The second Sunday of October, in the Gulf of Trieste

The Barcolana

For a few hours the gulf stops being a sea and becomes a fleet. From the shore it is a sight you remember. From inside the race field it is another thing entirely: hulls pass within metres, you hear the crews working, and the start is not something you watch — you are in the middle of it.

The next Barcolana is raced on Sunday 10 October 2027. The start is in the morning, around 10:30. The race, though, is the last act of ten days: the village in piazza dell'Unità, the supporting regattas, the concerts and exhibitions that keep the city awake from one weekend to the next. The date is not fixed in the calendar: it always falls on the second Sunday of October. This page recalculates it, and always shows the edition still to come.

The most crowded regatta in the world

No other sailing regatta puts as many boats on the water, and no other starts them all at once: the racing prototype and the family cruiser on the same line, on the same signal. That is where the image the Barcolana is known for comes from — a gulf closed over with sails, the water no longer visible. Around fifteen hundred boats were entered in the 2026 edition.

Boats packed on the Barcolana start line, between Barcola and Miramare — The start line, before the fleet opens out.

A racing boat seen from a few metres away over the tube of a dinghy, Trieste behind — Alongside, close enough to hear the crew working.

The Barcolana fleet in front of Trieste, Miramare castle on the left and the Faro della Vittoria on the hill — From Miramare to the Faro della Vittoria: the race never leaves the city's view.

The course

A fixed four-sided course of about thirteen nautical miles, entirely within the gulf. That is why the Barcolana can be followed from the shore as few regattas in the world can: it never leaves the city's field of view.

The start lineStretched between Barcola and Miramare. Fifteen hundred boats on a single line, still, and an instant later anything but: the moment that is worth the journey on its own.
The first markJust over four miles from the start. Here the fleet opens out, and you see who read the wind and who did not.
The four-sided courseThe circuit closes in the water in front of the city, under the eyes of the Rive.
The finishIn front of piazza dell'Unità d'Italia. The first boats cross the line while the last are still on their way to the second mark.

Watching from land

Every point below is public and free. The first two put the boats within a few dozen metres; the high ones on the Carso are the only places from which the whole fleet can be taken in at once.

From the edge of the Carso the whole fleet is taken in at once, Miramare below and the city beyond.

Barcola and the Miramare seafrontThe stretch closest to the start line.
Piazza dell'Unità d'ItaliaThe finish: from here you see who arrives, and in what order.
Faro della VittoriaThe city and the gulf from above, from a single point.
Monte Grisa sanctuaryIt commands the gulf: the widest view of them all.
Vedetta ItaliaAt 332 metres, just below Monte Grisa.
Strada NapoleonicaFive level kilometres, with the sea open the whole way.
Obelisco di OpicinaYou can drive right up to the forecourt.
Terrazza Bellavista, ConconelloThe Carso's balcony over the city.
Muggia: Molo T, Punta Olmi, Punta SottileThe far shore of the gulf, facing the course.
Muggia VecchiaA panoramic terrace at about a hundred and seventy metres.

Inside the race field

On race day we go out and stay inside the field. We follow the fleet from the start line to the finish, mark after mark, close enough to read the names on the mainsails and hear the calls on deck. It is the point of view of those racing, without having to race.

From the shore you see a white mass that moves. From here you see the boats: the one that starts well and the one that misses the tack, the overtakes, the water working under the hulls. It is the only day of the year the gulf is crossed like this.

Passengers sitting in the stern of a dinghy watch the Barcolana fleet pass in front of Trieste — Inside the field, with the fleet going past and the city behind.

Limited places, quotation to measure

The places are the places on our boats, and for this day there are very few: they go long before any other date in the year.

The price is quoted to measure, because the day is never the same: it changes if a group takes the whole boat, and it changes if the boat is made up by putting together people from different bookings. Write to us saying how many you are and whether you want the boat to yourselves: we reply with real availability and a quotation.

Ask for a Barcolana quotation +39 370 133 0665

Barcolana week

The full programme — supporting races, concerts, exhibitions, the village in the square — is set out in the city's events page.

Go to what's on in Trieste

Facts checked on 10 October 2026 against the programme of the 58th edition. Times and course are confirmed each year by the organisers: before setting out, it is worth a look at the official programme.