When choosing dates it’s best to keep in mind the national bank holidays throughout the year. If you happen to visit during a major holiday or local festival, everything could be affected from museum opening times to hotel availability and pricing to crowds. The holidays can be great fun to experience and truly dive into the local culture, but it’s best to be prepared! New Year’s Day tends to be fairly laid-back after the preceding days. Families may get together for a lunch of zampone (a typical stuffed pork leg sausage often eaten on this day) served with lentils, a hopeful symbol of good fortune and wealth for the coming year much like black-eyed peas in the USA. Some families serve it on New Year’s Eve. As a major bank holiday nearly everything is closed tight today, except churches and a few restaurants. Tourism is light this time of year so crowds are not high.
