Viareggio Carnival

The carnival began in 1873 when wealthy locals paraded carriages in protest at taxes, and grew into one of the largest in Europe. The floats are built in a permanent complex called the Cittadella by workshops that compete each year, using papier-mache over frames, a technique adopted in the 1920s because it made vast structures light enough to move; the biggest reach twenty metres and carry heads that turn, arms that lift and figures that rise, worked by operators inside. The subjects are satirical and usually political, aimed at whoever is currently in power at home or abroad. Parades run along the seafront over several days.

What you actually see

• The giant floats - papier-mache structures up to twenty metres tall.
• The moving parts - heads, arms and figures worked from inside.
• The satire - designs mocking current political figures.
• The Cittadella - the workshop complex where the floats are built.

When to go

February, over a series of parade days including weekends and Shrove Tuesday; dates shift with Easter. The Cittadella workshops can be visited outside the season.

Honest expectations

Parade days are ticketed and crowded, with the seafront closed to traffic. Weather in February on this coast can be wet and cold. Accommodation books out.

Nearby

Lucca lies inland; the Apuan Alps rise behind the coast.