Rock in Rio Tea

Rock in Rio Tea has wrapped up its 2026 edition, and the 2027 edition still has no dates or line-up. What is already under way is the search for new talent: the association that organises the Ponteareas festival has opened registration for its Concurso de Bandas 2027, the band competition through which an emerging act has joined the line-up in recent editions.

With fourteen editions behind it, the festival has settled into fairly stable habits: two nights in July and free entry. Neither has been confirmed for 2027 yet, but they give a sense of what kind of event it is.

What we know about Rock in Rio Tea 2027

Not much, for now. There are no dates, no artists, and the organisers have not yet presented the fifteenth edition. The only concrete clue is the band competition, whose winner has earned a slot at the festival in each of the last two editions: Seitura played in 2025 and Pladür in 2026.

There are no tickets to look for either. Until now, Rock in Rio Tea has been a free, open-access festival, with no ticket sales or advance booking, and there has been no announcement suggesting a change of model. The usual dates and free entry are based on previous editions, not conditions already announced for 2027.

A free rock festival in O Condado

The festival is organised by the Asociación Cultural Rock in Rio Tea, a non-profit organisation from Ponteareas, with support from the Concello, the Deputación de Pontevedra and Turismo de Galicia. That structure explains much of its character: it is a big-town event, aimed at the O Condado area and at anyone coming over from Vigo, around 30 kilometres away.

The line-up usually combines two or three veteran names from Spanish rock with Galician bands, local groups and an opening set by students from the municipal rock school. Def con Dos and Ariel Rot headlined in 2025; Kiko Veneno, Los Enemigos and Rebeliom do Inframundo in 2026. The weight given to the Galician scene and the permanent presence of local up-and-coming talent set it apart from many summer festivals, where the draw depends almost entirely on the headliners.

Around the stage, the last two editions have featured a food and crafts area in the park itself. Before the festival, the association programmes the Rock na Rúa series, with activities around the municipality: in 2026 it included a concert by the Guláns youth band playing covers of rock classics.

Parque da Feira Vella as the venue

The last two editions were held in Parque da Feira Vella, an urban park in Ponteareas. As the event takes place in the heart of the town rather than at an isolated site, food and accommodation can be found in Ponteareas itself or in Vigo. The 2027 venue has not been announced.

How Rock in Rio Tea 2026 went

The 14th edition took place on 10 and 11 July 2026 in Parque da Feira Vella, with free entry. The three main names were Kiko Veneno, Los Enemigos and Rebeliom do Inframundo, a mix of Andalusian rumba and rock, 1980s Madrid rock and Galician rap that neatly sums up the festival's breadth.

The line-up was completed by Arrhythmia, Estrogenuinas, Errantes, O Caimán do Río Tea, Pladür as winner of the Concurso de Bandas and the group chosen in the municipal Talento Xove competition, plus students from the CDM Rock School opening proceedings. DJ Oscuro covered the changeovers between concerts.

The edition introduced two features of its own: an official stamp for the credential of the Camiño Taverneiro, an alternative route of the Camino de Santiago that passes through Ponteareas, and a festival currency, the «Rogers», in tribute to Rogelio Carracedo. That line-up and those services belong to 2026 and are no indication of the next edition.

For more context, at ModoFestival we covered the 2026 line-up announcement and the 2024 edition. Other festivals in the same style can be found in the rock festival listings.

Sources: Concello de Ponteareas, El Español (Treintayseis), Metropolitano.gal, the official Rock in Rio Tea website and Festivales de España, consulted on 14 October 2026.