Italian New Year traditions: how Italy celebrates Capodanno

When the clock strikes midnight on December 31, families across Italy gather to celebrate Capodanno, the country’s New Year holiday. From sharing a special meal to enjoying fireworks and long-standing customs, Italian New Year traditions are centered on family, togetherness, and hopes for a prosperous year ahead.

Whether you’re reconnecting with family and friends in Italy, learning more about your heritage, or simply curious about how New Year’s Eve in Italy is celebrated, these traditions offer a closer look at how Italians welcome a new beginning.

What is Capodanno?

The Italian word Capodanno means “head of the year” and refers to New Year’s Day and the celebrations surrounding it. While holiday festivities continue throughout December, the main events take place on New Year’s Eve, December 31, and continue into the first days of January.

Like many New Year celebrations around the world, Capodanno focuses on family, food, good fortune, and looking ahead to the opportunities of a new year.

How Italians celebrate with the cenone

One of the most important Italian New Year traditions is the Cenone di Capodanno, or the big New Year’s Eve dinner.

Families and friends gather for a meal that often lasts until midnight. The cenone is a celebration of abundance, with multiple courses, regional recipes, desserts, and sparkling wine shared around the table.

Depending on the region, the menu may include:

• Homemade pasta
• Seafood appetizers
• Roasted meats
• Traditional desserts
• Panettone or pandoro
• Sparkling wine or prosecco

The cenone is about more than food. It’s a chance to reflect on the past year and welcome the new one together.

Why lentils symbolize good luck

No discussion of Italian New Year traditions would be complete without mentioning lentils.

Across Italy, lentils are considered a symbol of wealth and prosperity because their small, round shape resembles coins. Many people believe that eating lentils on New Year’s Eve or shortly after midnight may bring financial good fortune in the year ahead.

Lentils are often served alongside:

• Cotechino, a seasoned pork sausage
• Zampone, a stuffed pork dish popular in parts of northern Italy

Together, these foods symbolize abundance, luck, and a positive start to the new year.

Even people who do not consider themselves superstitious often continue this tradition. After all, welcoming a little extra luck is a popular way to begin a new year.

How fireworks welcome the new year

As midnight approaches, towns and cities across Italy prepare for celebrations.

Fireworks are one of the most recognizable parts of Capodanno. Families, friends, and neighbors gather in public squares and community spaces to count down the final moments of the year before welcoming the new one.

New Year’s Eve celebrations may include:

• Fireworks displays
• Public concerts
• Countdown events
• Community festivals
• Midnight toasts with prosecco

These celebrations are also connected to older traditions that associate loud sounds with chasing away bad luck and welcoming positive energy for the coming year.

How New Year’s celebrations vary across Italy

While New Year’s traditions are celebrated throughout the country, local customs can vary from region to region.

Some families spend the evening at home sharing the cenone with relatives, while others join community celebrations in local squares. Cities and towns often host concerts, performances, and public gatherings leading up to midnight.

No matter where the celebration takes place, the themes remain similar: family, community, good food, and optimism for the year ahead.

How the holiday season continues with La Befana

The holiday season in Italy does not end on January 1.

On January 6, Italians celebrate Epiphany, a holiday associated with La Befana, an important figure in Italian folklore. According to tradition, La Befana travels by broomstick and leaves treats for children.

On Epiphany morning, children may receive:

• Candy
• Small gifts
• Chocolate treats

For many families, Epiphany marks the traditional close of the holiday season and one final opportunity to gather before returning to everyday routines.

How families stay close during the holidays

For many Italian families, New Year celebrations are centered around spending time together, sharing meals, and welcoming the year ahead as a family.

However, not everyone can travel home for Capodanno. Millions of Italians and people of Italian heritage live abroad, and many look for ways to support family and friends during the holiday season.

Whether it’s helping with the cost of a family meal, contributing toward holiday gifts, or supporting relatives during the celebrations, sending money can be a meaningful way to be there across borders.

If you have family in Italy, you can send money to Italy to help support holiday celebrations and family traditions from wherever you are.

Ways to send money to Italy

Supporting those who matter most during the holiday season is easier when you have options that fit your needs.

With Western Union®, you can:

• Begin a money transfer online
• Explore different ways to send money
• Use the international money transfer app to send money on the go
• Send funds with eligible international mobile wallet transfers

Whether you’re helping cover the cost of a family celebration, contributing to holiday gifts, or supporting everyone you care about from afar, Western Union offers convenient ways to send money to Italy and stay close during the New Year season.

Celebrate Italian New Year traditions

From the cenone and lucky lentils to midnight fireworks and the arrival of La Befana, Italian New Year traditions reflect the importance of family, community, and hope for the future.

While distance may separate family and friends during the holidays, sharing traditions and supporting family members from afar can help keep those connections strong. Whether you’re celebrating Capodanno in Italy or from another part of the world, the spirit of the season is about coming together and starting the new year with optimism.