The holiday season is fast approaching, and December is normally a relatively quiet month in Italy when it comes to strikes and demonstrations affecting flights, trains, and public transport.

But this time, there are several strike dates which travellers need to be aware of in the coming weeks, with an additional strike now set to cause disruption nationwide on December 15th, after it was postponed from November 27th.

READ ALSO: What are my rights in Italy if a flight is cancelled or delayed?

Below we’ve listed the major strikes which are expected to cause the most disruption, and you can see all of the smaller local and regional strikes planned for the coming weeks on the Italian transport ministry’s strike calendar. 

December 7th – Public transport strike

Scattered public transport strikes will hit cities across Italy on Thursday, December 7th, including Naples, Messina, Verona, Udine and Bolzano.

Strike action is also set to affect local rail services in the Emilia-Romagna region.

The duration and severity of strikes will vary by city. Anyone planning to use public transport on this date is advised to check the status of their service with the operator.

December 15th – Public transport strike

A major nationwide strike affecting public transport in cities across Italy was pushed back from Monday, November 27th to Friday, December 15th after Italy’s transport minister moved to limit its duration.

The rescheduled protest is set to affect bus, subway and tram services, with timing and severity varying in Rome, Milan and other cities across Italy, at the start of one of the busiest travel and shopping weekends of the year just 10 days before Christmas.

As this is a local public transport strike, it is not expected to impact flights or long-distance and interregional rail services.

December 15th – Baggage handlers’ strike at Linate and Malpensa airports

Passengers flying to or from Milan Linate and Milan Malpensa may face delays at check-in desks and luggage collection areas on Sunday, December 17th as baggage handlers at both airports plan to strike from 1pm to 5pm.

It’s currently unclear whether the walkout, which is backed by four of Italy’s largest airport workers unions, may affect the scheduled departure times of any outbound flights.

Strike exemption period

There currently are no other planned nationwide or local protests affecting Italian airports in December.

During the peak travel period between December 18th to January 7th, strikes affecting the air travel sector are banned altogether under one of Italy’s periodi di franchigia, or ‘exemption periods’.

How bad are strikes in Italy?

Strikes in Italy are frequent but not all of them cause significant disruption for travellers.

The severity of disruption caused by any strike in the country largely depends on how many staff in any part of the transport sector decide to participate on the day.

Even in the case of highly disruptive strikes, some essential services (or servizi minimi) are guaranteed to run at peak times. This goes for all transport sectors, from local public transport to rail and air travel.

Keep up with the latest updates in The Local’s strike news section.