Last updated: 11 October 2026
Venice Carnival turns the city into a stage for two and a half weeks in the coldest part of the winter: costumes in every campo, boats on the Grand Canal, a mask parade in St Mark's Square and crowds that fill the narrow streets on the last weekend. The organizer has published the 2027 dates, but not yet the theme or the programme. Here is what is confirmed on 11 October 2026, what happened at the 2026 edition so you know what to expect, and how to get around and stay online if you are flying in from the US, the UK or Australia.
Venice Carnival 2027 at a glance
| Details | Status on 11 October 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Carnival dates | 23 January to 9 February 2027 | Published on the official site |
| Shrove Tuesday (Martedì Grasso), the last day | Tuesday 9 February 2027 | Published by the organizer |
| Official Dinner Show, Ca' Vendramin Calergi | 30 and 31 January, then every evening from 4 to 9 February 2027 | Tickets on sale since 27 July 2026 |
| Theme and full programme | Not announced | The 2026 theme was announced on 24 October 2025 |
| Venice access fee (day-tripper fee) | No 2027 calendar announced | The 2026 trial ran from 3 April to 26 July and did not cover Carnival |
| Nearest airport | Venice Marco Polo (VCE) | Bus or water bus into the city |
Dates and theme for 2027
The official Carnevale di Venezia site gives the 2027 edition as running from 23 January to 9 February 2027 (carnevale.venezia.it). The last day is Martedì Grasso, Shrove Tuesday, on 9 February. The organizer's dinner show listing names Giovedì Grasso as 4 February and Martedì Grasso as 9 February 2027, which places the final, busiest stretch from Thursday 4 to Tuesday 9 February.
There was no 2027 theme or programme on the official site on 11 October 2026. Each edition has a theme: 2026's was "Olympus: alle origini del gioco" ("the origins of the game"), tied to the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, and it was announced on 24 October 2025, with the full programme following in the weeks after (carnevale.venezia.it, 24 October 2025). Expect the 2027 theme around late October and the day-by-day programme closer to January. Until then, plan on the overall dates and check the official site before you book an evening around a single event.
Choosing between carnivals? Rio's falls in the same week, peaking from Saturday 6 to Ash Wednesday 10 February 2027: see our Carnival in Brazil 2027 guide.
What happened in 2026: the events to look for
The 2026 Carnival ran from 31 January to 17 February. These are the main events as the organizer reported them. They show the shape of a typical edition, but the 2027 dates and times will be different.
| Event (2026 edition) | When in 2026 | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Opening water parade (Festa Veneziana) | Sunday 1 February, from 11:00 | Grand Canal, Punta della Dogana to Rialto |
| Selection of the 12 Marie | Saturday 31 January | Scuola Grande San Giovanni Evangelista |
| Festa delle Marie: the 12 Marie in gondolas | Saturday 7 February, gondolas at 15:00, Piazza San Marco at 16:00 | Grand Canal to St Mark's Square |
| Regata de Carneval | Sunday 8 February, 9:30 | Bacino di San Marco to San Marcuola |
| Maschera Più Bella (best mask) parades | Several days from 31 January, final on 15 February | Stage in St Mark's Square |
| Election of the Maria of the Year | 16 February | Teatro La Fenice |
| Maria of the Year presented, last day | Tuesday 17 February | St Mark's Square |
Sources: the organizer's news for the opening weekend, the second weekend, the mask contest and the Maria of the Year.
The water parade. In 2026 the Carnival opened on the water on Sunday 1 February, with a parade of traditional boats on the Grand Canal from Punta della Dogana to Rialto. Water bus lines 1 and 2 were rerouted along the Giudecca Canal for the morning (carnevale.venezia.it). Expect the same kind of disruption on the opening Sunday in 2027, so allow extra time if you are crossing the city that morning.
Festa delle Marie. The festival recalls twelve Venetian girls kidnapped by pirates in 973 and rescued under Doge Pietro Candiano III, and it was revived in 1999 (carnevale.venezia.it). Twelve young women from the Venice area are chosen as the Marie. In 2026 they crossed Cannaregio on foot, took gondolas down the Grand Canal and were presented on the stage in St Mark's Square (carnevale.venezia.it, 7 February 2026). One of them is elected Maria of the Year at La Fenice and presented in the square on the last day.
The best mask contest. Anyone in costume could join the Maschera Più Bella parades on the St Mark's Square stage in 2026, registering at a desk in the square from 11:00 on each parade day. A winner was named each day and went through to the final (carnevale.venezia.it).
The Volo dell'Angelo. The "Flight of the Angel", when a performer descends on a cable from the bell tower into St Mark's Square, is one of the Carnival's best-known traditions. We did not find it in the organizer's 2026 programme news, and there is no 2027 programme yet, so do not build a trip around it until the official site lists it.
Balls and the dinner show. The organizer's own evening event for 2027 is the Official Dinner Show at Ca' Vendramin Calergi on the Grand Canal: on 30 and 31 January, then every evening from Giovedì Grasso, 4 February, to Martedì Grasso, 9 February 2027, starting at 21:00. Period costume is required (evening wear and tuxedos are not accepted) and it is for over-18s (carnevale.venezia.it, 27 July 2026). Many private masked balls are sold by other organizers; check who is running one before you pay.
Crowds: what the city did in 2026
The final weekend and Martedì Grasso draw the biggest crowds, and Venice's lanes and bridges are narrow. For the 2026 Carnival the local police issued an ordinance, in force from 31 January to 17 February, allowing them to regulate pedestrian flows, set one-way routes, close areas and limit access to risk zones when crowding threatened safety (carnevale.venezia.it, 20 January 2026). No 2027 ordinance had been published on 11 October 2026. In practice:
- Expect one-way routes and closed-off areas at peak times, and follow the police and stewards' directions.
- Look beyond St Mark's Square. In 2026 the programme was spread across the city, with water shows at the Arsenale, float parades in Burano, the Lido and Mestre, and street shows in the campi.
- Agree a meeting point before you go into the crowd around the square.
The Venice access fee: not during Carnival so far
Venice charges day visitors to the historic centre an access fee (contributo di accesso) on set days. In 2026 the City of Venice ran it on 60 days between 3 April and 26 July 2026, from 8:30 to 16:00, at €5 when paid at least four days ahead and €10 after that. The trial ended on 26 July, and the City says that any application in later years is for its governing bodies to decide (City of Venice, 2026 dates and amounts). The 2026 Carnival fell outside those days, and no 2027 calendar had been announced on 11 October 2026.
If the fee does apply on your dates, the 2026 rules were:
- Overnight guests do not pay, because they pay the city's tourist tax through their accommodation instead, but they had to show the exemption: a free QR code voucher for their nights, requested on the official portal or issued by their hotel (official FAQ).
- Children under 14 paid nothing and did not need to register.
- Use only the official portal, cda.ve.it, to pay or to get an exemption.
Getting there from Marco Polo airport
Venice Marco Polo (VCE) is on the mainland, across the lagoon from the city.
- Bus to Piazzale Roma. ACTV's line 5 and the ATVO express bus link the airport with Piazzale Roma, the bus terminal at the edge of the historic centre (Venice airport). ATVO puts its trip at about 20 minutes (ATVO). From Piazzale Roma you walk or take a water bus. A standard ACTV ticket does not cover the airport bus unless it is loaded on a Venezia Unica card, so buy the airport ticket for the trip.
- Alilaguna water bus. Alilaguna runs public boats from the airport across the lagoon. The Blue line calls at Fondamente Nove, San Zaccaria and San Marco Giardinetti, among other stops, and the Orange line at Rialto and Sant'Angelo on the Grand Canal. The Red line is summer only, so it will not run in February (Alilaguna). Standard ACTV tickets are not valid on Alilaguna.
- Water taxi. The airport lists private water taxi operators for a direct boat to your hotel's door or the nearest landing.
Venice is a walking city with no cars beyond Piazzale Roma, and Carnival crowds slow everyone down. Pack light enough to carry your bag over bridges.
Weather in late January and February
Our reading of the WMO climate normals for 1991 to 2020 at Venezia Tessera, the weather station at Marco Polo airport, published by NOAA, gives this picture (WMO 1991 to 2020 normals, NOAA):
| Venezia Tessera, 1991 to 2020 | January | February |
|---|---|---|
| Daytime high | 7.7 °C (about 46 °F) | 9.3 °C (about 49 °F) |
| Night-time low | 0.2 °C (about 32 °F) | 0.9 °C (about 34 °F) |
| Rain | 40 mm (about 1.6 inches) | 57 mm (about 2.2 inches) |
| Days with 1 mm of rain or more | 4 | 5 |
| Nights below freezing | 15 | 11 |
So expect cold, often clear days and nights around freezing, with damp in the air by the water. Layers, a warm coat, gloves and shoes with grip matter more than an umbrella. A costume worn for a whole day outdoors needs warm layers underneath.
Acqua alta and the MOSE barriers
High tides (acqua alta) can flood low-lying parts of the city, St Mark's Square among them, in winter as well as in autumn. The City of Venice's tide centre warns of them in several ways (City of Venice alert services):
- Sirens sound around the city, usually about three hours ahead, when a tide of +110 cm or more is forecast. The number of rising tones tells you how high: one tone for +110 cm, up to four for +140 cm and over (City of Venice).
- Telegram channels from the tide centre post forecasts and alerts, and the City's tide centre news page posts notices when the MOSE barriers are raised (tide centre news).
The MOSE flood barriers close the lagoon's inlets when a high tide is forecast. They were raised during the 2026 Carnival too: on 7 February 2026, the day of the Festa delle Marie, the tide centre posted a "MOSE active" notice saying the tide in the city could still reach about 90 cm. Check the tide forecast each morning, and keep waterproof shoes handy if a high tide is forecast.
Before you fly: EES and ETIAS
Italy is in the Schengen area, so US, UK and Australian visitors are registered in the EU's Entry/Exit System (EES) on their first crossing: four fingerprints and a facial photo at passport control, instead of a passport stamp. ETIAS, the EU's online travel authorisation, was not running on 8 October 2026 and had no start date, so there is nothing to apply for yet. Our guide to entering Europe in 2026 has the details. Check the official ETIAS site again before a trip in January or February 2027.
Staying connected at the Carnival
Your phone does a lot of work in Venice: the dinner show or ball ticket, the bus or water bus from the airport, the tide alerts and above all the map.
- Download an offline map before you land. Venice's lanes are narrow and tall buildings block the sky, so GPS often puts you on the wrong side of a canal. An offline map keeps working when data slows or your battery saver kicks in. Save your hotel and the nearest water bus stop.
- Crowds slow mobile data. On the busiest days, thousands of phones share the same cells around St Mark's Square and Rialto, so messages lag and maps crawl. Agree a meeting point and a time, screenshot your tickets, and send your photos once you are out of the crowd.
- Keep your phone charged. Cold days drain batteries fast, and a dead phone means no map in a city that is easy to get lost in. Carry a power bank.
- Check what your home plan charges for Italy. Verizon's TravelPass is $12 a day per line and AT&T's International Day Pass is $12 a day, while T-Mobile's Experience plans include 5 GB or 15 GB of high-speed data abroad before slowing to 256 kbps. Mint Mobile charges for a Minternational Pass outside Canada. See our guides to Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile and Mint Mobile roaming. Since Brexit, UK networks set their own charges for roaming in the EU, and many add a daily fee, so check your plan's Europe terms. Australian carriers such as Telstra sell daily roaming passes too.
A daily pass adds up over a week in Venice. A travel eSIM installed at home is the simpler fix: a data-only line that works when you land at Marco Polo, with your usual number still on your home SIM for calls and texts. Our plans for Italy are Europe plans that also cover France, Switzerland, Austria and the rest of a 30-country list, so a side trip to Austria or Switzerland, or on to Paris, needs no second eSIM. Check that your phone supports eSIM, follow the install guide for iPhone or Android on Wi-Fi before you fly, and compare plans on our Italy eSIM page.
FAQ
When is Venice Carnival 2027?
The official Carnevale di Venezia site gives the dates as 23 January to 9 February 2027. The last day is Martedì Grasso, Shrove Tuesday, on 9 February 2027. On 11 October 2026 the theme and the full programme had not been announced.
What is the theme of Venice Carnival 2027?
It had not been announced on 11 October 2026. The 2026 theme, "Olympus: alle origini del gioco", was announced on 24 October 2025, so expect the 2027 theme around the same time of year.
Do I have to pay the Venice access fee during Carnival?
Not so far. In 2026 the City of Venice charged day visitors on 60 days between 3 April and 26 July, which did not include Carnival, and no 2027 calendar had been announced on 11 October 2026. Overnight guests are exempt, but they had to show a free exemption QR code on the days the fee applied.
Do I need a costume or a mask to go to the Carnival?
No. The parades and shows in the streets and squares can be watched by anyone, in costume or not. Some ticketed evening events, such as the Official Dinner Show at Ca' Vendramin Calergi, require period costume.
How do I get from Venice airport to the city during Carnival?
Take ACTV line 5 or the ATVO express bus to Piazzale Roma, which ATVO says takes about 20 minutes, or an Alilaguna water bus across the lagoon to Fondamente Nove, Rialto or San Marco. A private water taxi goes straight to your hotel's nearest landing. Allow extra time on the opening Sunday, when the water parade closes part of the Grand Canal.
Will my phone work in Venice?
US, UK and Australian phones roam in Italy, but many plans charge by the day, and data slows in the Carnival crowds around St Mark's Square. Check your plan's Italy rate, download an offline map, and consider a travel eSIM if your plan charges for every day abroad.
Facts checked on 11 October 2026 against the official Carnevale di Venezia site (carnevale.venezia.it) and its 2025 and 2026 news, the City of Venice (live.comune.venezia.it and comune.venezia.it, access fee and tide alert pages), the official access fee portal cda.ve.it, Venice Marco Polo airport, ATVO, Alilaguna, the WMO 1991 to 2020 climate normals for Venezia Tessera published by NOAA, our guide to entering Europe in 2026 and our Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile and Mint Mobile roaming guides.