Wine route and events
The Strada del Vino Valpolicella and Wine Events: Dates from Official Sources
Strada del Vino Valpolicella
The Strada del Vino Valpolicella is the area's wine road association: 94 member wineries plus restaurants, accommodation and villas, nine numbered itineraries and over 200 km of cycle routes. Its open-cellar days follow a fixed pattern: the last Sunday of March, a cycling day in April and Val Polis Cellae on the second Sunday of October. Vinitaly returns to Verona on 11 to 14 April 2027.
This page lists the wine events in and around Valpolicella with the dates their organisers publish, says which are open to the public and which are trade fairs, and notes where a date for 2027 has not yet been announced. For the wineries themselves and how to book a visit, see our guide to Valpolicella wine tours from Verona.
What the Strada del Vino Valpolicella is
The Strada del Vino Valpolicella is an association of businesses set up to promote the area that produces Valpolicella wine. Its members include 94 wineries, 51 accommodation businesses and 20 restaurants, along with producers of local food, villas, museums and parks. Its office is in Via Ingelheim in San Pietro in Cariano.
For visitors it publishes nine numbered itineraries: 1 Pescantina and Dolcè, 2 Sant'Ambrogio, 3 Fumane, San Pietro in Cariano and Marano, 4 Negrar, 5 Torricelle, 6 Grezzana, Cerro and San Mauro di Saline, 7 Montorio, 8 San Martino Buon Albergo, Lavagno, Illasi and Mezzane, and 9 Colognola ai Colli, Tregnago, Cazzano di Tramigna and Montecchia di Crosara. The association says its guide does not set heights, times or difficulty, leaving you free to follow the routes by car, bicycle, on foot or with one of its guides. Its cycle map covers over 200 km of routes between vineyards, villages, Romanesque churches and villas.
The association also lists eight information points and 19 tourist packages offered by its members, from guided tastings with a night in an agriturismo to cycling holidays.
The wine road's yearly calendar
The association organises several events a year, each built around open wineries. Its own calendar describes them by a recurring pattern, such as the last Sunday of a month.
On the last Sunday of March, during the Giornata dei Colli Veneti, it runs Valpolicella sulle strade del vino from 10.00 to 18.00: selected wineries open for tastings and cellar visits, with local dishes, and the day adds short guided walks and e-bike outings through the hills. The tourism portal states that you need your own car to move between the wineries. In April comes By Byke, a winery day reached only by bicycle: you bring your own bike or hire an e-bike or mountain bike from partner operators, subject to availability, and receive a GPS track of the route. In early summer the association holds Sound Polis Cellae, which pairs wine with music.
If the patterns hold in 2027, the March day falls on 28 March. Check the association's events page for the current edition before travelling, since the published leaflets on the tourism portal still refer to 2024 and 2025.
Val Polis Cellae: the second Sunday of October
Val Polis Cellae is the wine road's main event, held every second Sunday of October. Each year the association chooses routes that link a group of member wineries. Each winery offers a tasting of its wines, an art exhibition with the artists present, a guided visit of the estate and, in some cases, a Veronese speciality to taste. The association describes the aim as keeping wine, art, food and the discovery of the area together, and says the day draws both wine enthusiasts and the simply curious.
The timing is useful for visitors interested in Amarone: mid-October falls just after the harvest, when the grapes for Amarone and Recioto have been laid out to dry in the lofts, so many wineries are showing appassimento in progress. The 2026 edition has already taken place; the poster for that year is on the event page.
On the published pattern, the 2027 edition would fall on Sunday 10 October 2027. The event page is the place to confirm the date, the routes and how to take part once the association announces them.
Amarone Opera Prima and Vinitaly in Verona
Amarone Opera Prima is the producers' consortium's presentation of the new Amarone vintage. The 2026 edition took place on 31 January and 1 February 2026 at the Gallerie Mercatali of Veronafiere, with tickets on sale to the public. On 15 November 2026 the consortium's website had not yet announced a date for 2027, so check its events section from the end of the year.
Vinitaly, the international wine and spirits exhibition held at Veronafiere, returns for its 59th edition on 11 to 14 April 2027. It is a business fair: the organiser describes four days dedicated to business, networking and the exchange of expertise across the wine industry. For wine lovers, the organiser runs Vinitaly and the City, an event in the historic centre of Verona to discover Italian wines.
The consortium also lists its presence at trade fairs abroad, such as Wine Paris and ProWein, and its own events elsewhere, such as Venezia Superiore in Venice on 9 July 2026. Those are aimed at the trade or held outside the area.
Autumn and winter: olive oil, markets and holiday openings
Valpolicella also grows olives, and in 2026 the wine road added an olive-mill day to its calendar. The Frantòio Evento was on Sunday 15 November, from 10.00 to 17.00, with one ticket covering a guided visit and two oil tastings at each participating mill in Illasi, Grezzana, Cazzano di Tramigna and San Martino Buon Albergo; visitors moved between the mills with their own transport.
In Illasi, the November 2026 programme Illasi Terra d'Olivi continues with an evening on Saturday 21 November at 18.00, the Festa del Ringraziamento on Sunday 22 November, when Piazza Libertà also hosts the Mercato della Terra Val d'Illasi from 9.00 to 13.00, and a book presentation with tasting of Lessinia cheese and local oil on Friday 27 November at 20.00.
At Terre di Pietra in San Martino Buon Albergo, a farmers' market runs every Friday from 16.00 to 19.00. Around Christmas, the wine road publishes a list of member wineries with extra openings on 8, 24, 26 and 31 December, each with its own hours, and the tourism portal keeps a rota of wineries open on Saturdays and Sundays without booking.
Planning a visit around an event
Open-cellar days are the one time when many Valpolicella wineries receive visitors without individual appointments, so they suit travellers who do not want to book estate by estate. They also draw crowds, and the organisers' own pages stress that you move between wineries by car or bicycle. If nobody in your group wants to drive, a guided tour from Verona with transport is the practical alternative on any other day; see our guide to Valpolicella wine tours from Verona.
For public transport, ATV line 103 runs on Sundays between Verona Porta San Giorgio, San Pietro in Cariano and Sant'Ambrogio, seven times each way, and the regional train reaches Domegliara-Sant'Ambrogio from Verona Porta Nuova in 15 minutes; details are on our page on getting to Valpolicella from Verona. The free Valpolicella Card, available online from the tourism portal, gives small discounts at a winery, a villa and the Molina waterfalls park.
If your trip overlaps Vinitaly on 11 to 14 April 2027, book accommodation in Verona well ahead. Our page on where to stay for Valpolicella compares staying in the city and in the villages.
Frequently asked questions
5 questionsWhen is Val Polis Cellae?
Every second Sunday of October, according to the Strada del Vino Valpolicella. On that pattern the 2027 edition would be on 10 October 2027; check the association's event page for confirmation.
When is Vinitaly 2027?
The 59th Vinitaly is at Veronafiere on 11 to 14 April 2027. It is a trade fair; wine lovers can join Vinitaly and the City in the historic centre of Verona.
When is Amarone Opera Prima 2027?
Not yet announced on 15 November 2026. The 2026 edition was on 31 January and 1 February 2026 at the Gallerie Mercatali of Veronafiere, with tickets for the public.
Are there open-cellar days in Valpolicella in spring?
Yes. The wine road runs Valpolicella sulle strade del vino on the last Sunday of March, 10.00 to 18.00, and the By Byke cycling day in April.
What is the Strada del Vino Valpolicella?
An association of wineries, restaurants, accommodation, villas and other businesses that promotes the area. It publishes nine itineraries, a cycle map with over 200 km of routes and a yearly events calendar.
Related guides
3 guides- Wine tourValpolicella Wine Tours from Verona: How Tastings Work and How to BookHow Valpolicella winery visits work from Verona: guided tours or direct bookings, weekend open cellars, the wine road packages and when to see Amarone drying.
- Where to stayWhere to Stay for Valpolicella: Verona or the Wine Villages?Verona or the Valpolicella villages as a base: train and bus times, Sunday service, last buses back, taxis and bike delivery, from official timetables.
- TransportGetting to Valpolicella from Verona: Train, ATV Buses and TaxiVerona to Valpolicella: 15-minute train to Domegliara for 3.10 EUR, ATV bus 103 to San Pietro in Cariano, Sunday buses, day passes and the taxi tariff.