Sagra del Redentore Nuoro 2026: what to expect
The Sagra del Redentore is Sardinia’s largest and most eagerly awaited folk festival. Every year, in the last week of August, Nuoro becomes the beating heart of the island’s identity: the colours, sounds and embroideries of dozens of groups from every corner of Sardinia converge on the historic centre to celebrate together the deepest traditions of Sardinian culture.
The 2026 programme runs from 22 to 29 August with a week of events. It opens on 22 August with the spectacular parade of the 12 traditional masks of Barbagia through the centre of Nuoro, followed by itinerant music and a recital by Piero Marras. The most anticipated day is Sunday 23 August, featuring the grand parade of approximately 53 folk groups and over 2,000 performers in traditional dress who wind through the city streets, followed by riders and horsewomen in full dress uniform, the blessing of the Bishop of Nuoro, and the Regional Folk Festival in Piazza Vittorio Emanuele.
The week continues with a cantu a chiterra poetry competition (24 August), a Moses Concas & Band concert (25 August), the improvised poetry contest “A Bolu” with the Tenore Sòtziu Nugoresu (26 August), and a film screening of “L’amore e la gloria, la giovane Deledda” (28 August). The festival concludes on 29 August with a dawn pilgrimage from the Cathedral of Santa Maria della Neve to Monte Ortobene, where the Bishop of the Diocese Mons. Antonio Mura presides over the solemn mass. All events are free.
Sagra del Redentore Nuoro 2026 — Programme
Saturday 22 August — Masks Parade
The festival opens at 18:00 with the riti de su carrasecàre: the traditional masks of Nuoro province parade through the historic centre in a procession bringing to life the most ancient and mysterious characters of the Sardinian carnival. At 19:00, Nuoro accordion players animate Piazza Vittorio Emanuele in an itinerant performance, while at 22:00 Piero Marras offers a piano and voice recital with “Io mi racconto”.
Traditional masks 2026
- Austis — Urtzu e Colonganos
- Fonni — Urthos e Buttudos
- Gavoi — Tumbarinos
- Lodine — Maimone ’e Carrasecare, Ziomo
- Mamoiada — Mamuthones e Issohadores
- Olzai — Maimones, Murronarzos e Intintos
- Orani — Bundhu
- Ottana — Merdules e Boes
- Sarule — Maschera a gattu e Maimone
- Siniscola — Sos Tintinnatos
- Sorgono — Arestes e Urtzu Pretistu
- Teti — Sennoreddu e Iscusorzu
Sunday 23 August — The Grand Parade
This is the most eagerly awaited day of the Sagra. From 10:00, approximately 53 groups representing all geographic areas of Sardinia process along via Tola, piazza San Giovanni, Roma, Dante, via Deffenu, Ciusa Romagna, Lamarmora and corso Garibaldi, bringing over 2,000 performers in traditional dress to the streets. At 12:00, Sardinia’s riders and horsewomen in full dress uniform join the cortege with their horses. At 13:00, the Bishop of the Diocese of Nuoro, S. E. Mons. Antonio Mura, imparts the solemn blessing at the Cathedral of Santa Maria della Neve. In the afternoon, from 18:00, the Regional Folk Festival opens in Piazza Vittorio Emanuele: in addition to Nuoro’s own groups dancing together, the following tenores and dance groups perform.
Folk groups at the Sagra del Redentore 2026
Official list of folk groups parading on Sunday 23 August:
- Aritzo — Texile
- Barisardo — Nostra Signora di Monserrato
- Benetutti
- Bitti — Sas Prennas
- Bolotana — Su ’e Ortachis
- Bono — San Michele Arcangelo
- Burgos
- Cabras — A Sa Crabarissa
- Cagliari — Quartiere Villanova
- Cossoine — Santa Chiara
- Desulo — Padentes
- Dolianova — Is Arxolas
- Dorgali — Tiscali
- Gavoi — Pro Loco
- Gesturi — Nostra Signora d’Itria
- Ghilarza — Su Carruzu
- Iglesias — Città di Iglesias
- Ittiri — Canneddu
- Lula
- Mamoiada — Santu Cosomo e Santu Damianu
- Maracalagonis — Nostra Sennor ’e Itri
- Nuxis — Sant’Elia
- Olbia — Olbiese
- Oliena — Battor Moros
- Ollolai — Balladores
- Orani
- Orgosolo — Murales
- Oristano — Città di Oristano
- Orosei — Santu Jacu
- Osilo — A Manu tenta
- Ossi — Santa Ithoria
- Paulilatino — Pro Loco
- Ploaghe — Salvatore Manca
- Putifigari
- Quartu Sant’Elena — Su Idanu
- Sant’Antioco — Pro Loco
- Sarroch — Santa Vittoria
- Sarule — Monte Gonare
- Sassari — San Nicola
- Selargius — Fedora Putzu
- Seneghe — Pro Loco
- Sennori — Città di Sennori
- Serramanna — Tradizioni Popolari
- Sestu — I Nuraghi
- Silanus — Tradissiones Populares – Gianfranco Scalas
- Siniscola — Cuccuru ’e Janas
- Sinnai
- Tonara — Peppino Mereu
- Teulada — Silver Voices
- Thiesi — Pro Loco
- Tuili — Sa Jara
- Uri — Santa Rughe
- Urzulei — Pro Loco
Regional Folk Festival — Sunday 23 August, from 18:00
Tenores and dance groups take turns on the stage of Piazza Vittorio Emanuele:
Cantu a Tenore
Dance groups
- Bolotana — Su ’e Ortachis
- Burgos
- Cagliari — Quartiere Villanova
- Dorgali — Tiscali
- Gavoi — Pro Loco
- Ghilarza — Su Carruzu
- Ittiri — Canneddu
- Mamoiada — Santu Cosomo e Damianu
- Olbia — Olbiese
- Oliena — Battor Moros
- Osilo — A manu tenta
- Ossi — Santa Ithoria
- Ploaghe — Salvatore Manca
- Sarule — Monte Gonare
- Selargius — Fedora Putzu
- Sestu — I Nuraghi
- Silanus — Tradissiones Populares – Gianfranco Scalas
- Uri — Santa Rughe
Monday 24 August — Sa Gara, the Cantu a Chiterra
At 22:00 in Piazza Sebastiano Satta, the traditional cantu a chiterra poetry competition features cantadores Gian Daniele Calbini, Gianni Denanni, Daniele Giallara and Marco Manca; on guitar Nino Manca, on accordion Davide Caddeo.
Tuesday 25 August — Moses Concas & Band
At 22:00 in Piazza Sebastiano Satta, a concert by Moses Concas & Band.
Wednesday 26 August — A Bolu, Improvised Poetry
At 22:00 in Piazza Sebastiano Satta, a traditional poetry competition with poets Bruno Agus, Dionigi Bitti and Giuseppe Porcu, accompanied by the Tenore Sòtziu Nugoresu of Nuoro.
Friday 28 August — Film screening
At 21:00 at the Parco Chiesa della Solitudine area, screening of the film “L’amore e la gloria, la giovane Deledda”. Introduced by Prof. Duilio Caocci, with producer Salvatore Cubeddu and director Maria Grazia Perria.
Saturday 29 August — Pilgrimage to Monte Ortobene
At 06:00 the religious pilgrimage sets off from the Cathedral of Santa Maria della Neve to Monte Ortobene, the spiritual heart of the Sagra. At 11:00, before the bronze statue of the Redeemer, the Bishop of the Diocese of Nuoro S. E. Mons. Antonio Mura celebrates the solemn mass accompanied by Nuoro’s choirs, followed by the religious procession around the Monte Ortobene Park trail.
Getting to Nuoro
Distance from main cities
Cagliari
185 km · 2h
Olbia
105 km · 1h 10min
Alghero
130 km · 1h 30min
Venue
Nuoro — Historic centre and Monte Ortobene
Nuoro (NU) · Piazza Vittorio Emanuele – Viale del Lavoro
🚗 By car
From Cagliari: SS131 Carlo Felice motorway to Macomer, then SS129dcn towards Nuoro (about 185 km, 2h). From Olbia: SS131dcn towards Nuoro (about 105 km, 1h10). From Alghero: SS131 to Macomer, then SS129dcn (about 130 km, 1h30). Car parks available in Piazza d’Italia and the surrounding areas.
🚌 Bus
ARST lines from Sassari, Olbia and Cagliari to Nuoro. The bus station is a few minutes’ walk from the historic centre.
✈️ Nearest airport
Olbia Costa Smeralda Airport (~105 km) or Cagliari-Elmas (~185 km).
🚗 Compare prices and rent a car at the best rateClick Open in Google Maps for GPS navigation and live directions.
Frequently asked questions
When does the Sagra del Redentore in Nuoro 2026 take place?
The Sagra del Redentore 2026 runs from 22 to 29 August in Nuoro. The highlight is Sunday 23 August with the grand parade of folk groups and riders. The pilgrimage and solemn mass on Monte Ortobene conclude the festival on Saturday 29 August.
How many folk groups take part in the Sagra del Redentore?
About 53 folk groups with over 2,000 performers in traditional Sardinian dress take part in the Sagra del Redentore 2026, representing all the island’s geographic areas. On 22 August, 12 traditional Barbagia masks parade through the town.
How do I get to Nuoro for the Sagra del Redentore?
From Cagliari: SS131 Carlo Felice motorway to Macomer, then SS129dcn towards Nuoro (about 185 km, 2 hours). From Olbia: SS131dcn towards Nuoro (about 105 km, 1h10). From Alghero: SS131 to Macomer, then SS129dcn (about 130 km, 1h30). The nearest airport is Olbia Costa Smeralda. ARST buses connect Nuoro with the main Sardinian cities.
Is there an admission fee for the Sagra del Redentore?
Admission to the Sagra del Redentore is free for all events: the masks parade, the grand folk groups parade, the Regional Folk Festival, poetry competitions, concerts and the pilgrimage to Monte Ortobene.
History and Traditions of the Sagra del Redentore
The Sagra del Redentore has its roots in a precise event: on 29 August 1901, on Monte Ortobene on the outskirts of Nuoro, the bronze statue of the Cristo Redentore (Christ the Redeemer) was unveiled, a work by sculptor Vincenzo Jerace. From that date, the annual pilgrimage to the mountain gradually became one of the most heartfelt celebrations of Sardinian identity.
Throughout the twentieth century, a folk component of unrivalled scale in Sardinia developed around the religious core: the parade of groups in traditional dress, which today gathers dozens of communities from every corner of the island, has become the most eagerly awaited moment of the year for those who want to see the entire wealth of Sardinian traditional dress gathered in one place. It is not just about clothes: each group brings its own songs, dances and instruments, offering the audience a living encyclopaedia of the island’s cultural diversity.
Barbagia contributes something unique to the event: the parade of traditional carnival masks on 22 August, which brings to life ancestral figures such as the Mamuthones of Mamoiada, the Merdules e Boes of Ottana, and the Urthos e Buttudos of Fonni. These figures, linked to propitiatory rites for the land and livestock, find in the Sagra del Redentore one of their most important stages of the year. The festival is organised by the Comune di Nuoro and concludes, as tradition dictates, with the religious procession on Monte Ortobene: a journey of faith that pilgrims have been walking on foot at dawn every year since the early decades of the twentieth century.
