February is Italy’s last cheap month and its strangest one. The cities are still empty and still cold, the coast is still shut – and for eleven days Venice fills with masks. The Carnevale di Venezia runs 30 January to 9 February 2027, Viareggio parades its floats through the Tuscan coast, a town in Piedmont throws oranges at itself, and Sicily’s almond trees come into blossom while Milan is still in fog.
Carnevale: three completely different versions
Carnival ends on Martedì Grasso, Shrove Tuesday, which in 2027 is 9 February. The run-up is the event, and Italy stages three famous and entirely different ones:
- Venice, 30 January – 9 February 2027. Masks, costumes, the Flight of the Angel from the campanile into Piazza San Marco, and two peak weekends (30–31 January and 6–7 February). Venice hotel rates during Carnival are the highest outside the summer, and the city is at its most crowded of the winter – the opposite of the empty Venice the rest of February offers.
- Viareggio, Tuscany. Enormous satirical papier-mâché floats, paraded along the seafront across several Sundays and Shrove Tuesday. Louder, cheaper and far more Italian than Venice.
- Ivrea, Piedmont – the Battle of the Oranges. On the Carnival weekend, teams on foot throw oranges at teams on carts for three days. Spectators wear a red cap to signal neutrality and are still advised to keep to the netted areas. It is genuinely unlike anything else in Europe.
Dates for Viareggio and Ivrea are published in the autumn; all three move with Easter.
Weather: the last of the winter
- Rome and the centre – highs near 13°C, lows near 4°C, and about 60 mm of rain across six or seven days. Drier than January and noticeably brighter.
- Milan and the north – still cold, still grey, with fog in the Po valley and highs around 8°C.
- The Alps and Dolomites – the best snow of the season, and the Italian school holiday week – the settimana bianca – is the busiest ski week of the year.
- Sicily – highs in the mid-teens, and the almond blossom out around Agrigento, where the Sagra del Mandorlo in Fiore is held in the Valley of the Temples in early to mid February.
The daylight is the real change. By the end of February the sun sets an hour later than it did on 1 January, and Italian afternoons start to feel like afternoons again.
Free museums on the first Sunday
The Domenica al Museo scheme – free entry to more than 480 state museums, monuments and archaeological parks – runs on the first Sunday of the month from October to March. In 2027 that date is Sunday 7 February.
As always: some sites, the Colosseum included, still require a free timed booking, and temporary exhibitions inside a museum are usually excluded.
What February is genuinely good for
The art cities without the queue, at the second-lowest prices of the year. Florence, Rome, Bologna, Turin, Naples and Palermo all work extremely well, and the museums are close to empty on a weekday morning. If your trip is about paintings, churches, food and walking, February delivers almost everything March and April do at a fraction of the cost.
It is also the best month of the year for two specific things: opera, with the season in full flow at La Scala, La Fenice and San Carlo, and skiing, with the deepest snow of the Italian winter.
What February is not good for
The coast, the lakes and the islands, which remain largely closed until around Easter – and in 2027 Easter is on 28 March, so the reopening is early. Long outdoor days do not work yet either: the light is better than January but the evenings are still short and cold.
And Venice during Carnival is a genuine exception to everything else written here. If you want the quiet, empty Venice that February usually offers, come after 10 February.
Prices
February is, with January, the cheapest month of the Italian year for city hotels and flights, with two loud exceptions: Venice during Carnival and the Alps during the settimana bianca. Away from those, the whole country is on low-season rates and restaurants have tables.
From the first week of March, prices begin lifting towards Easter, which falls unusually early in 2027. See how much a trip to Italy costs for a realistic daily figure.
What to wear
Layers and something waterproof. Rome in February can give you 17°C and sun or 8°C and rain in the same week. In the north assume winter. For churches, covered shoulders and knees are enforced year-round. If you are going to Venice for Carnival, add genuinely warm clothing – standing in a crowd in Piazza San Marco in a costume at 5°C is colder than the forecast suggests.
The February 2027 calendar
- 30 January – 9 February – Carnevale di Venezia; peak weekends 30–31 January and 6–7 February.
- Early to mid February – Sagra del Mandorlo in Fiore, the almond blossom festival at Agrigento, Sicily.
- Sunday 7 February – free entry at state museums and archaeological sites.
- Carnival weekend – the Battle of the Oranges at Ivrea; float parades at Viareggio.
- Tuesday 9 February – Martedì Grasso, the last day of Carnival.
- Mid to late February – the Italian settimana bianca school ski week; Alpine resorts at their busiest.
- Late February – the Sanremo song festival fills the Ligurian coast for a week.
Read alongside
- Italy in January – the emptiest month, and the winter sales.
- Italy in March – Easter falls on 28 March in 2027, and changes the whole month.
- Best time to visit Italy – all twelve months compared.
- How much a trip to Italy costs – low-season daily numbers.
- Italy travel guide – regions, routes and how to combine them.
- What to pack for Italy – the winter list.
- Things to know before visiting Italy – the practical rules.
Frequently asked
When is Carnival in Venice in 2027?
From 30 January to 9 February 2027, ending on Martedì Grasso. The two peak weekends are 30–31 January and 6–7 February, and Venice hotel rates during Carnival are the highest of the winter.
Is February a good time to visit Italy?
For the art cities, yes – it is the second-cheapest and second-quietest month, with museums close to empty on weekday mornings. For the coast, lakes and islands, no: most of that Italy stays closed until around Easter.
How cold is Italy in February?
Rome averages about 13°C by day and 4°C at night with roughly 60 mm of rain over six or seven days. Milan is colder with fog, the Alps have their best snow of the season, and Sicily sits in the mid-teens.
Are museums free in Italy in February?
On the first Sunday – 7 February in 2027 – more than 480 state museums and archaeological sites are free under the Domenica al Museo scheme, which runs October to March. Some sites still need a free timed booking.
What is the Battle of the Oranges?
Ivrea’s Carnival in Piedmont, where teams on foot throw oranges at teams on horse-drawn carts over three days. Spectators wear a red cap to indicate they are not taking part and are advised to stay in the netted areas.
When is the almond blossom in Sicily?
Early to mid February, around Agrigento, where the Sagra del Mandorlo in Fiore is held among the temples. It is the earliest sign of spring anywhere in Italy.
Is Italy cheap in February?
Yes, apart from two exceptions: Venice during Carnival and the Alpine resorts during the Italian school ski week in the second half of the month.
Is it warm enough to swim in Italy in February?
No. Sea temperatures are at their annual low of around 14°C even in Sicily. February is a cities-and-mountains month.
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Written by
John Morrison is the founder and lead travel writer at Packzup. Over the past decade he has explored destinations across Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Oceania — always self-funded, never on a press trip.
