Wednesday 28 August 2019

Ferragosto in Rome What’s it Like?

I went to Rome in mid-August because of the school holidays. In mid-week was a festival called the Ferragosto. Being on 15 August, it fell dead-center of my trip.

The Ferragosto comes from the name of Emperor Augustus who declared the 1st of August a public holiday after weeks of Romans hard work. The holiday then became law during the Renaissance period in the Papal States. It was the Catholic Church that moved the date to the 15th August, incorporating the Assumption of Mary. So this day celebrates two things.



But Mussolini used the Ferragosto to give the workers the opportunity to visit cultural sites. Nowadays, the Italians to the coast or the mountains during the Ferragosto period.
I read on blogs and travel sites that Rome goes quiet around the Ferragosto. Certain shops close, traffic eases and tourists thin out. Indeed up until the nineties, many companies did close. However, my trip to Rome would show otherwise.
This might be due to loss of custom because of closures. It seems Italy decided to keep operating during this so-called holiday in order to keep custom.
In my view, the 15th August felt the same as any other day; the busses were as packed as ever, the trattorias were filled with diners and shops filled with customers. The only difference was that there were festivals and song in various piazzas. I was arrested by street artists in the Piazza Navona one evening. I also noticed the Via del Corso closed to traffic, which was nice. There were more police around.
So don’t believe the websites that tell you that Rome goes quiet during the Ferragosto. It doesn’t. In fact it seemed like any other day.

Read all my articles on Rome on my Rome a Survival Kit

Crowded Trevi Fountain during Ferragosto
Piazza Venezia on Ferragosto
Crowds on the Spanish Steps during Ferragosto