Grand Prix de Carrilanas in Esteiro

The village of Esteiro in Muros (A Coruña) celebrates this unique race of wooden, engine-less vehicles (carrilanas) as part of its big annual festival in honour of its patron saint, Saint Marina. It has been declared a Festival of National Tourist Interest since 2021.

This fun race was first held in 1988, and began informally as a way for the locals to entertain themselves during the weekend of the village's festival. It consists of a descent down a steep narrow road driving vehicles ingeniously built out of wood. Its success, which may be due to the wooden cars' resemblance to the traditional childhood toy carrilanas, very popular in the area, has led it to become an annual tradition, with more and more locals and people from nearby towns competing. Nowadays, it's normal for thousands of people to attend the festival.The competition format brings auto racing to mind. On the Saturday evening, there is a competition for pole position, which decides the starting place of each competitor for the race on Sunday. There are three different versions of the race: one for children, one for the largest vehicles, where prizes are awarded to the most original vehicles, and the Grand Prix for the fastest carrilanas, which require more skill to drive. Prizes are also awarded for the best costumes.The race takes place on the third weekend in July, during which street parties, folklore performances and food tastings are also held. The Casa de las Carrilanas museum can be visited all year round. It opened in 2012 and displays a large number of carrilanas and different items from the festival.