The sketches for the Carnevale di Avola 2027

The first colours of 2027 arrive from south-eastern Sicily. The Carnevale Storico di Avola has presented the eight sketches of the allegorical and flower floats for its next edition, the 64th, between dreams, flowers, irony and tradition. «Carnival 2027 has already begun to take shape», wrote the Carnival’s official page: the countdown starts here.

A historic carnival of massari and micheli

Avola’s Carnival, now counted among Italy’s historic Carnivals, has ancient, probably medieval, origins. The first reliable sources date back to 1912, when the magazine “La Siciliana” published the article “Carnevale in Avola” about the traditional masks. The most common was the massaru, with a very short jacket, knee-length velvet breeches, white stockings and big boots, who hopped along with a pitchfork in hand and saddlebags on his shoulder. Beside him were the micheli, with a big white cap pulled down over the face and a long shirt tied at the waist, who roamed the streets stinging friends and relatives with branches of nettle or olive.

Since 1961 the festival has also been organised to attract visitors, and it runs over several days: parades of allegorical floats, flower floats and masked groups, the dialect songs called Storii, the dialect poetry contest and, to close, the burning of King Carnival. The full story is on the official website of the Carnevale di Avola.

The traditional programme sets the rhythm of the days: on the Saturday before Lent, King Carnival parades through the town accompanied by the Banda musicale di Avola; on Sunday the parades of floats and masked groups begin, sometimes accompanied by traditional Sicilian carts; Monday is mainly devoted to carnival songs, while Tuesday closes with the final parade, the rankings and the burning of King Carnival. In the evening the party moves to Piazza Umberto I, with music, confetti and streamers.

The 2027 designs

The presentation took place with the mayor Rossana Cannata and the councillor for Culture, Entertainment and Economic Development Deborah Rossitto. The allegorical and flower floats carry an important legacy: in 2026, at the 63rd edition, “Spettro binario: l’universo digitale” won among the allegorical floats and “Time is precious, un viaggio oltre il tempo” among the flower floats.

2027 dates

According to the official page of the Carnevale di Avola, the Carnevale Storico 2027 will last six days, from Thursday 4 to Tuesday 9 February 2027. The detailed parade programme has not yet been published.

The parade route

In recent editions the main Sunday and Tuesday parades started at 4 pm from Piazza Esedra and ended in Piazza Umberto I; on Monday the procession started at 6 pm from Piazza Allende, again ending in Piazza Umberto I. For 2027 we recommend checking times and routes on the official website once the programme is published.

Avola can be reached by car on the A18 Catania–Syracuse motorway (Noto–Avola exit) or the SS115, by train at Avola station on the Syracuse–Ragusa–Gela line, and by plane from Catania Fontanarossa (about 80 km) and Comiso (about 95 km) airports. All the details are on the page Getting there.