The Festival of Es Firó

Es Firó de Sóller is one of the most popular and crowded festivals on the island of Mallorca. This deeply-ingrained celebration is held on the second Monday in May, and commemorates the defense of the valley and ensuing victory of the Sóllerians against the Moorish invaders on May 11, 1561. The festival is renowned all over the island and a large number of visitors head off to join the Firó.

There are three known accounts of the Moorish landing in 1561, all of which were written within a week of the event. The first one, written by the town scribe, is guarded in the local Archive. The second, practically unedited, was written by Antonio Morell, a notary, and is in the Royal Archive of Mallorca. The last one, housed in the same archive, was written by local noblemen and directed to the King himself. Later on in 1557, the Priests of San Bartolomé made a reinterpretation which gather together many of the traditions and legends of the previous 200 years and added some religious connotations. Finally, the frail Franciscans of the Convent of Jesus edited the previous version, embellishing it with a host of Biblical citations.

Below is the information I wish I knew prior to visiting this celebration.

Whilst there are some websites and reviews online in English that give some background and information about Es Firó, there was sadly a shortage of information in English, therefore I was surprised with a few key things that were sadly detrimental to our experience.

These were the two key things that I wish I had read, which were not mentioned anywhere!

1. The main celebration in Soller in the evening is limited to pre sold tickets, which sell out long before the festival.

2. The locals are very keen to keep it traditional, they have a strict dress code for the pirates, if you come as a tourist wanting to join in with a more general pirate outfit, you maybe meet with some hostility. Either get there outfits, sold in Soller for a few day before the celebration or dress in casual clothing.