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Ferragosto: What’s open and what’s closed in Italy on August 15th 2024

Thursday will mark Italy’s Ferragosto public holiday. But how will shops, transport services and museums be affected by it?

Published: 12 August 2024 12:16 CEST

A view of the beach of Torre Faro Pilone, near Messina, Sicily. Photo by GIOVANNI ISOLINO / AFP

With origins tracing as far back as Ancient Rome, Ferragosto is one of the most beloved national public holidays in Italy as it’s associated with the height of the summer season and, of course, with time off work.

Quite conveniently, it falls on a Thursday this year, meaning that those who aren’t already on vacation are likely to take the Friday off to create a four-day weekend, or ponte.

As for the day itself, most people in Italy tend to celebrate it with a big lunch in the company of family or friends, with barbecues (grigliate) and picnics being popular options.

But get-togethers and large meals aren’t the only things you can expect on Thursday.

Public holidays in Italy usually mean a near total shutdown, even in major cities, and August 15th is no exception.

Public transport

Most local public transport companies in the country will operate on a reduced timetable (also known as orari festivi) on Thursday, with the quality and frequency of services throughout the day likely to vary significantly by region and city

Rural or isolated areas that are usually served by just the occasional bus may see stripped-to-the-bone services, whereas parts of the country that already have robust public transport networks, and popular tourist destinations should keep them fairly active.

Passengers board a public transport bus in downtown Rome

Passengers board a public transport bus in downtown Rome. Photo by Andreas SOLARO / AFP

If you’re planning on travelling on Thursday, it’s strongly advisable that you check the orari festivi of the relevant transport operator well in advance. These can usually be found on the operator’s website or mobile app.

Rail and air travel

Much like public transport services, regional and local trains will run on reduced timetables on Thursday, whereas most interregional and long-distance high-speed trains will run on standard weekday timetables.

It’s worth noting that some high-speed services around the country, including the Turin-Milan-Venice, Milan-Bologna and Rome-Florence lines, are being affected by increased travel times and route changes this month due to planned infrastructure upgrade works.

It also bears pointing out that trains leading to popular holiday destinations, especially those departing on Thursday morning, may be more crowded than usual, which is why it’s advisable to book your tickets in advance.

As for air travel, inbound and outbound flights shouldn’t be directly affected by the public holiday, but minor delays in ground operations such as check-in and baggage collection services are not exactly unheard of on public holidays in Italy due to staff shortages.

Tourist attractions

Italy’s culture ministry said last week that all state-run museums, galleries, archaeological sites, and villas will open to the public on August 15th.

Open attractions will include the Pompeii archaeological park, the Reggia di Caserta and Rome’s Pantheon. For a full list of sites, see the culture ministry’s website.

Privately run museums, galleries or collections may be closed on the day.

Offices

As it’s usually the case on national public holidays, offices in both the public and private sector (this includes banks, post offices, town hall desks and tax assistance centres) will be closed.

Should you need to complete any urgent admin tasks by the end of the week, your best bet would be to try and do so in the days leading up to the holiday as most offices will be closed on Friday, August 16th, too.

Pasticcerie, panifici and restaurants

Some panifici (bakeries) and pasticcerie (pastry shops) in major cities and popular holiday hotspots may remain open on Thursday morning to allow customers to stock up on bread and sweets for their Ferragosto lunch.

A woman cuts a piece of chocolate cake at a pastry shop in Rome

A woman cuts a piece of chocolate cake at a pastry shop in Rome. Photo by TIZIANA FABI / AFP

Restaurants in or around holiday spots across the country may remain open on Thursday, at least at lunchtime, and may even offer special Ferragosto menus for the occasion.

A report from Italy’s Confcommercio trade association said on Monday that around two in three Italian restaurants will be open on Ferragosto.

That said, if you’re planning on dining out on Thursday, it’s advisable to make a reservation in advance to avoid any unpleasant surprises later on.

Shops and supermarkets

Many supermarket chains around the country will have limited opening hours on Thursday. For instance, some may open around 9 in the morning and then close in the early afternoon.

Most mini-markets will remain completely closed instead.

The majority of shops in both urban and non-urban areas will be closed on Ferragosto (and the following days), with a chiuso per ferie (‘closed for the holidays’) sign generally indicating the date when they expect to reopen.

Doctors and pharmacies

GPs’ clinics will be closed on Thursday.

However, should you be in need of an urgent appointment, you can ask to see a doctor from Italy’s Guardia Medica (also known as Servizio di Continuità Assistenziale), a medical care centre that operates outside of GPs’ normal working hours, on weekends and public holidays.

In the event of serious medical emergencies, head to your local hospital’s ER (pronto soccorso).

Should you need to buy medicines or pick up a prescription, pharmacies in Italy operate a rota system during national holidays to ensure that at least one is open in each area.

To find the nearest one, Google farmacia di turno plus the name of the municipality (comune) you find yourself in.

Traffic

Italian roads usually see heavy traffic on and around the Ferragosto holiday, and this year will be no exception.

According to the official traffic calendar released by Italy’s State Police (Polizia di Stato), Italian motorways are expected to see intense congestion every day from Wednesday, August 14th, to Sunday, August 18th.

‘Possible critical conditions’ have been forecast for Wednesday evening, Thursday morning and then the whole weekend.

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EXPLAINED: What's behind the battle for Italy's beach clubs?

This summer might be the last one in business for operators of the many beach clubs, or stabilimenti, that dominate the Italian coastline.

But didn’t somebody say that last summer? And the summer before that, too?

A battle over how to administer Italy’s many private beach concessions has been going on for over a decade, with successive Italian governments squeezed between the requirements of European law, the demands of the current concession holders, and the protests of activists who disagree with the system.

So is anything actually changing this time, and what will all of this mean for you and other beach lovers?

What’s the issue with Italy’s beach clubs?

Italian beach clubs are run on concessions, or allowances from the state, to use public land. That means that the actual beaches are not private property (although it may seem that way when you’re asked to pay for a sunbed); the land is public but private businesses are allowed to operate on it.

In Italy, the law says that such concessions are automatically renewed every six years. If there are two or more contenders for the same piece of land, the current concession holder will be given priority.

People walk by a closed private beach in Lido di Ostia near Rome on August 3rd, 2012, during a strike by Italy’s beach club operators over long-disputed plans to open the sector to competition. (Photo by Andreas SOLARO / AFP)

This system, however, is at odds with European competition rules.

Under one of the pillars of the single market, the rules state that entities other than current concession holders, both Italian and European, should have an equal opportunity to compete for the right to use Italian beaches for commercial purposes.

Why don’t Italy’s beach clubs follow the EU-wide rules?

Since 2009, a string of legal procedures, including European infraction procedures and sentences from European and Italian courts, have been taken in an attempt to make Italy adapt to the European regulation.

In short, Italy has been asked repeatedly to organise public tenders for all existing beach concessions.

However, although both President Mattarella and previous prime minister Mario Draghi have publicly insisted on Italy’s obligation to follow European rules, Italian governments have been biding their time.

They are under pressure to change the system but fear repercussions from the beach club owners, which represent an important economic sector.

Why are beach club owners opposed to changes?

While they clearly fear losing their business and income, beach club concession holders also fear losing years of investments.

Because concessions have been automatically renewed for several years, they say, most beach club owners have made investments in their businesses – everything from modest stacks of sunbeds to entire hotels.

Nobody really knows how to compensate them for their loss should they lose the concession under the new rules.

‘Quantifying the value of the investments made over the years is a complex exercise, but we are talking about significant amounts of money’, says Marco Maurelli, President of Federbalneari, the leading organisation of beach club owners in Italy.

Beach club owners say many ordinary Italians are also against the changes, as this could mean losing an important part of the Italian way of life.

‘Italian beaches are not only tourist destinations per se, they are important elements of the local economy and of local culture,” Maurelli says.

Maurelli and his associates fear that the many small family-run beach clubs scattered around the Italian coastline will not have the resources to even take part in the bidding process.

They argue that this may pave the way for large companies and multinationals to take over what is seen as an important cornerstone of Italian life.

“Often the procedures are too complicated and require technical competences that small beach enterprises do not have,” he says.

“It is important that European rules are applied in a flexible manner, and that they respect local peculiarities.”

Why are people protesting against beach clubs?

This summer, there have been several protests organised by activists ‘reclaiming’ privately-run beaches as their number continues to grow.

“We want to restore a natural connection between people and the coast,” says Agostino

Biondo of Mare Libero, a national umbrella organisation for those protesting against the current concession system.

“That requires that we move away from the concept of ownership that is prevalent in the Italian system.”

Biondo explains that much of the Italian coastline is not in its natural state, with dunes and natural bays, but flattened and altered to suit sunbathers.

According to Biondo, the end of the concession system would be a golden opportunity to change this.

Mare Libero is campaigning for only 50 percent of current concessions to be put to tender, leaving the rest open to the public, to be managed and cleaned by the local authority.

When it comes to the remaining 50 percent of the beaches, Biondo and his colleagues are not worried that multinational companies will take over control of Italian beaches.

“Under the current system, beach club owners already sell their assets to foreign investors, including non-European, without any public control at all,” Biondo says.

“In a bidding process, everything will depend on how the tender is written.”

The group also wants to limit the maximum duration of each concession to six years and make it illegal to prevent people from entering a beach without paying.

What is the current government doing?

In an attempt to stall another infraction procedure from the European Commission, the Meloni government recently attempted to prove that there was no need to reduce the number of current concessions.

It did this by mapping the Italian coast, showing that only 33 percent of it was currently occupied by beach clubs, which it insisted means that available coastline is not a scarce commodity.

Many private beach clubs have remained under the control of the same family for generations.

Many private beach clubs have remained under the control of the same family for generations. Photo by Vincenzo PINTO / AFP.

But there have been questions from all sides about the methodology used.

“While we appreciate the efforts made by the Meloni government to strike a balance between the exigencies of current Italian concessionaries and European requirements, there are several areas in which the mapping does not accurately reflect the realities on the ground,” Maurelli of Federbalneari says.

Massimo Fragola, Professor of Law at the European University of Calabria, also has doubts.

“The government measured the coastline without taking into account whether or not the area is actually suitable for beach clubs and other touristic activities’, he says.

What will happen next?

The issue of the beach clubs has deteriorated into a political quagmire for the Meloni government, which is keenly aware of the need to abide by European rules, but at the same time extremely cautious to upset the operators.

“The juridical aspects are actually not really disputable, it is the politics that is complicated”, explains Fragola.

While Fragola believes that it is necessary to find a way to compensate current concession holders, he says there is no way around the European rules.

‘In 2025 all Italian beach concessions will be subject to public bidding. There really is no way around that,’ he stresses.

So while this summer life goes on as usual on Italian beaches, there will probably be changes along the Italian coastline come next year.

Nobody really knows what these will look like. But chances are that some of the current beach clubs will remain in place, while others might have to give in to competition.

Maybe, if the activists in Mare Libero are heard, some more beaches will also be completely free and open to the public.

So yes, you will most likely be able to go to the beach as usual next year, but you may not find the same guy welcoming you as you get your lettino and ombrellone – if you find anyone there at all.

Whatever happens, expect a great deal of political uproar.

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