Festa dei Mulini

The Festa dei Mulini, Sarno's major popular event

Between late May and early June, the municipality of Sarno, in the province of Salerno, hosts the Festa dei Mulini: a free popular event that fills the Via San Valentino Fruit and Vegetable Market area for several consecutive evenings. Live music, food stalls, a food and beverage area, and a large funfair make up a simple and proven formula, designed for families and the public of the Agro Nocerino-Sarnese.

Why it is called Festa dei Mulini

The name refers to the mills (mulini) that for centuries defined the city's life along the waterways that cross it. The organizers chose this symbol to bring the identity of the territory back to the center: the mills as a sign of work, memory, and community. The festival was born as an occasion for collective gathering rather than a simple concert series, with the declared ambition of growing into a recognized historical festival of Campania.

The musical program

The heart of the event is the stage. Each evening features different artists, alternating between the popular and neomelodic Campanian scene and tribute bands of the great names of Italian and international rock. The evenings are presented by a host and accompanied by DJ sets, with concerts late in the evening and closing late at night. All shows are free of charge: no ticket or reservation is required.

Taste: street food, bakery arts, and gluten-free options

Next to the stage is the large food and beverage area, with stalls dedicated to popular Campanian cuisine: pizza and bakery products, panuozzi, fried foods, desserts, beer, and drinks. A distinctive element of the festival is the attention to inclusion at the table, with a gluten-free proposal designed for celiacs, which the organizers claim as a concrete commitment rather than a slogan.

Funfair and spaces for families

• Large funfair area with rides and attractions for children
• Spacious and flat areas, also convenient for strollers
• Coffee and tobacco shop inside the festival area
• Free admission for all evenings, from the first to the last day

Who organizes it

The Festa dei Mulini is promoted by the Associazione ETS La Rinascita with the moral patronage of the Municipality of Sarno. President Angelo Pepe explained that the dream is to grow the event year after year, involving more associations and citizens, and that inclusivity is not a slogan for the association but a concrete commitment: hence the choice to offer gluten-free products from the start so that no one is excluded from the party.

Sarno and the Agro Nocerino-Sarnese

Sarno is located in the northern part of the province of Salerno, in Campania, and is known for the springs of the river of the same name, the castle that dominates the town, and a very fertile countryside that has made the Agro Nocerino-Sarnese one of the most important agri-food districts in Southern Italy. The choice of the fruit and vegetable market as the venue for the festival is not accidental: it is the symbolic place of the local economy, returned to the city for a few days as a social space.

How to experience the festival

The event takes place in the evening: you arrive after dinner or have dinner directly at the stalls, walk between the stands and the funfair, and stop under the stage for the concerts. It is a popular festival in the fullest sense of the term, with an audience that comes mainly from Sarno and the neighboring towns of the Agro. Those coming from outside can combine the evening with a daytime visit to the springs of the Sarno or the historic center, and then head back towards Naples or the coast in less than an hour.