The Most Famous Donkey Race in Italy: The Donkey Palio in Alba.

Ciao! Come state?

Let me tell you something. The first time I heard “donkey race” and “Italy” in the same sentence, I laughed. Then I looked it up. Then I laughed again, but differently. The kind of laugh that says: “…of course, Italy has this, and of course it’s perfect”.

Allora — the Palio degli Asini in Alba, Piedmont, is the most famous donkey race in Italy. And it’s not a quirky little local thing you stumble upon by accident. It draws thousands of visitors every year, it has roots going back to the 14th century, and it happens right in the middle of one of the most celebrated food events in the country: the Fiera del Tartufo Bianco d’Alba, the White Truffle Fair.

Yes. Donkeys racing. Truffle season. Piedmont wine country. All in October.

This is Italy being gloriously, unapologetically itself.

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What is the Palio degli Asini?

The Palio degli Asini is an annual donkey race held in Alba, a beautiful town in the Langhe area of Piedmont, surrounded by vineyards that produce Barolo and Barbaresco.

The race takes place every October, usually on the first Sunday of the month, in the main square of Alba, Piazza Medford. Ten riders from ten different neighborhoods (rioni) of the city compete. Each one represents their district, wears the colors of their rione, and rides an assigned donkey around the track.

The keyword here: assigned. The riders don’t choose their donkeys. The donkeys are assigned by lottery. Which means that on race day, anything can happen.

And anything usually does.

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Why Donkeys? The (Slightly Petty) Origin Story

Here is where Italian history gets wonderfully dramatic.

In 1275, the city of Asti humiliated Alba by organizing a Palio, a horse race, right in front of Alba’s city walls. Just to rub it in. The kind of move that, in modern terms, would be a very public social media callout.

Alba’s response? They organized their own Palio. With donkeys. As a direct mockery of Asti’s prestigious horse race.

The message was clear: you want a race? Fine. We’ll race too. But we’ll make it a joke, and the joke will be on you.

Centuries later, Alba still runs the donkey race every year. The original Palio di Asti, on the other hand, was suspended for a long time and only fully revived in the 20th century. Somehow, the joke outlasted the insult.

Ma stai scherzando? No, I am not.

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What Actually Happens on Race Day

The event is much more than just a race. It’s a full medieval pageant, a corteo storic,o with over 200 people in 14th century costumes, flag throwers, drummers, and a formal procession through the town before the race even begins.

Then come the donkeys.

The race itself is short: just three laps around the square. But those three laps are completely unpredictable. The donkeys stop, wander, and gaze at the crowd with complete indifference toward the man on their backs. The riders try everything: encouragement, persuasion, desperation. The crowd goes wild.

The winner receives the Palio a painted cloth banner for their neighborhood. The loser of the race receives a special consolation prize: a beccafico, a fig stuffed with anchovies. An acquired taste, to say the least.

The atmosphere? Electric. Genuinely joyful. The kind of crowd energy that makes you understand why Italians say che bella vita.

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Alba in October. The Full Picture

The Palio degli Asini doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It’s embedded in one of the best food events in Italy: the Fiera Internazionale del Tartufo Bianco d’Alba, which runs from October through mid-November.

Alba’s white truffle is considered the most prized truffle in the world. Chefs fly in from everywhere. Restaurants put together special menus. The whole town smells extraordinary, earthy, rich, impossible to describe if you haven’t experienced it.

A weekend in Alba in October means: the donkey race, white truffle tastings, Barolo and Barbaresco wine, and medieval streets that look almost too beautiful to be real.

For anyone planning to visit Italy in autumn, this is the kind of combination that doesn’t need a sales pitch. It sells itself.

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Practical Info: How to Get to Alba and When to Go

Where is Alba? In the Langhe wine region, southern Piedmont. About 60 km from Turin, roughly 160 km from Milan.

How to get there:

• By train: from Turin Porta Nuova to Bra, then a regional train or bus to Alba (total about 1.5 hours)
• By car: the most flexible option, especially if you want to explore the surrounding vineyards

When is the Palio degli Asini? First Sunday of October, during the Fiera del Tartufo. Check the official calendar each year at fieradeltartufo.org for exact dates.

Book accommodation early. Alba in October fills up fast. Very fast. The truffle fair draws visitors from across Europe and beyond.

Arrive the day before the race if you can. The atmosphere in town builds up from the Saturday, and there are events, dinners, and tastings worth experiencing before the main event.

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One More Thing Worth Knowing

The Palio degli Asini in Alba is the most famous donkey race in Italy, but it’s not the only one. The tradition of donkey races (palii degli asini) exists in several Italian towns, including Torrita di Siena in Tuscany. Each one has its own history, its own neighborhoods, its own characters.

Italy is full of these things. Traditions that look absurd from the outside and make complete sense the moment you’re inside them.

This is not a country that does spectacle for tourists. These races have been running for centuries before tourism was even a concept. Showing up to watch one feels less like attending an attraction and more like being let in on something real.

And real is always better al dente.

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Have you ever been to a Palio degli Asini in Alba or anywhere else in Italy? Tell me in the comments. I’m genuinely curious which moment got you: the medieval procession, the donkeys with zero interest in racing, or the fig stuffed with anchovies?

Un abbraccio, Maryna