Venice Carnival 2026
OLYMPUS – The origins of the game
The Venice Carnival 2026, scheduled for Jan. 31 to Feb. 17, celebrates theOlympic year with a theme that weaves together history, art and sport in a tribute to the universal power of play and challenge.
“Olympus – The origins of the game” harks back to mythology and the harmony of body and mind, but also to the Venice of centuries past, where Carnival was a grand stage for competitions, acrobatic shows and collective tests of skill, anticipating the spirit of the modern Olympics
What will visitors find during the Venice Carnival?
THE ART OF COMEDY
Curated and managed by PANTAKIN, directed by Emanuele Pasqualini and Michele Modesto Casarin, this edition of the festival expands its programming in addition to Campo Santo Stefano and Piazza San Marco also in Campo San Cassian, Campo Santa Margherita and Piazza Ferretto (Mestre).
On the wooden comedy stages, set up today as they were centuries ago, 14 different companies will take the stage in a multitude of performances.
Thanks to the support of Vela, the Municipality of Venice and the Artistic Direction of Massimo Checchetto, the Comici dell’Arte return to tell in their own way between jokes and songs, monologues and duels, the masks and the frenzied rhythm, stories that overcome language and generational barriers and aim directly at the heart and smile of the audience.
VENICE CARNIVAL STREET SHOW!
Miraculous journeys of wandering artists – Widespread Art in the City
Preview on Saturday, January 31 and Sunday, February 1 in St. Mark’s Square and Ferretto Square.
Widespread Art on Saturday, February 7 and Sunday, February 8, and from Thursday, February 12 to Tuesday, February 17, 2026.
Widespread art in the City returns to the Venice Carnival, with the Venice Carnival Street Show schedule featuring a kermesse of various art shows in the fields of Venice, downtown Mestre, the Lagoon Islands and the centers of the Municipalities.
On Saturday, January 31 and Sunday, February 1, 2026, we start with the preview of the Carnival Diffuso in St. Mark’s Square and Ferretto Square, and then get into the swing of things from Saturday, February 7 and Sunday, February 8, and on Fat Week days from Thursday, February 12 to Tuesday, February 17, 2026.
Arsenal Water Show
The Great Dock at the Venice Arsenal once again becomes an open-air stage to host “The Call of Olympia.”
An original performance by the Carnival of Venice, inspired by the epic story of the Olympic Games to tell a journey of challenge, dream and self-determination.
At the center of the story is a fisherman, a simple man who from the sea of Venice dreams of the immortality of the Gods. Five trials to conquer it: five challenges across continents, the elements, the senses… And guiding him through play, victories and defeats is the voice of Olympia, a muse who becomes challenge, inner strength and determination.
An epic, intense and magically nuanced tale that weaves the plot of the play while enchanting the audience with visual arts, spectacular performances and special effects.
A Total Theater on Water, narrating challenge as a quest, and victory as universal peace.
Double show with Arsenal Water Show. The show will run from Friday, February 6 through Sunday, February 8, 2026, and then from Thursday, February 12 through Tuesday, February 17, 2026.
At 6:45 p.m. and 9 p.m.
THE VENETIAN FEAST – Carnival water parade
Grand Canal – Sunday, February 16 from 11 a.m.
The long-awaited water parade of traditional boats along the Grand Canal returns, produced in collaboration with the Coordinamento Associazioni Remiere di Voga alla Veneta and captained by the legendary paper mache “Pantegana.”
The Venice Carnival 2026 starts from the water, with the Venetian Feast.
On Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026, amid colorful smoke, balloons and confetti, a hundred decorated and colorful rowing boats will be led by masked rowers who gather at Punta della Dogana around 11 a.m. to reach the Rialto area.
After plying the world’s most beautiful waterway, a colorful choreography will wrap around the Rialto Bridge before the big party in the Herbaria.
THE FEAST OF MARIES
Resurrected by visionary director Bruno Tosi in 1999 and over time becoming one of the pivotal events of the Venice Carnival, the Festa delle Marie recalls a historical fact that really happened. It was the year 973 when in the church of San Pietro di Castello, during the annual festivities dedicated to the purification of the Virgin Mary, twelve Venetian girls were kidnapped by a group of Dalmatian pirates. After a chase organized by Doge Pietro Candiano III, the maidens were freed and taken back to Venice. Since then, the Festa delle Marie was celebrated every year in the lagoon city in ways and rituals that changed over the centuries.
Numerous, even for this edition the appointments of the 12 lucky girls who will be selected on January 31, 2026 in the Great School of St. John the Evangelist!
– Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026: Selection of the 12 Marys of the Venice Carnival 2026, Scuola Grande San Giovanni Evangelista
– Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026: Traditional water parade with official presentation and photo op in St. Mark’s Square
– Monday, Feb. 16, 2026: Election of the Mary of the Year 2026, Sale Apollinee of La Fenice Theater
– Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026: Proclamation of the Mary of the Venice Carnival 2026, St. Mark’s Square
THE CARNIVAL OF CULTURE
Art and theater return to celebrate Carnival with a schedule of performances in the city’s cultural spaces, in the lagoon and on the mainland, as part of the Carnival of Culture. The theme of the 2026 edition is thus developed in numerous variations, from music to theater, from readings to performances, to children’s shows. The Candiani Cultural Center, the Teatrino Groggia, the House of The Human Safety Net at the Procuratie Vecchie, the Teatro a l’Avogaria, and many others are involved….
CARNIVAL IN THEATERS AND MUSEUMS
The city’s theaters-from Teatro Toniolo to Teatro Goldoni, from Teatro Momo to Groggia to Teatro all’Avogaria and Teatro al Parco Albanese-present a calendar of performances during the Carnival period, just as Teatro La Fenice offers a musical program designed for the occasion. In addition, the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia is planning extraordinary openings of its circuit museums to make them as easy as possible for Carnival visitors to enjoy.
In addition, the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia is planning extraordinary openings of its circuit museums to make them as easy as possible for Carnival visitors to enjoy.
CARNIVAL OFFICIAL DINNER SHOW 2026 – “The Song of Ambrosia”
Let yourself be seduced by the mystery and fascination of unexpected worlds, experience the magic of the Carnival
In the heart of a Venetian palace, amidst baroque velvets and golden glare, begin your journey suspended between myth, seduction and wonder.
The Song of Ambrosia is the Official Dinner Show of the Venice Carnival that will make you cross the threshold of time and space to follow in the footsteps of the gods, keepers of eternal desires. From the sacredness of Olympia to the splendor of Venice, everything is intertwined in a game of valiant challenges, epic trials and noble entertainment, with overwhelming live shows and performances.
In the magnificent rooms of Ca’ Vendramin Calergi, overlooking the Grand Canal, the Carnival of Venice becomes ritual and mystery: among elegant temptations, playful irony and creative duels, the night is challenged by sipping ambrosia for an eternal pleasure, made even more intense by the rich and original menu prepared by the skilful hands of the chefs of Restaurant Wagner.
The Song of Ambrosia is not just a dinner, but a spell that promises the immortality of sensations: a feast for the eyes, the palate and the soul, where every moment becomes an indelible memory.
Abano.it has gathered information about the Venice Carnival from the official website and cannot be held responsible for changes to the program from the above.
Updated 09 January 2026
