Festa de San Lourenzo. Foz 

Foz’s patron saint festivities are one of the great attractions of the summer in this municipality of La Mariña, Lugo, and every year they attract many tourists. Its wide and diverse programme includes open-air dances, concerts, tastings, traditional exhibitions, sandcastle competitions and many other proposals throughout August, although most of the events take place during the middle of the month and their main day is the 10th. We will have to wait until next year to enjoy this celebration in all its splendour which has been declared of tourist interest.

http://www.concellodefoz.es/ 

Descenso Internacional do Miño. Salvaterra de Miño and Tui 

The promoters of this spectacular sporting event that every year fills the waters of the Miño River with boats and sportsmen have chosen to adapt to the new circumstances by keeping part of the celebration. There will not be the multitudinous Descenso Popular do Miño, but the Descenso Internacional do Río Miño will be maintained, a race that is about to reach half a century of life. On the 15th, the paddlers will again attend the call of the Club Kayak Tudense to cross the Miño to join the distance that separates the towns of Salvaterra de Miño and Tui.

http://www.kayaktudense.org/ 

Sardiñada Popular. Sada 

The events scheduled by the council of Sada to honor the patron saint of the town, San Roque, will also undergo some changes this year. The main concert scheduled for the 14th has been cancelled and the fireworks will probably be replaced by an audiovisual show, but there will be other proposals and it is still pending to decide if the traditional sardiñada popular will be held. Declared to be of tourist interest, this tasty celebration has been a fundamental part of the San Roque programme for six decades now, although its origins could go back further in time as a small snack in the port.

https://www.sada.gal/ 

Feira do Xamón. A Cañiza

The climate of A Cañiza is ideal for curing meat products, as highlighted from this Pontevedra municipality to explain why it boasts of being the capital of ham and to hold a monographic gastronomic fair that from 2013 is considered a festival of tourist interest. Its first edition was in 1966, since then it has been held every year in mid-August, with the main day being the 15th.

http://www.caniza.org 

Festa de San Roque. Betanzos

The launching of a huge paper balloon and the lively festive crossings of the Xira Os Caneiros are two of the most singular and colourful elements of the Betanzos patron saint’s festival. Both have fallen off the festive programme this year because of the covid, so we will have to wait until 2021 to enjoy the San Roque in its fullness, but the town council maintains an interesting programme of cultural activities, such as concerts, with limited and reduced capacity so that the festive spirit does not leave the whole town. 

https://betanzos.es/ 

Festa da Ameixa. O Carril (Vilagarcía de Arousa) 

With almost thirty celebrations behind it, the Festa da Ameixa do Carril is one of the most important gastronomic events in the region of Arousa. The tasty bivalve that is cultivated in this parish of Vilagarcía de Arousa is the axis of a celebration that allows to taste it in its most diverse preparations accompanying it in addition with the famous wines of the zone. The festival has been celebrated since 1991 and was born thanks to the collaboration of the Fishermen’s Guild and the Carril Parkers’ Association. This year there will be no official events, but the star product will still be very present in the town for anyone who wants to come and taste it.

https://parquistasdecarril.es/festa-da-ameixa/ 

Danzas Ancestrais de San Roque do Hío. Cangas

Several parishes in the municipality of Cangas have managed to preserve to this day some ancestral dances of great color and showiness and that have been considered as a whole as a celebration of tourist interest. On 16th August, the inhabitants of O Hío gather around their famous “cruceiro” to perform the dance in honour of San Roque, also known as the Pilgrims’ dance, whose origins date back to at least the 14th century. There are several hypotheses as to why this dance was first performed. The main one is that it was a way of thanking the patron saint of the parish for curing the plague that had ravaged the area, but it could also be a way of imitating the dances of the local nobility.

https://cangas.gal 

Festas de San Roque. Vilagarcía de Arousa

The traditional festivities in honour of San Roque are reformulated this year to guarantee the safety of the participants avoiding crowds. That is why on this occasion it will not be possible to carry out the carefree Festa da Auga or the central religious acts on the 16th, but there will be proposals adapted so that residents and visitors do not miss their annual appointment with San Roque de Vilagarcía. The acts of the naval combat will take place simultaneously from three different locations (the municipal capital, O Carril and Vilaxoán) to allow them to be followed by a large number of people, but avoiding the usual concentration of people on the beach of Compostela-A Concha.

http://www.vilagarcia.es/ 

Festa da Malla. Meira

The traditional neighborhood collaboration to carry out some agricultural activities is what inspired almost 40 years ago in Meira the birth of the Festa da Malla. With this celebration the neighbors they recall the work of the cereal mesh, an activity in which farmers separated the grain from the straw, to be used as flour or animal fodder. The demonstration of this traditional work is complemented by samples of machinery and craftsmanship and tasting of typical dishes and products.

http://www.concellodemeira.com 

O Naufraxio. Laxe

The events experienced first-hand by sailor Avelino Lema and the staging he had witnessed in Peru encouraged him to introduce this peculiar celebration more than half a century ago in his native Laxe. O Naufraxio takes place every August 17, coinciding with the local celebrations in honour of the Virgen del Carmen, and it causes the waters of the Laxense port to become the scene of a mock shipwreck by a group of sailors and the subsequent miracle by which one of them who has drowned comes back to life after the intercession of the Virgin. The current situation has forced the suspension of this year’s celebrations, but their promoters hope to resume them in 2021.

http://www.concellodelaxe.com 

Festa do Albariño. Cambados 

Considered the oldest wine celebration in Galicia and the second oldest in Spain, the Festa do Albariño has been considered a festival of international tourist interest since 2018. It is a popular event that has the wine as protagonist and that causes that the streets of Cambados are full of people tasting its famous wines and enjoying the party. Thousands of people gather every year in the town to participate in its festivals and concerts, although on this occasion most of the celebrations that should have taken place during the first weekend of August have been suspended.

Romaría da Tortilla. Laro (Silleda) 

Since 1989, the Association of Friends of Tortilla de Laro has been celebrating one of the most popular festivals in the Deza region, which has been declared of tourist interest in 2013. Thousands of people gather to taste the tortillas prepared by the restaurants and the members of the association of housewives. The opening speech, the tasting, the competitions and the performances of groups and orchestras are some of the ingredients of a celebration planned for the period from 31 July to 2 August, but which has been postponed until next year. 

Santa Marta de Ribarteme pilgrimage. As Neves

Declared of tourist interest only a few months ago, this unique celebration, also known as the Romaría dos Cadaleitos, will have to wait until 2021 to celebrate as it deserves its new consideration. The procession of coffins with living people inside trying to obtain the favour of the Virgin or to show her gratitude for a fulfilled petition is the most original element of a celebration whose religious section gives way later to a great picnic.

Festa do Pemento. A Arnoia

This year, in spite of the situation, A Arnoia has decided to continue with its traditional Festa do Pemento, but adapting it to avoid risks and crowds. The festival was born in 1980 and is dedicated to the product par excellence of the garden of this municipality of Ourense and will be held from July 31 to August 2. Normally, it coincides with the patron saint’s celebrations and brings together a large number of people, who can enjoy cultural and sporting events, as well as religious, official and protocolary acts. This year you can only taste the peppers in the bars of the municipality and for this you will have to buy some tickets through the link: https://pementosdearnoia.com/.

Pardiñas Festival. Guitiriz 

Officially called Feira e Festa da Música e da Arte, the Pardiñas Festival has been organised since 1980 by the cultural association Os Xermolos with the aim of preserving and disseminating Galician culture. This year the association decided to present a renewed format adapting to the new security measures. Initiatives will be carried out during the weekends of August in different places of the town. The events will begin on August 1st in Campo da Feira de Parga with the 27th Mostra de Instrumentos de Música Tradicional organized by the Asociación do Baile e a Música de Tradición Galega. They will conclude on August 30th with musical activities in the parishes of O Vilar and Santa Locaia. The programme includes small concerts, film projections, book presentations and different workshops. 

Festa da Carballeira. Zas 

The first weekend of August is synonymous with traditional music in Zas. Since 1984, the association Castro Meda organizes this folk festival through which the main groups and artists of the Galician and international scene have passed along the years. The music is the great protagonist of this event, but the program of activities has grown over the years, complemented by other cultural proposals. In addition, the venue itself, the oak grove that gives it its name, is another attraction of the festival and helps to create the special atmosphere that is breathed there. This year, music will not be played at Zas, but its organizers promise to return with renewed energy in 2021.

Día da Gaita and Romería a Santa Cruz. Ribadeo

Also known as A Xira, the Día da Gaita and Romería a Santa Cruz, is a traditional celebration that takes place every first Sunday of August on the hill of Santa Cruz. Gastronomy and popular music are two of the main ingredients of a festival that has been celebrated in its current format since the 1960s, but whose origins go back even further in time. Its multitudinous character is, precisely, what has encouraged its organizers, the heads of the Asociación Amigos da Gaita Galega, to suspend this year’s edition to avoid crowds.

Mostra da Olería. Buño (Malpica)

Traditional craftsmanship is the main sign of identity of the village of Buño, in the municipality of Malpica, A Coruña. Every year, at the beginning of August, its craftsmen celebrate a Mostra da Olería that attracts visitors and tourists from all over Galicia. The stalls coexist in the program with workshops of mud and other informative activities destined to put in value this millennial craft. This year’s edition had to be cancelled, but the obradoiros and the shops of the town, as well as the Ecomuseo Forno do Forte, are still open to receive all those who want to know the singular olería of Buño.

Romaría Vikinga. Catoira 

Every first Sunday in August the inhabitants of Catoira and thousands of people gather in this town on the banks of the Ulla River to enjoy one of the most popular celebrations in the Galician summer calendar. Since the 1960s, they have been recreating the capture of the Torres del Oeste (Western Towers) with the help of a replica of a Viking boat. The invaders quench their warrior thirst with wine and a convivial meal takes over from this playful battle through mud. The enormous convening power of the festival is what has forced the suspension of the central events of the celebration this year, although some activities have been organized for smaller audiences.

San Fins do Castro. Cabana de Bergantiños

The pilgrimage of San Fins do Castro is celebrated every August 1st gathering the faithful and the curious in the carballeira located next to the chapel of the same name. The Berro Seco (an original choreography of shouts directed by the local parish priest), the hymn of San Fins and the burning of the Santo da Pólvora are the most original and emblematic elements of this celebration in which other rites typical of religious pilgrimages are also present, such as the one related to the miraculous power of the waters of the nearby fountain. As with other similar pilgrimages, we will have to wait until next year to take part in it.

Festival Folclórico Internacional do Emigrante. Reinante (Barreiros)

Another of the traditional celebrations that has fallen off the festive calendar this year is the one that has been held in the parish of San Miguel de Reinante (municipality of Barreiros) since 1980 to pay tribute to the emigrants with music. The association O Arco da Vella is responsible for the fact that the Festival Folclórico Internacional do Emigrante has been able to bring together a multitude of groups from all over the world over these 40 years.

Feira do Bonito. Burela 

A festival of national tourist interest, since 1983, the Feira do Bonito has been held in Burela on the first Saturday in August. The main objective of the festival is to claim the seafaring history of the village as well as its culture and gastronomy. Each of its editions offers entertainment and musical performances with relevant Galician artists, but the star of the day is the delicious tuna prepared in different preparations and even gluten-free for celiacs. This year there will be no official events.

Festa do Pemento. Herbón (Padrón)

Like some of the previous ones, this celebration takes place on the first Saturday of August. On that day, the parish of Herbón, in Padrón, boasts of the peppers to which it has given international fame with a celebration that was already declared of tourist interest in 1978. The Order of the Pepper of Herbón awards the titles of Knights and Ladies to producers and personalities who spread and promote the pepper. The organizers of the festival have decided to suspend the events of this year, but they call on the public to meet again in 2021.

Festa do Pemento. Oímbra

Also in the municipality of Oímbra, in Ourense, they pay homage to the peppers with a monographic celebration. The one dedicated to its white pepper goes back to 1997 and consists of a popular meal that takes place in the carballeira of the town the first Sunday of the month of August and that is seasoned with contests, exhibitors of sale, performances and inflatables. The city council has cancelled the acts of this year, but it will make promotional campaigns to stimulate the sale of this popular product.

Festa do Galo Piñeiro. O Pino

Since 1999, the municipality of O Pino in A Coruña has celebrated the Festa do Galo Piñeiro and a Mostra Cabalar to exalt Galician gastronomy and culture, as well as recovering a species of rooster with roots that go back to Celtic times. The programme includes a fair where live animals are sold and competitions where the best specimens are awarded. The Mostra Cabalar brings together the best horses and mares of Galician and foreign breeds and allows the public to enjoy equestrian shows and dressage exhibitions. Since 2009 a Celtic Fair is also held, but this year all the activities have had to be suspended so we will have to wait until 2021 to enjoy these popular celebrations of O Pino again.

Due to its seniority, importance, uniqueness and roots, the party was declared 10 years ago celebrating national tourist interest. And shortly it will take another step in this ranking by being elevated to the international category. The Cocido de Lalín will join the 11 Galician festivities they enjoy and that decision, although it will be the only gastronomic event present in that exclusive list.

February 16th, the Sunday before Carnival Sunday, is the key date of the celebration in Lalín. It will be that day when miles of people gather in the town to taste this caloric and delicious gastronomic tribute to the pig in which other meats also have a place and in which the star ingredient is conveniently accompanied by products from the Galician orchard.

The recipe modified slightly throughout Galicia, although the main ingredients do not change. In Lalín they have it clear and from the City Council, promoter of the celebration, they reveals the list of essential ingredients to prepare a stew for 10 people: half head of cured pork, half cured “lacón” (front leg of the pig), backbone, two salted tails, bacon with veining, salted rib, salted ear… And they even explain the ways to prepare some of those ingredients before cooking them and thus obtain an optimal result: the “lacón” must be set to desalinate four days before; the rest of the pork, two days before; and chickpeas and beans must be soaked 24 hours before starting cooking.

But if what you want is simply to enjoy the recipe without having to work between stoves, just go to Lalín and put yourself in the hands of the experienced local chefs. On Sunday 16th, tens of miles of people return to the town attracted by the smell of its star recipe and the festive atmosphere to taste the menus served in the restaurants of the municipality. Music, parades and the traditional proclamation will not be missing that day, which this year will be read by Sonsoles Ónega. The journalist thus joins the illustrious cast of people headed by Álvaro Cunqueiro who during this more than half a century have been in charge of praising the merits of Lalinean stew.

And who can not wait until that day to taste the delicious delicacy will also have many other options to do so. Since two decades ago the party is arranged several weeks in advance. “From San Amaro to Valentine’s Day. Stew Month in Lalín”. With this motto as a guide, a large group of restaurants included during that whole period prior to the big day of the party, stew in their menus and allowed (on designated days and with prior reservation for the rest of the days) enjoy the famous stew. If you have not tasted it yet, do not miss the chance to do it. Your palate will thank you.

January

The year 2020 starts how 2019 ended, with the Christmas celebrations, so if you have not yet seen the spectacular nativity scenes of Valga and Begonte, use the first days of the year to visit them. In addition, in Aldán, you can enjoy the ancestral dances of San Sebastián and in O Barco de Valdeorras, of the Festa do Botelo.

February

Flavours and tradition will coexist in the second month of the year. The carnival show its most original and fun face in places like Cobres (Vilalba), Laza, Verín, Vilariño de Conso, Xinzo de Limia, Maceda, Manzaneda and the banks of the Ulla river, while in Cuntis, Lalín, A Fonsagrada, Viana do Bolo and Arzúa will delight their palates with products such as lacón with grelos, galician stew, butelo, androlla and cheese, respectively. In addition, in Bembrive (Vigo) they will honor San Brais.

March

The echoes of history resonate strongly in Baiona with the Festa da Arribada and in Vigo, with its Reconquest. The galician broth, the sea urchin and the Filloas will reign in Mourente (Pontevedra), San Cibrao (Cervo) and Lestedo, while in Ferrol you will enjoy a feminine tribute with music: the Festa das Pepitas.

April

Holy Week will be lived with special intensity and devotion in many places of Galicia: Betanzos, Cangas, Ferrol, Lugo, Mondoñedo, Fisterra, Paradela, Santiago de Compostela and Viveiro. But this will not be the only celebration of April. In Arcade they will boast oysters, and in A Pontenova, As Neves, Sober, Arbo, Pedrafita do Cebreiro and Bueu will do the same with trout, cottage cheese and honey, Amandi wine, lamprey, cheese and corn (Millo Corvo). Also, in Camariñas they will show their most famous craftsmanship, the encaixe, and in Tui they will honor San Telmo.

May

May will be a month full of rich flavours: those that can be tasted in Oroso and Pontecaldelas, with their trout festivities, or in A Estrada, with that of salmon. In Redondela they will taste chocos; in Melide, melindres and Muimenta (Cospeito), pancakes, while in Ribadavia the reason to meet will be the Ribeiro wine and in Quiroga, with oil. In addition, ethnographic celebrations are present in Ourense, with Os Maios, and in Celanova with the Romería Raigame of Vilanova dos Infantes.

June

with summer about to start, the festive calendar will alternate religious and ethnographic celebrations. The first will be in Ponteareas, Bueu, Redondela and Ares (with the Corpus and its traditions), Malpica (Pilgrimage of Santo Hadrián) and Lugo (Offering to the Blessed Sacrament). The nographic celebrations will can be enjoyed in Mos (Festa da Rosa), Allariz (Festa do Boi), Bande (Festa do Peixe), Vila de Cruces (Festa do Galo de Curral), Monterrei (Xuntanza de Gaiteiros), Lugo (Arde Lucus), A Coruña (Fogueiras de San Xoán) and Ribadeo (Romaxe das Cruces).

July

Immersed already in summer the festive offer will multiply in July with proposals for the most varied tastes. Gastronomy will be the axis of the celebrations planned in Carnés-Vimianzo (with the “callos” of the Faguía), A Guarda (lobster), Paiosaco-A Laracha (cherries), Cea (bread), Corme-Ponteceso (barnacle of Roncudo), Cambados (scallop), Mugardos (octopus), O Rosal (wine), Celeiro-Viveiro (hake) and Moaña (carneiro al espeto). In Candaoso (Viveiro) and Sabucedo (A Estrada), they will be celebrated their famous “rapas das bestas” (horses haircut), while in Betanzos they celebrate the Festa Franca, in Bouzas (Vigo), their Blessed Christ of the Afflicted, in Lérez (Pontevedra) the San Benitiño; in As Pontes, the Romería da Fraga, and in Ribeira, the Festa da Dorna. In addition, Santiago de Compostela will concentrate the celebrations of the great day of Galicia with its Apostle Festivities, in Esteiro (Muros) the show will return with its carrilanas (craft cars), in Narón they will return to the past with their Oenach and in Ortigueira they will dance to the rhythm of the music of his Interceltic Festival.

August

The most festive month of the summer will once again display this condition with fifty events. Eminently gastronomic celebrations will not be missing: Burela (bonito), Oímbra, A Arnoia and Herbón-Padrón (peppers) Laro-Silleda (omelette), O Carballiño (octopus), A Cañiza (ham), Vilanova de Arousa (mussel and cockle), Carril-Vilagarcía (clam), Bandeira-Silleda (empanada), Cervo (queimada), Valga (eel), Salvaterra de Miño (Condado wine), Cambados (Albariño) and O Pino (piñeiro rooster). And there will also be celebrations of historical, religious and ethnographic origins: ​​Ribadeo (Day of Bagpipe and Pilgrimage to Santa Cruz), San Cibrao-Cervo (Maruxaina), A Guarda (Festa do Monte), Seoane do Courel (Filandón de Musicas), Buño-Malpica (Mostra da Olería), Catoira (Romaría Vikinga), O Hío-Cangas (Danzas Ancestrais of San Roque), Foz (San Lourenzo), Vilagarcía, Betanzos and Sada (San Roque), Mondoñedo (Medieval), Meira (Festa da Malla), Chantada (Folión de Carros), Laxe (O Naufraxio), Ribadavia (Festa da Istoria), Soutelo de Montes-Forcarei (Festa do Gaiteiro), Viveiro (O Naseiro), Boiro (San Ramón de Bealo), Cabana (San Fins do Castro), Gutiriz (Festival of Pardiñas) and San Miguel de Reinante-Barreiros (Festival do Emigrante). Even the sport will be represented through the oars in the Descent International do Miño (Tui) and surf in the Galicia Classic Surf Pro (Pantín-Valdoviño).

September

The end of summer is coming, but the party continues. The events for September will be in Neda (bread), Darbo-Cangas (Dances Ancestrais), Pontevedra (Feira Franca), Taboada (Facades of Castelo), A Cañiza (Virxe da Franqueira), A Pobra do Caramiñal (Festa das Mortallas), Rianxo (A Guadalupe), Muxía (A Barca), Caión-A Laracha (Os Milagres), Muras (Festa do Potro), Rairiz de Veiga (A Saínza) and Marín (San Miguel).

October

Four celebrations will focus interest in October: The Festa da Faba de Lourenzá, the Festa do Marisco in O Grove, the San Froilán of Lugo and As San Lucas in Mondoñedo.

November

November is a time of mushrooms, chestnuts and magostos, and that is also perceived in the festive calendar with celebrations such as those that will take place in Ourense, Folgoso do Courel and Riós. In addition, in Moaña they will celebrate their San Martiño and in Monterroso, the Feira dos Santos.

December

And again at Christmas, we will have to say goodbye to 2020 as we started it: contemplating the spectacular nativity scenes of Valga and Begonte.