November (Novembre) is the height of the low tourist season in Italy. One of the main reasons for this is that the weather is typically cold and rainy throughout the peninsula.
But if you’re willing to endure grey days, November can be a fantastic time to be here. Fewer tourists means it is easier to get a sense of everyday life. Not to mention, museums are emptier, cafes are cozier, and airfare is often cheaper.
What is the Weather in Italy in November?
November is Italy’s rainiest month, with an average of 7 to 11 rainy days. That average still leaves a possibility for more sunny days than rainy ones. But rain coupled with falling temperatures can make even the most beautiful cities and landscapes dreary.
Milan, Bologna, and Turin, three northern Italian cities that see rainfall spread out evenly throughout the year, average fewer rainy days (6-7) than most of the peninsula. Average high temperatures are in the low 50s °F (10-11 °C), with lows in the upper 30s (3-4°C). Temperatures in Venice average about the same, but November (and December) can also bring high tides (acqua alta) and scirocco-induced storm surges. Late November can also bring a dusting of snow to northern Italian cities.
November days in Rome and Florence are milder, with highs in the mid- to upper-50s °F and lows in the low 40s °F (5-15°C). Florence gets on average eight days of rain during November, while Rome can see 10 to 11 days of rain during the month.
Southern Italy is particularly rainy in November, with Naples, Cagliari, and Palermo averaging around 11 days of rain. Temperatures in southern Italy in November range from highs in the low-60s to lows in the mid-40s to low 50s (8-17 °C).
November Average Temperatures
| Florence | Milan | Naples | Palermo | Rome | Turin | Venice | |||
| High/Low F | 59/41 | 51/39 | 63/46 | 66/55 | 62/46 | 53/45 | 55/39 | ||
| High/Low C | 15/5 | 11/3 | 17/8 | 19/13 | 17/8 | 12/7 | 13/4 |
November in Italy: Holidays, Festivals, and Other Events
November 1 and 2 – Ognissanti or All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day
November 1 is All Saints’ Day in Italy, a day on which the Christian faithful honor saints and martyrs by, for example, attending mass or visiting churches. As it is a public holiday, this is also day on which Italians take it easy and/or visit friends and family. November 1 precedes All Souls’ Day (November 2), a day on which Italians remember friends and relatives who have passed away. November 2 is not typically set aside as a holiday, however. So many use November 1 as a chance to visit the cemetery and lay flowers on the graves of loved ones.
November 4 – Day of National Unity and of the Armed Forces
The day known in Italian as La Festa dell Unità e delle Forze Armate is a day that Italy commemorates its victory in World War I. It is a day on which the President of Italy lays a wreath at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier (Milite Ignoto), at the Vittorio Emanuele Monument in Rome. Other fanfare can be found outside the presidential palace on the Quirinale with the changing of the guard, among other events and military commemorations throughout the country.
November 4 is an important date in Italian history. But it’s not particularly celebrated with vigor across the country. For example, November 4 isn’t a public holiday but it is often celebrated in conjunction with the November 1 holiday depending on how the days appear in the yearly calendar. For example, If November 1 falls on Friday and November 4 on Monday, schools, government offices, and other businesses may choose to make a long holiday of it. Or, as the apropos image below suggests, fare il ponte.
November 21 – Festa della Madonna della Salute, Venice
One of the most important dates on the Venetian calendar is November 21, the day on which Venice commemorate the end of the plague in 1631. The Basilica della Madonna della Salute (Holy Mary of Health) was built in honor of the Virgin Mary who Venetians believed finally delivered them from the epidemic that killed more than 80,000 (more than the current population of Venice). Venetians still pay homage to Mary on this day by visiting the church and their pilgrimage is made easier thanks to a temporary footbridge built across the Grand Canal for the occasion.
Late November – Christmas Markets
The third or fourth weeks of November mean the arrival of Christmas markets in many towns and cities throughout Italy. The largest and best Christmas markets tend to appear in northern Italy, in cities like Trento and Bolzano. Florence and Milan also hold lovely Christmas markets, where you can purchase artisan crafts, including ornaments, gourmet foodstuffs, and vin brulé.
Italy Magazine’s Top 10 Christmas Markets in Italy is a reliable resource for Christmas market ideas. Note, however, that Rome’s Christmas Market in Piazza Navona has, unfortunately, been inconsistent or nonexistent for the last several years.
November Calendar: Italy Anniversaries and Events
November 1
- All Saints’ Day – Tutti i Santi
- Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling is shown to the public for the first time (1512)
- Death of painter Giulio Romano (1546)
- Birth of Pietro da Cortona (1596)
- Birth of Antonio Canova (1757)
- Juventus Football Club founded in Turin (1897)
- First edition of the comic book (fumetto) Diabolik is published (1962)
- First line of the Metropolitana di Milano is inaugurated (1964)
November 2
- All Souls’ Day
- Birth of Luchino Visconti (1906)
- Death of Pier Paolo Pasolini (1975)
November 3
- Birth of Benvenuto Cellini (1500)
- Birth of Annibale Carracci (1560)
- Birth of Vincenzo Bellini (1801)
- Birth of Monica Vitti (1931)
November 4
- La Festa dell Unità e delle Forze Armate
- Birth of Guido Reni (1575)
- Teatro di San Carlo, Europe’s oldest operating opera house, inaugurated in Naples (1737)
- Arno floods the city of Florence; Venice experiences acqua granda flooding, and much of northeast Italy affected by the grandi alluviazioni due to strong Scirocco winds (1966)
November 6
- Naval Academy is born in Livorno (1881)
November 8
- Birth of Emperor Nerva (30)
- The Republic of Venice enacts a law requiring all glassmakers to relocate to the island of Murano (1291). The law would help protect the mostly wooden structures of Venice by ensuring that the glass-making furnaces were located at a safe distance.
- Death of Melozzo da Forlì (1494)
- First Nobel Prize in Literature awarded to Luigi Pirandello (1934)
November 9
- Death of Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1778)
November 10
- Feast Day of Pope Leo I
- Birth of Ennio Morricone (1928)
November 11
- Armistice Day
November 13
- Death of Gioachino Rossini (1868)
- Death of Vittorio De Sica (1974)
November 15
- Birth of Roberto Cavalli (1940)
November 16
- Birth of Tiberius (42 B.C.)
- Scuderia Ferrari founded in Maranello (1929)
November 17
- Birth of Vespasian (9)
- Birth of Bronzino (1503)
November 18
- The new St. Peter’s Basilica is consecrated (1626)
- Birth of Gio Ponti (1891)
November 19
- Birth of Giuseppe Volpi (1877), founder of the Venice Film Festival
- Birth of Gillo Pontecorvo (1919)
November 20
- Diocletian chosen as emperor (284)
- Ercole I d’Este welcomes exiled Jews expelled from Spain to Ferrara (1492)
- Birth of queen consort Margherita of Savoy (1851), wife of Italy’s second king Umberto I
- Birth of Emilio Pucci (1914)
- Death of Giorgio de Chirico (1978)
November 23
- Death of Bronzino (1572)
- Birth of pianist Ludovico Einaudi (1955)
- 6.9 magnitude earthquake strikes Irpinia (1980)
November 24
November 27
- Marcus Aurelius gives his son Commodus the rank of “Imperator” and makes him Supreme Commander of the Roman legions (176)
- Death of Jacopo Sansovino (1570)
November 28
- Death of Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1680)
- Birth of Alberto Moravia (1907)
- Death of Enrico Fermi (1954)
November 29
- Death of Claudio Monteverdi (1643)
- Birth of Gaetano Donizetti (1797)
- Death of Giacomo Puccini (1924)
November 30
- Feast Day of Saint Andrew (Sant’Andrea)
- Birth of Andrea Palladio (1508)
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