Everything You Need to Know About Festas in Portugal- Portugal Events, Festas, Parties, Festivals
Updated: Sep 9
Quick Facts About Festas- Portugal Events, Festas, Parties, Festivals
Festas start late in the evening.
The music at Festas gets louder as the night goes on.
Most Festas celebrate a Saint.
Feira is shopping with free entry.
A Festa is a party; depending on the talent, it can cost a few euros.
Folklore dancing, or Traditional Portuguese dancing, is entertaining.
You can eat at a Feira or a Festa.
Parking is on your own.
The Portuguese people celebrate a wide range of events, including the Chestnut Festival, the Garlic Festival, the Medieval Festival, Saint Anthony's Day, and others.
Festas are a budget-friendly activity for families.
January 2026
January Saints and Festivals
6 King's Day- Epiphany
January 15
According to Catholic tradition, Saint Amaro or Amarus the Pilgrim was an abbot and sailor who sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to an earthly paradise. A small town in central Portugal, Aveiro. celebrates the Saint with a festa
January 20- Festa das Fogaceiras- Santa Maria da Feira, honoring health
January 21, St. Agnes
January 23
Chamadouro celebrates Saint Ildefonso in January. Saint Ildefonsus (or Ildefonso/Ildefonse) was a 7th-century Spanish archbishop of Toledo, a revered theologian known for defending the Virgin Mary's perpetual virginity, especially in his book De Virginitate Perpetua. He's a major patron saint in Spain, known for a Marian vision in which Mary appeared to him and gave him a chasuble (a vestment). His legacy includes numerous churches, like the famous tiled one in Porto, Portugal, and the San Ildefonso Pueblo in New Mexico.
January 28 St, Thomas Aquinas, the Dominican Patron
A cake in the shape of a king's crown, bolo rei, is traditionally eaten during Epiphany (Dia de Reis).
The Festa das Fogaceiras, held annually on January 20 in Santa Maria da Feira, sees young girls in traditional dress carrying castle-shaped fogaças cakes on their heads to give thanks for good health.
February Festas
Carnival
Loulé (Algarve): Hosts one of Portugal's oldest and most famous carnivals, known for its samba-style dancing, colorful floats, and processions.
Torres Vedras: Renowned for its humorous and traditional floats and the "Caretos" (masked figures) running through the streets.
Ovar: Known as the "Carnival City," with creative costumes and musical parades.
Figuiera do Foz Beach
Carnival, depending on Easter, Mardi Gras
Portugal celebrates carnival nationwide, but large processions with floats, music, and feathered costumes are more famous in Lisbon, Loulé, Nazaré, and Viana do Castelo.
The Fantasporto International Film Festival is one of Portugal's oldest and longest-running film festivals. Porto
11th Lady of Lourdes
February 27–March 8: Fantasporto International Film Festival, Porto
Cheese Festa- Cheese Fair- https://www.cm-tabua.pt/viver/feiras-e-mercados/tabua-de-queijos/tabua-queijos-sabores-beira/
Cheese Festival in Tabua
Lisbon Underwater Film Festival
at Cinema São Jorge in Lisboa
March Festas
Cheese Festa - The Serra da Estrela Cheese Festival returns to the center of Oliveira do Hospital on March 8th and 9th.
March 19 St. Joseph's Day- Father's Day
March
The town of Beja holds a nine-day agricultural festival with music, food and handicrafts.
The Feira de Março in Aveiro, from late March to late April, is a historic festival now featuring folk and rock concerts.
Porto Interceltic Festival celebrates Celtic music from across Europe.
In Porto, on Passion Sunday (the second Sunday before Easter), a procession takes place near the church of Nossa Senhora da Esperança. Effigies of Judas are burnt around the cathedral on Easter Day.
Festa das toches is an Easter procession in São Brás de Alportel in the Algarve.
8th St. John of God
17 St Patrick
19th St Joseph Father's Day
April Festas - April Events
April 3-5 Easter
Óbidos Chocolate Festival (Spring)- March 20- April 5: A major event featuring chocolate sculptures, tastings, workshops, and cooking shows, transforming the town into a chocolate lover's paradise. https://festivalchocolate.cm-obidos.pt/
April 25 Liberty Day
In Obidos, the Semana Santa celebrations are some of the most vivid in Portugal and last for two weeks. At night, torchlight processions take place, and during the day the last moments of Christ are re-enacted, including a Christ figure wearing a crown of thorns, carrying a cross, and surrounded by Roman soldiers.
Castelo de Vide blends Catholic and Jewish traditions in its unique Easter rites, while Portalegre ceremoniously burns straw figures of Judas.
Easter
13 th Fatima
Ascension Thursday (Quinta-feira da Ascensão / Dia da Espiga): A regional or traditional day occurring 40 days after Easter where people gather lucky field plants like wheat ears and olive branches
May
13th The Fatima romarias (pilgrimage) is held in Fatima to commemorate the anniversary of the Virgin Mary's apparition.
Festas das Cruzes runs for a week in Barcelos, with a procession and handicraft fair.
Faro International Music Festival runs through May/June.
Santa Joanna, held in honor of the royal princess Joana, who retired to Aveiro's convent (now a museum) in the 15th century.
The Queima das Fitas beer and wine festival in Coimbra with parades, fado, and the burning of college gowns.
Porto too has its own version - the Queima das Fitas do Porto college festa
Corpus Christi Vaca das Cordas "bull running" ceremony in Ponte de Lima.
The Festival Internacional de Teatro de Expressão Ibérica (International Iberian Language Theatre Festival) in Porto in late May/early June dates back to 1978.
31st Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Festa do Senhor de Matosinhos in Matosinhos, near Porto, is a religious festival that runs for around 3 weeks.
Braga Roman is a celebration of Braga's Roman past, when the city was known as Bracara Augusta
May 1 is Labor Day, May Day
May 13- Fatima Pilgrimage
May 22-30 Coimbra - burning of the Ribbons by college students
Algarve Classic Festival (Portimão): The largest classic car event in Portugal, hosted at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve. More than 300 teams and 500 drivers from around the world race classic sports cars.
Feira de São Martinho: This event is the oldest popular festival held in Portimão, dating back to 1662. It takes place annually in November, marking Saint Martin's Day on November 11th.
Festival Internacional Balões de Ar Quente (Hot Air Balloon Festival): Early November in Alentejo, this festival features hot air balloons across eight towns, offering free mini flights with a charity donation.
JUNE
4 Corpus Christi (Corpo de Deus) is an important festival and national holiday in Portugal. In 2021, the national holiday was on June 3; in 2022, it was on June 16. In 2023, the holiday is on June 8. In 202,5 the holiday falls on June 19.
June 6-14 National Agriculture Festival, Santarem
June 13 Saint Anthony (Santo António): Celebrated with large, lively festivals, processions, and parades in Lisbon, the city where he was born, with the main events on the evening of June 12th and all day on June 13th, St Anthony's Day, Lisbon
June 10, National Portugal Day
June 19-21 MEO Kalorama in Lisbon
June 20-21 Rock in Rio- Lisbon-
June 23.24 Saint John the Baptist (São João): Honored with a major, traditional celebration on the night of June 23rd to 24th, especially in Porto and Braga, involving street parties and fireworks.
29 Saint Peter (São Pedro): Celebrated in various towns, including Sintra and Évora, usually on June 29th.
June in Portugal is a fun time to visit. Corpus Christi festivals, as well as the livelier Festa de Santo António in Lisbon and Festa de São João in Porto, take place.
The Corpo de Deus (Corpus Christi) festival, with processions, is celebrated across the country.
13th The Festa de Santo António in Lisbon celebrates the 'saint of love '
The Feira Afonsina, a Medieval fair in Guimarães, is in mid-June.
13th St Anthony of Padua
13th Lady of Fatima
The Festa de São João (John the Baptist) is big in Porto, Aveiro and Braga on June 23-24. In Porto, there are large parties with people being hit on the head with harmless plastic hammers (humorous)
23-24 Braga: dancing, illuminations, folk dramas, poems to loved ones in pots of basil, music and processions.
In Santarem, a 10-day Feira Nacional da Agricultura in the first week of June features horse racing, bullfights, and bull-running in the streets.
Rock in Rio-Lisbon is a huge rock festival, touted as the world's largest music festival, held annually at Parque da Bela Vista in Lisbon and attracting some of the biggest names in popular music.
The Festa de São Gonçalo in Amarante witnesses a large procession with single people exchanging phallic-shaped cakes as love tokens.
Setubal hosts an international film festival
29 The Festa de São Pedro (Saint Peter) is celebrated in Porto
Porto hosts a beer festival at the Jardim do Passeio Alegre, Foz do Douro. The city also hosts the Serralves em Festa (Serralves Festival), an arts festival of dance, music, and theater at the Fundação Serralves.
The Porto Book Fair is held at the Rosa Mota Pavilion at the Palácio De Cristal.
Outdoor book Fair
The Regata dos Rabelos (Rabelo Boat Races) takes place on the River Douro, sponsored by the city's port wine producers.
29th Saint Peter and Paul
July
Aveiro celebrates its historic heritage of painted boats - moliceiros - mid-July to mid-August with races and general merrymaking.
Barcelos hosts the Festival de Folclore on the last Saturday of the month with traditional singing and dancing.
Porto Festival Internacional de Folclore Cidade do Porto (Porto International Folklore Festival)
13th Fatima
July 4-26 Agueda Street music
August and September are the busiest months for festas in central Portugal. Towns are filled with Portuguese migrants visiting from countries like Luxembourg, France, the USA, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and the UK.
August
August in Portugal also offers several music and traditional religious festivals.
15-22, 2027: The Romaria da Nossa Senhora da Agonía (Our Lady of Sorrows), held in Viana do Castelo around August 20, includes an impressive parade of floats, displays of local crafts, carnival giants (gigantones), and local music.
The Festas Gualterianas (St Walter) have been held in Guimarães on the first weekend of August since 1452.
The Festa São Bartolomeu held in Porto (Sunday after August 24) sees a procession of puppets and a healthy plunge in the sea at Foz do Douro.
The Ocean Festival (Festival dos Oceanos), held intermittently at Parque das Nações in Lisbon, celebrates the city's links with the high seas with boat races and numerous special events.
The Week of the Sea Festival in Horta on the island of Faial in the Azores is a 7-day festa of marine sports and traditional whaling boat regattas held in mid-month.
The Rio Formosa Festival in Faro's cathedral square is a later-day civic seafood and beer festival focused on preserving the area's Rio Formosa lagoon. Free
The 10-day Silves Medieval Fair (Silves Feira Medieval) takes place in Silves, Algarve, with historical re-enactments, horse tournaments, period costumes, and lots of food and drink. https://feiramedievaldesilves.pt/
13th Fatima
14th: The Festa Nossa Senhora da Orada in Albufeira, when an image of the Virgin Mary and the child Jesus is paraded around town and transported by boat. https://www.cm-albufeira.pt/evento/festa-em-honra-de-nossa-senhora-da-orada
20th, the festival of Our Lady of Seafarers in Cascais sees images of saints carried through the town's streets and then on to fishing boats - also bull running, music, fireworks, and lots of food. https://www.quovadislisboa.com/en/liturgy/procissao-do-mar-cascais
The Feira de São Mateus in Viseu takes place from mid-August to its climax on September 21 (Dia do São Mateus). https://feirasaomateus.pt/
15th Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Feira de São Mateus in Viseu
is one of Portugal's oldest celebrations. It has music performances, shopping, eating, rides, food, games, and lots of information stands. https://feirasaomateus.pt/
August Saints Celebrated in Portugal
St Mary Major
15 Assumption of Mary
11 St. Clare
23 St Rose of Lima
27 St. Monica
29 St. John the Baptist
September
Picking grapes, making wine, vindemas
8 Saint Eufemia
Caramulo Motorfest https://www.caramulo-motorfestival.com/pt/homepage/
13th Fatima
8th Ficabeira Arganil Summer Festa
Ficton Viseu Festa https://ficton.pt/
The Festas do São Paio in early September in Aveiro features a traditional boat race on the northern lagoon. (Murtosa) https://www.cm-murtosa.pt/p/saopaiodatorreira
NoiteBrancaBraga (White Nights Braga), where people dress in white clothes and party until dawn in the first week of September. The festival includes pop concerts. noitebrancabraga.com
On the 8th, the festival of Nossa Senhora da Nazaré Romaria is Nazaré's biggest festival. Religious procession, bullfights, and folk dancing in the evenings.
On the last Sunday of the month, Porto's Nossa Senhora do Ó is a procession in honor of the pregnant Virgin, beginning at the church of Nossa Senhora da Piedade do Cais.
12th Ponte de Lima's Feiras Novas (New Fairs) is an ancient 3-day affair dating from 1125, with music, dancing, and processions
Held on the first Sunday of the month in Tomar, Nossa Senhora de Piedade features a candlelit procession of decorated floats. https://omirante.pt/cultura-e-lazer/2026-08-30-cirio-de-nossa-senhora-da-piedade-regressa-as-ruas-de-tomar-2688d49a
Leiria hosts a Festival de Gastronomia in early September with food stalls and folk dancing.
The Festival Internacional De Marionetas Do Porto is an international puppet festival in Porto. https://2026.fimp.pt/
In September, Porto hosts the Vinho Verde Wine Fest at the Customs House (Alfândega Do Porto) and Porto Blue Jazz in the Jardins do Palácio de Cristal. https://www.portobluesfest.pt/
Elvas hosts the Festas do Senhor da Piedade and the Feira de São Mateus in late September 18-22, 2026
October Events:
24 Lisbon Marathon starts in Carcavelos and finishes at Praça do Comércio, Lisbon.
13 Fatima: October 13th, a significant date for many.
The Food Festival
From October 16th to 26th, 2025, Santarém hosts the 44th National Gastronomy Festival at Casa do Campino. This festival celebrates Portuguese cuisine, bringing together a wide variety of typical dishes from across the country.
In early October, Vila Franca de Xira hosts the Feira de Outubro. There is bull-running and a series of bullfights in the Praça de Touros Palha Blanco.
October 12-13: annual pilgrimage to Fatima to celebrate the 'Miracle of the Sun' of 1913.
The Feira de Santa Iria in Faro is the town's largest traditional festa held in the middle of the month.
Harvest Chestnuts
Feira de Santa Iria – Tomar
When: 17-26 October 2025
Where: Tomar, central Portugal. This festival celebrates Santa Iria, the city’s patron saint. It features concerts, events, markets, and traditional rides for kids, along with shopping for homemade crafts and delicious food.
November Highlights
02/11/2025: Porto Marathon
01/11/25: All Saints' Day, a day for families to honor their loved ones.
Algarve Classic Festival
The Algarve Classic Festival is a must-visit for car enthusiasts. It takes place at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve in Portimão and brings together classic car lovers from around the world.
November 1st is a National Holiday in Portugal. This month celebrates the harvesting of olives and chestnuts.
Families visit cemeteries, decorate graves with flowers, and light candles. The cemeteries become vibrant with color as candles illuminate the tombstones of loved ones. After a brief Mass, the priest usually walks around the cemetery blessing the dead.
The main festival in Lisbon during October is the Tribeca Festival Lisboa, running from October 30 to November 1, 2025.
Pick Olives: Harvest Olive oil
1st All Souls' Day (All Saints' Day) is a national holiday and is often celebrated with processions across the country on November 1. It commemorates Christian saints.
11th St. Martin's Day (Dia de São Martinho) in Portugal is celebrated on November 11th and marks the feast of Saint Martin of Tours
Porto Marathon
December Celebrations
December 1: Restoration of Independence Day (Restauração da Independência; parade on Lisbon's Avenida da Liberdade, closures)
December 8: Feast of the Immaculate Conception (Imaculada Conceição, closures)
Portugal modernizes Christmas with more people decorating with lights and Christmas trees. Dia do Natal (Christmas Day) on December 25 is a family festival with a tradition of burning an oak Christmas tree for good fortune.
Véspera de Ano Novo (New Year's Eve) is celebrated nationwide with fireworks, music, and the tradition of eating 12 grapes at midnight. Lisbon's notable celebration occurs near the tower in Belém. Portugal Events Festas Parties Festivals
1st Independence Day
8th Immaculate Conception
25 Christmas
In Lisbon, Wonderland in Eduardo VII Park runs from November 28th to January 4th, 2026, with a huge Ferris wheel and an ecological ice rink.
Baixa, the Rossio Christmas Market runs until December 22nd, promising lots of fun for the whole family, plus traditional handicraft and gastronomy stalls.
Agueda, central Portugal, lights up for the holidays- great photos
Setúbal Natal, from November 29th to January 6th, 2026, features as its main highlight the market on Avenida Luísa Todi, offering regional products, handicrafts, gastronomy, Casa do Pai Natal (Father Christmas), a food court, and a program full of activities for the whole family
Viseu, central Portugal: Christmas Market, workshops, shows, and concerts for both kids and adults.
Obidos Christmas Village
Conclusion
The Unique Festas of Portugal
The Portuguese people celebrate Catholic holidays and saints. Each small town or village has its own unique Festa to honor a different saint. These celebrations often begin with a mass, followed by a procession, folk music, traditional dancing, lunch, entertainment, and dinner. Festas can last well into the night, with loud music and vibrant festivities.
Festas in Portugal are vibrant, lively, and filled with cultural significance. They offer a unique opportunity to experience the rich traditions and community spirit of the Portuguese people. Whether you're enjoying the music, food, or the festive atmosphere, each Festa provides a glimpse into the heart of Portuguese culture.
For more insights and practical advice on traveling in Portugal, check out my Amazon Storefront for Portugal Essentials.
Join us on our Facebook page for more updates and tips about traveling in Portugal! Everything Portugal Facebook Group.
Amazon Storefront
towns in Portugal
travel Portugal
visitors to Portugal
Where to go in Northern Portugal
Homemade wine
Is Portugal safe for travelers
Cascais
Setubal
#affiliate link
Comments