berryaneurysm

My wife and I will be traveling to Rome at the end of April. After doing some research, I realized we will be there on May 1st, labor day. I have read that many shops and businesses will be closed. I was wondering if anyone had more information. I know the Vatican museum will be closed that day, will other tourist attractions be closed as well? Will restaurants and bars be closed? I read about a free concert which is held that day but what else is there to do? Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated!

caze17

I'm not sure but I have that same question for Bologna if anyone has info on that as well! Mostly what special celebrations/concerts we might expect and if most restaurants will be open.

maiteland

hi, i just spoke to a friend who lives in rome, he says that restaurants will be open and that there is a free concert in piazza san giovanni. where are you staying?

rineurope

On Labor Day, many of the smaller family restaurants and businesses will be closed. But the tourist locations will still be open. Last year, the Ministry for Arts and Culture - also known as MiBAC - announced €1 Entry Fees Across Italy on Labor Day. Have not seen the note this year...

The concert is... crowded. It starts about 14:00 and goes into the morning. The metro station at San Giovanni will be closed so you'll have to hike in - see: http://tinyurl.com/c2fs62p for more information and photo.

You can expect LITTLE public transportation to be operating in the AM. It gets better as the day progresses, but they are still on a "restricted" holiday schedule. A good day to plan activities that don't require transportation.

Ackislander

Since Bologna is/was the most Communist city in Italy, it will be interesting to read a reply to caze17's query.

caze17

Ackislander - I do wonder if the "celebrations" I'm hoping for in Bologna are more like protests/demonstrations!

yestravel

We were in Bologna a couple years ago on May 1. some places we're closed, but lots open. don't recall seeing any special celebrations, but perhaps they were not where we were.

eurotravelplan

There is usually a huge concert in the piazza Maggiore in Bologna.

Communists are a political party in Italy of long-standing. They are not the Anarchist party, they are the Communist party. Many towns in Emilia-Romagna are Communist, and they are noted for having the highest levels of educational attainment in Italy, with good public schools. They formed the backbone of resistance against the Fascists and the Nazis in WW2, and therefore enjoyed tremendous popular support in the post-war years. (The US CIA, the Mafia and the Catholic Church all teamed up to prevent their gaining democratic electoral victories). In an age of a bank-driven austerity that is causing incredible hardship throughout Europe, much of what the Communist party of Italy says today makes more sense that what other supposedly respectable or "reform" parties say in Italy today.

Relax. Communists in Italy don't bite. That's the undying McCarthy-ite attitude in America, and it is pretty uninformed.

caze17

Eurotravelplan - thanks for the info about the concert in Piazza Maggiore. The middle section of your post was educational to some, I'm sure. The last part was based on assumptions and not necessary.

I'm not suggesting that Communists "bite" - only that some may choose to use this day to demonstrate in support of their values and that my hope for "celebrations" may have been unfounded. I would consider myself socially very liberal and fiscally moderate (and very well-educated to boot), so the fact that you are telling me to relax and comparing my "uninformed" attitude to the McCarthy era just goes to show that it can be difficult to decipher intent and tone from the written word. Oh well. Back to travel planning...

Ackislander

I thought it was _me_ s/he was telling to relax!

I would be disappointed to go to Bologna and _not_ see demonstrations! This happened to me on Labor Day in Paris a few years ago, and I was disappointed.

eurotravelplan, do you know the novels of the English writer Eric Ambler?

Several of his pre-war (WWII) suspense novels feature as heroes the American brother-sister Comintern agents, the Zaleshofs. They manage to save several technically adept but politically naive British citizens from the consequences of their own actions, both in Mussolini's Italy and Central Europe. Among their allies in one of the books were some Bolognese railwaymen who had bits of red thread underneath their lapels for recognition. No question in these books that the Reds were the good guys! He changed after the Hitler Stalin pact and especially after the collapse of Czechoslovakia.

berryaneurysm

Maiteland and rineurope, thanks for the information, its much appreciated!

charnees

DD lived in Florence for a year at age 21 and she and her Italian boyfriend always went to the Communist Party events because they had the best food and entertainment. Didn't care what the political message was.