Photo by Van Loon, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0
Streets, markets and small markets
Shopping on the Riviera Romagnola
Shopping on the Riviera takes place in three settings: central shopping streets, often closed to traffic; weekly markets, held on a different day in each resort; and covered markets for food shopping. In summer, evening markets are added, almost every day and almost everywhere.
Shopping streets
Central streets combine shops with a walk; markets and fairs instead require a particular day to be chosen.
Viale Ceccarini in Riccione is the model. It links the station with Piazzale Roma and the beach, has borne this name since 1912 and is illuminated with festive lights in winter; together with Viale Dante, it forms the first of the three shopping areas recognised by the Comune, alongside Riccione Paese and Abissinia. Markets, small markets and 2026 building works are covered in the guide to Riccione streets and markets.
The same pattern appears elsewhere on a smaller scale. In Bellaria, Isola dei Platani is Viale Paolo Guidi, closed to traffic since 1986 between the station and Piazza Matteotti; in Igea Marina, the shopping avenue is Viale Ennio, descending from the station to the sea: both are described in shopping in Bellaria Igea Marina. In Milano Marittima, shopping streets begin at Rotonda Primo Maggio, with Viale Gramsci at the heart of evening walks. Cattolica's shopping core is Via Bovio, recognised by the Regione in 2025 as part of an urban retail hub; in Gabicce Mare, it is Via Cesare Battisti, undergoing works from mid-October 2026 to March 2027.
Market days
Each resort has its own market day, often more than one in summer. Milano Marittima is the exception: its main market is held in the evening and only in summer, on Mondays (from mid-May to 21 September in 2026).
| Resorts | Day | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Shopping in Rimini | Wednesday and Saturday mornings | historic centre, from Piazzale Gramsci to Piazza Tre Martiri |
| Shopping in Riccione | Friday morning | Piazza Unità, Viale Diaz, Corso Fratelli Cervi |
| Shopping in Cattolica | Saturday morning | Piazza Antonio De Curtis and Via Petrarca |
| Shopping in Misano Adriatico | Tuesday | Via Verdi from May to September, Via Romagna from October to April |
| Shopping in Cesenatico | Friday | stadium area, between Via Sozzi and Via Milano |
| Shopping in Cervia | Thursday morning; Tuesday morning in Pinarella | Piazza Andrea Costa; Piazzale Premi Nobel |
| Shopping in Milano Marittima | Monday evening, summer only | 1ª Traversa |
| Shopping in Bellaria Igea Marina | Wednesday in Bellaria, Friday in Igea Marina | streets around the town hall; Via Calatafimi in summer, Piazza Falcone Borsellino in winter |
| Shopping in Gabicce Mare | Thursday morning | Piazza Aldo Moro |
Covered markets
The second way to shop is more everyday and concerns food. Rimini and Cattolica have municipally owned covered markets in their town centres.
Cattolica's is in Piazza Mercato, an Art Nouveau building opened in the mid-1920s, with a large entrance staircase. Food shops occupy the interior.
In Rimini, the Mercato centrale coperto in Via Castelfidardo, managed directly by the Comune since 2025, opens Monday to Saturday, with over fifty fish stalls plus farmers' fruit and vegetables, meat, bread and cheese. In Cesenatico, the Pescheria comunale in Piazza Fiorentini still occupies the building constructed in 1911 for selling fish, a short walk from the farmers' market in Piazza delle Conserve.
Evening markets and fairs
From June to mid-September, almost every resort has a small market each evening, covering crafts, vintage goods, antiques and herbal products; many have one for children selling their toys. Cesenatico has one in each area, from Valverde to Villamarina and Ponente; in Cervia, the historic centre and Borgomarina host a market exhibition each evening from Tuesday to Thursday; in Bellaria Igea Marina, Via Perugia has craft huts every evening.
Some events recur throughout the year. In Rimini, Rimini Antiqua takes place on the last Sunday of the month, excluding July and December, in Piazza Tre Martiri and nearby streets; in Cattolica, AntìCatt brings antiques, twentieth-century collectables and vintage goods between Piazza Nettuno and Via Bovio on the second Sunday, from January to November. In September, Mercato Europeo di Cervia brings over 150 traders from many European countries and various Italian regions to Piazza Andrea Costa.
How to choose
In Riccione, Viale Ceccarini and Viale Dante link shopping with the centre and sea. For food shopping, the covered markets of Rimini and Cattolica and the farmers in Piazza delle Conserve, Cesenatico, are the main options; for antiques, the Sundays of Rimini Antiqua and AntìCatt. Among products to take home, salt harvested by hand at Salina Camillone in Cervia is a Slow Food presidium, while Piadina Romagnola IGP has a type called “alla riminese”, bearing Rimini's name.
Changes to market dates on public holidays and dates for the 2027 small markets appear in the Comuni calendars.
Sources: websites of the eight Comuni, market and fair regulations and calendars; Comune di Riccione, Viale Ceccarini entry; Ministero della Cultura, Catalogo generale dei beni culturali, and Cattolica Welcome portal for Mercato Coperto di Cattolica; Comune di Rimini, Mercato centrale coperto; Comune di Cervia, tourism portal, Mercato Europeo 2026. Accessed between 25 September and 7 October 2026.