With the recent removal of the restrictions due to the COVID, the Mallorca Fair par excellence is back, we are referring to the Sóller Fair and Fair of Sóller, which is held every year on the second Monday in May.
After its normal edition was suspended for two years due to the pandemic, the most popular festival in the municipality and in Mallorca returns to its maximum splendour.
The Firó festival commemorates how in the 16th century the district of Sóller repelled the piracy attack carried out by Turkish and Algerian corsairs after they landed on the coast of Port de Sóller on the 11th of May 1561.
The well-known fair begins with the investiture of the "Valentes Dones", the solemn ceremony which takes place on Thursday the 5th of May in the church of San Bartolomé and is attended by historical figures and the main authorities of Mallorca, as well as all the members of the town council of Sóller and the neighbouring village of Fornalutx.
The events programmed by the Sóller town council's fiestas department begin on 25th April and this year they will continue until 10th June, with the main events taking place on 6th, 7th and 8th May, with a wide and varied programme of activities for young and old alike, including concerts, workshops, street markets, sports competitions, photography competitions, guided tours, etc. You can download the festival programme here.
The climax comes on the 9th of May with the celebration of the main event of the Firó, in which the use of shotguns is forbidden by law, from this year onwards only blunderbusses, spiked shotguns and historical weapons will be allowed.
Remember that to access certain limited access areas both participants and public must be in possession of the accreditation bracelet, you can find the rules here.
The Firó 2022 starts on Monday 9 May at 10:00 a.m. with the Floral Offering to the heroes of 11 May, then the historical characters together with the "Valentes dones" will go to "Can Tamany" to celebrate the traditional mass (limited capacity).
We will wait until 15:00 hours, at which time the bells ring and the people en masse come to the call, at 15:30 the whole town is concentrated in the square of Sóller and Captain Angelats recites the famous "Arenga" or call, after which everyone moves towards the Port of Sóller.
At 17:00 the pirates disembark on the beach of Can Generós and are repelled by the troops from Sóller, at 16:15 they try again and manage to disembark on the beach of Can Repic, at 19:15 the troops regroup and clash again on the Pont d'en Barona and at 20:30 the pirates sack the square of Sóller.
At 21:00 the Soller forces manage to win the battle, with Captain Angelats proclaiming victory at 21:30.