Mercatino degli Sgaientò
Once a month, Corso Bagni and Piazza Italia fill with the Mercatino degli Sgaientò — around 150 stalls of antiques, old furniture, vintage clothes, modernariato and collectibles to pick through, all day.
Why it's special
One of the bigger antiques markets in this corner of Piedmont, running the length of Corso Bagni. The dialect name — 'sgaientò', roughly the scalded, a nod to Acqui's boiling spring — is pure local, and so is the crowd.
- Come in the morning while the good pieces are still there, then walk over to Piazza della Bollente for the thermal spring and a coffee.
- It runs roughly 9:00 to sunset along Corso Bagni, Piazza Italia and Piazza San Guido.
The Mercatino degli Sgaientò takes over Corso Bagni one Sunday a month — the fourth — and stretches down through Piazza Italia and Piazza San Guido with around 150 stalls. It's a proper browse: period furniture, modernariato, vintage clothes, old prints and the sort of small collectible junk you didn't know you wanted. The name is dialect, "the scalded ones", a wink at Acqui's boiling spring that surges up at 75°C in the middle of town.
Go in the morning if you're hunting for something specific; the dealers set out early and the better pieces move. When you've had enough, it's a two-minute walk to the Bollente and the arcades for a coffee. It falls on the same day whatever the season, so it's an easy fixture to build a Sunday around — see Acqui Terme for the rest.