The Paella Competition kicks off the 2023 Patron Saint Festivities

This weekend sees the start of Finestrat's festivities in honour of San Bartolomé and Santo Cristo del Remedio. The festive events are eagerly awaited and attended by all the town's residents, as well as by visitors who come to the town to spend a few days in the summer. This is the first year that the festivities are being held as Fiestas de Interés Turístico Local de la Comunitat Valenciana (Festivities of Local Tourist Interest in the Region of Valencia). This award is undoubtedly a recognition of the town's traditions and customs, as well as a major boost to the promotion of these celebrations as a tourist attraction.

Saturday is the day of the Paellas Competition. At 12 noon, the Bandeta will start setting the scene for the day with a parade in Carrer Nou, where the competition is due to be held at 2.30 pm. It's time to cook the best rice to win the prize, but most of all it's a great time to participate in one of the events most loved by the local community and visitors alike. The festive vibe continues with the foam party and mobile disco at 4.30 pm in Plaça del Poble.

The Pilota Valenciana match will be the main event on Sunday 20 August. The match will be played in Carrer Castellets starting at 11 am with the Escola de Pilota match between Finestrat and Sella. The Pilota match in the "a palma" (palm of the hand) category is due to begin at 12.30 pm. This match will be played by the Finestrat A and Finestrat B teams. In the afternoon at 5 pm, the main Pilota match is scheduled to take place between Old Glories and Promising Youngsters of Finestrat. The final match of the day will be played at 6 pm between professional teams Reds and Blues. The Reds team will consist of Genovés II, Héctor, Puchol II, Jandro Miravalles and Santi de Finestrat. The Blues team players are Jose de Campello, Pere Roc II, Nacho de Beniparell, Pablo de Sella and Jaume de Finestrat.