wishes, it hosts the urn for depositing notes.

More than just wishes: books, music, and Irpinian cuisine

The Savignano evening goes beyond the symbolic gesture. The program combines a book presentation in Piazza Umberto I and, along Corso Vittorio Emanuele, the Stew and Hanged Caciocavallo Festival organized by the Territorio e Tradizione Association, with live music until late. The "hanged" caciocavallo—the cheese wheel hung over embers and served melted on bread—is one of the most iconic dishes of the Irpinian tradition, heir to the practices of transhumance shepherds; the stew served here recalls the lu spezzatino cu lj card' of local peasant cuisine.

Savignano Irpino, a village suspended between Campania and Puglia

At an altitude of about 718 meters, overlooking the Cervaro valley and nestled between the Tombola and Calvario hills, Savignano Irpino joined the I Borghi più belli d'Italia circuit in 2016. Its border position between Campania and Puglia has shaped its culture, dialect, and cuisine. In the historic center, you can find Castello Guevara, of Norman origin and linked to the Spanish family that governed the fiefdom, the Mother Church of Saints Nicola and Anna with its bell tower once used for spotting, the Purgatory Church, and the Church of the Madonna delle Grazie.

What to expect

• A free, open-air evening suitable for families
• A historic center illuminated and entirely pedestrian-friendly
• The wish-urn ritual at the Fontana Angelica
• Irpinian gastronomy with stew and "hanged" caciocavallo
• The sky full of shooting stars, far from city lights

A highlight of the Savignano summer

The Village of Wishes is part of the Savignano Irpino summer calendar, which also includes the historic Orecchiette Festival, a signature event of the season and the town's gastronomic traditions, as well as the patronal feasts of Saint Anne, Saint Roch, and the Madonna delle Grazie. For those visiting Irpinia in August, it is an opportunity to discover an authentic village on the most evocative night of the year.