A popular song says that Vilaxoán is “the land of revenidas, where people sing so well and bathe as mantidas”. The saying refers to the most significant characteristics of this small town in Arousa, which was once its own town hall. In Vilaxoán, people sing with Manso and his accordion in the “Vilaxoán Canta” as the culmination of the festivities of the Virxe do Carme and the festival is lived to the fullest and its gastronomy is also praised in the “Revenidas”.

The truth is that, since always and as if it were a surname, Vilaxoán has been linked to the “revenidas”. In this town in Arousa, everyone knows that “revenidas” are the sardines typical of the area, with a characteristic flavour and size and that, by extension and for more than a decade, they also give their name to one of the most important intercultural festivals in the Rías Baixas.

The “Revenidas” have their origins, therefore, in a fundamentally popular and family festival that coincided with the period of salting and that was celebrated with special enthusiasm in seaside towns such as Vilaxoán. In fact, and for decades, the families of Vilaxoán have met in the vicinity of the Dona Concha park to enjoy some good grilled sardines, empanadas, wines and whatever else. This tradition, which began in the times when the Catalan canning industry was established in this part of the Arousa estuary, was lost during the Civil War and the subsequent dictatorship, but it always remained in the minds of the oldest. At first it was a timid meeting, but soon it gained followers. The “sardiñada” was attempted to be revived without much success in the 80s, but the idea would not take hold until the beginning of the 2000s. The fame of this great sardine dish transcends borders and visitors from all corners of the region have the Revenidas festival marked in red on their gastronomic calendar.

The passion for local and traditional food was fully reinvented exactly 14 years ago in a festival that is, today, one of the most popular in the summer in the Arousa Estuary. Culture, art, language, tradition and generations come together to enjoy a show that lasts three days and shakes up the four corners of the peaceful Vilaxoán. That weekend, nothing, absolutely nothing in this town, remains alien to Revenidas. And the event is much more than one of the many festivals that dot the Galician geography. Revenidas is the soul and, above all, the identity of Arousa.