Italian Street Markets: Southern Italy

This guide takes you to through the Italian Street Markets of Southern Italy, in an exciting journey through its most distinctive street markets.

If you love immersing yourself in the colors of Street Markets to discover the traditions, flavors and scents of a City or a Country and experience the taste and feel of the everyday life of its inhabitants, you will love this post!

There is one Italian Street Market unlike any other in the world: the San Gregorio Armeno Market in Naples, which is completely devoted to the exhibition of its renowned presepi or nativity scenes.Wandering the narrow lanes of the historical centre you can admire statues and figurines of the nativity scene, examples of beautifully-made antiques that have always been a must-see. The peculiar thing about this streets market is that, despite it being obviously related to the Christmas season, this Neapolitan market is open all year round: every day its artisans offer new shepherd figures who look like important figures from national and international news.

They call it the Fera ‘o Luni which translated into English means “the Monday fair”: but actually this market takes place every day in Catania, in Piazza Carlo Alberto, and boasts a centuries-old tradition. Since the days of the Spanish dominion over Italy, the Fera ‘o Luni has brought joy to the streets and people of Catania: the only thing that has changed in the course of the centuries is the location, which moved from in front of the Basilica della Collegiata in Piazza Università to its current position. Today, the market of Catania is a real whirlwind of voices and colours, a spectacle for its inhabitants and for all the tourists who, as always, cannot help being impressed by the joy and vitality of the Etnean people.

If you are looking for colorful and chaotic markets, you absolutely must not miss the Capo and the Ballarò markets in the beautiful city of Palermo, Sicily. Since ancient times, this provincial capital has been an important commercial crossroads for Mediterranean trade: today the Capo and the Ballarò market, besides supplying vegetables and fruit produced in the surrounding countryside, also offer visitors a great street food experience and the opportunity to try typical Sicilian dishes. The markets keep their visitors’ attention thanks to the so-called abbaniate, the loud calls of the sellers who, in their unmistakable accent, try to whet the appetites of passers-by by praising the quality and prices of their products.