San Martino festival in Biassa: a La Spezia village goes back to the Middle Ages

On 14 and 15 November 2026 Biassa, a hillside village that is part of the municipality of La Spezia, celebrates St Martin with a medieval-style festival. For two days the streets fill with food stalls, including sgabei, strips of fried bread dough typical of the La Spezia area, a craft market and old-fashioned games for adults and children. The programme features flag throwers, costumed parades, live medieval music and a variety of shows. The festival recalls the legend of the soldier Martin, who on a cold, rainy day cut his cloak in two to give half to a beggar: right afterwards, so the story goes, the sun came out again. That is why the mild days of mid-November are called St Martin's summer.