Venice's Feast Of The Redeemer

One of the most interesting times to be in Venice is during the Festa del Redentore, or Festival of the Redeemer. While February’s Carnival celebration undoubtedly has its share of excitement, it is a tradition that has been recreated largely for tourists, while the Festa del Redentore, held on the third Sunday in July, is an authentically local event that holds a place of importance for Venice’s citizens.

The festival’s participants spend the day Saturday decorating their boats or rooftop terraces, preparing for the evening’s fireworks. A temporary floating bridge is strung across the Giudecca Canal, allowing people to walk across to the Church of the Redentore. The revelers begin to gather at sunset, filling up Saint Mark’s basin with their boats, festively decorated with balloons and garlands, to dine while awaiting the nighttime display. People eagerly gather and celebrate on rooftops, on boats, on the waterfront. The fireworks begin in the late evening and last for up to an hour, filling onlookers with intense emotions from the Giudecca to the Lido, where young people gather to enjoy the fireworks from afar and carry on their own festivities throughout the night. On Sunday morning locals either attend church or the Regata del Redentore, the traditional race held along the Giudecca Canal.

The Festa del Redentore originated between 1575 and 1577, during an outbreak of the plague that devastated Venice. During this brief period a full third of the city’s population or more fell victim to the killer disease, notably Venice’s great painter Titian. The Senate, urged by the Doge, Alvise Mocenigo, commissioned a majestic church dedicated to Christ the Redeemer to be built on the island of Giudecca as a plea for divine intervention. Within a year the city had become free of the plague, and the grateful citizens of Venice have celebrated the Festival of the Redeemer every year since.