Festivities and Pilgrimages in Portugal

The Pinhal Novo Popular Festivities are held in June.

Pinhal Novo station is near the main venues.

The Red Waistcoat is the biggest festivity in Ribatejo and brings thousands of Portuguese and foreign fans and tourists in to Vila Franca de Xira to take part in the town's festivities with fandango, dances, concerts and bull fights.

Vila Franca de Xira station is near the main venues.

Dates and times
The festivities are held in the first week of July. 

The Baixa da Banheira popular festivities in honour of S. José Operário are a time of fun and entertainment for the locals and visitors alike.

Baixa da Banheira station is near the main venues.

Dates and times
The festivities are held in July. 

Caminha town council organises a huge medieval recreation in the old town centre every year with minstrels and their songs of love, friendship, scorn and insults.

Caminha station is near the main venues.

Dates and times
The festival is held in July

The Sea Festival livens the summer nights in beautiful Cascais bay with concerts by Portuguese and foreign entertainers. This festival also has regattas with traditional boats, lots of entertainment and a procession in honour of Nossa Senhora dos Navegantes.

The train is the best way to get to the festival without having to worry about traffic or parking.

Cascais station is near the main venues.

Dates and times
The festival is held in August.

The Barreiro festivities have been held for more than 100 years in honour of the patron saint Nossa Senhora do Rosário. The festivities are the result of the towns economic, cultural and social associations.

Avoid the traffic and come by train. Barreiro station is near the main venues.

Dates and times
The festival is held in August.

The daily entertainment includes Portuguese popular music (folk groups), philharmonic bands, street entertainment, theatre, sports activities, and other shows. There is a fair that shows off local handicrafts and the local associations.

Come by train to the Expo Trofa/Feira dos Povos and avoid the traffic and parking problems. The event is held every year in the area around the new Trofa station.

Dates and times
The festival is held in July.

Come to the municipal holiday in Barcelos and get all dressed up to enjoy the popular entertainment and watch the huge procession in honour of the patron saint, Bom Jesus da Cruz. The fire works light up the town hall, main square and all the historical centre. This pilgrimage comes with lots of taverns, signing and the people's happiness.

Avoid the traffic and come by train as Barcelos station is close to the main events.

Dates and times: 
The festivities are held in May.

The Templar Festival in Tomar is an invitation to travel back through time to discover the Templar culture in all its different forms.

The programme includes various activities: Medieval Cooking Festival, Night Procession, seminars, theatre, cultural visits, walks, Templar night, children's activities, traditional workshops, fair, taverns, street entertainment and theme dinners. Come by train, the best way to avoid the traffic and arrive on time.

Dates and times
The festival is held in May.

Five days for bull fights with lots of related activities and horsemanship, popular entertainment and lots of music

Azambuja station is near the main venues.

Dates and times
The festival is held in May.

The Moita May Fair offers a varied programme, with the traditional bull runs in Av. Teófilo Braga, the meetings of bull fight fans, workshops, bull clubs and lots of music.

Avoid the traffic and come by train. Moita tation is near the main venues.

Dates and times
The festival is held on the last weekend in May.

In this festival a Roman market is recreated which is the stage for circus acts, theatre, mock fights, mythological characters, jugglers. Musicians, balls from the time of 'Bracara Augusta', children's entertainment and the traditional reception of Emperor Augustus. There are also two Roman processions through the streets of the old town centre, one in the daytime and one at night.

Braga station is less than a 10-minute walk from the main venues.

Dates and times
The festival is held in May or June.

Oeiras town council organises the local festivities with a healthy dose of culture, sports and the environment.

Avoid the traffic and parking problems, come by train to Oeiras station and arrive in the midst of the party.

Dates and times
The festival is held in May or June. 

The St Walter fair in Guimarães, in honour of St Walter, have been held since 1906 and include a linen cortège and the Battle of the Flowers and traditionally end with the Walter March: it is 4 days of music, fun and lots of entertainment with fireworks lighting up the night skies. Guimarães station is less than a 15-minute walk from where the Fair is held so the train is the best way to avoid the traffic and parking.

Further details from www.guimaraesturismo.com

Dates and times
The festival is held on the first weekend in August.

The Palmela grape harvest festivities offer a long list of shows and entertainment: wine tasting and competitions, exhibitions, sports events, fair, fun, the traditional celebrations of the floats, bull runs, and the famous firework display over the town. Come comfortably by train and keep all your energy for the party.

Dates and times
The festival is held in August and September. 

The festivities in honour of Nossa Senhora da Boa Viagem, in Moita, run for ten days with activities connected with bull fighting and music festivals, and a special place for religious activities connected with the river. These are the most popular festivities on the south bank of the Tagus.

Moita station is close by the main venues.

Dates and times
The festivities run in September.

The Afonso Fair in Guimarães, invites locals and visitors to travel back to the time of the Condado Portucalense, recalling the food, local culture, with displays, street entertainment and historical recreations of life in Guimarães in the Middle Ages.

Guimarães station is less than a 15-minute walk from where the Fair is held,

Dates and times
The festival is held on the second weekend in September. 

The fair is held in Penafiel as a farm fair, with cattle, and the most lively day is the 11th, St Martin's Day and the town holiday, celebrated with chestnuts and new wine and then on the following Sunday, called “Gift Sunday” as this is the day sweethearts exchange the gilts they bought at the fair.

The local delicacies include fried pork with baked rice and the local Vinho Verde.

Penafiel station is near the main venues.

Dates and times
The festival is held on 11 November.