Medieval Paderne
This event, which is being held during the last days of the year and ends on January 1st, is organized by the Municipality of Albufeira in partnership with the Junta de Freguesia of Paderne. For 4 days the locality of Paderne is filled with stands, arts, crafts and with the best of regional gastronomy.
The journey to the past is made through the re-creation of the medieval market, which stretches along the narrow alleys of the parish. The high point of the Medieval Fair of Paderne consists on procession which depicts the historic ceremony of the delivery of the Letter of Donation of the Castle of Paderne, by the king Dom Dinis, to the Order of Avis.
The event takes place every day between 12 and 21 hours and it is necessary to pay admission.
Carnival of Loulé
The Algarve’s best-known Carnival attracts thousands of people every year to the city of Loulé. The streets of Loulé are filled with the most spectacular face-masks warming up the cold winter days. For 3 days, the city hosts parades trying to satirize the main social, political, economic or sports events of the last year. To this end, floats are built to stroll along the main avenue of the city.
The city also presents a series of activities that aim to energize and boost the region. There is a Gala Ball that gathers those wanting to party on Monday night, before Carnival Tuesday. The public attending the ball must dress up according to its theme.
Fair of Traditional Sausages from Serra de Monchique
This two-day event brings together the best sausages of the region and presents them along with other specialties such as honey, medronho and traditional sweets. The fair also features local handicrafts.
The event takes place in March (this year it was scheduled for the 3rd and 4th of March) and several performances and musical concerts are presented. Entrance is free.
Contraband Festival
The Contraband Festival, in Alcoutim, aims to honour an activity that for many years was part of the Algarve traditions and that is inexorably linked to the history of the region. The proximity to the frontier and an extensive coast were always propitious for the most fearless to risk the smuggling of goods to make a fortune. Besides the goods being smuggled, the heavy sacks also carried the dreams and ambitions for a better life.
Usually held during three days, coinciding with the last weekend of March, in Alcoutim (Portugal) and Sanlúcar de Guadiana (Spain) at the same time, the festival offers various artistic and cultural shows. Aromas of coffee, almonds, tobacco, accordion music and fandangos and stories of passions recreate the environment in which the smugglers used to live.
Entrance is free.
FIESA – International Sand Sculpture Festival
This is the largest sand sculpture festival in the world. Every year around 60 artists of different nationalities use 35,000 tons of sand to bring to life several works of art, some of them being 12 meters high, in a space of about 15,000 m2. In addition to the figures and sculptures, the event is accompanied by circus arts, dance performances, theatre and music. The display of the sand sculptures is open to the public in the morning and at night, when artificial lights give a completely different look to the enclosure.
Children up to 5 years old do not pay entrance fee. The ticket, for children between 6 and 12 years, costs € 4.90, for adults costs € 9.90 and for the elderly over 65 years old is priced at € 7.90.
OPENING TIMES
01 March to 01 June: 10 am to 7 pm
02 June to 14 July: 10 am to 10 pm
15 July to 15 September: 10h – 24h
16 September to 10 November: 10am – 7pm
Black and White Night
The Black and White night in Carvoeiro unofficially starts the summer season in the Algarve.
On this night of partying, which is already a tradition of Carvoeiro, visitors should dress in black and white to participate in the various celebrations that spread from the village to the beach. This year, Largo da Praia and the streets of downtown Carvoeiro will have 9 different scenarios that will host more than a dozen music and dance shows throughout the night.
The circulation of cars in the city centre will be difficult, so there will be a free shuttle bus from the Solférias ramp to transport people to the party.
This year, the festival is scheduled for 20h30 on June 15, 2019 (Saturday) and will only end at 03h00. Entrance is free.
Med Festival
The Med Festival is one of the best music festivals in the country. For three days, from June 28th to July 1st, the best national and international artists visit the streets of Loulé to offer a wide range of alternative musical styles.
Recently honoured with two awards at the Iberian Festival Awards, the Med Festival makes the charming Historic Centre of the city the venue of the various concerts spread across the different stages that warming the breezy summer evenings.
Do not miss the opportunity to enjoy a concert of fado in the Cloisters of the Convent or to listen to classical music in the Igreja Matriz. Then head to the main stages where the main concerts take place.
PRICES:
Children under 12 don’t have to pay ticket.
PRE SALE
Daily Ticket – € 10.00
Ticket to the whole Festival – € 25.00
Family daily ticket – € 25.00
(Valid for daily admission of 2 adults + 2 children up to 16 years)
NORMAL SALE
Daily Ticket – € 12.00
Ticket to the whole Festival – € 30.00
Family daily ticket – € 25.00
(Valid for daily admission of 2 adults + 2 children up to 16 years)
Baixa Street Fest
The Baixa Street Fest initiative takes place on Friday evenings between the end of June and August. Every Friday, between 21h and the midnight, the municipality counts on this initiative to invigorate commerce and tourism during the summer nights in Faro. Let yourself be carried away by the peacefulness of Faro’s hot nights and enjoy the entertainment proposals such as concerts, theatre, circus and sound and light shows. The shops, with extended opening hours, promise to offer discounts during the nights that are part of the Baixa Street Fest program.
Entrance is free.
Faro Motorcycle Concentration
During summer, in July, the city of Faro hosts one of the largest concentrations of motorbikes of the entire world. More than 20,000 motorcyclists gather for a three-day event in Vale das Almas, an area of around 400,000 square meters near Faro airport. The space also serves as a camping site where motorcyclists can stay overnight during the event.
The event features demonstrations of skills, talent contests, various performances and music concerts every night. At the end of the event, on Sunday morning, there is a parade in which all the motorcyclists strut their motorbikes through Faro. This is certainly an event that no real fan of motorcycles will want to miss.
The registration fee costs 45€ and entitles you to camp on site and to attend concerts every night, including an official t-shirt, medal, sticker, meals, and the chance to win a new bike or a week in Daytona.
Pirate Week
With two editions prepared for 2018, one between 20 and 24 July, in Lagoa, and another from 24 to 28 August 2018, in Alvor, each Pirate Week dedicates a week to the adventure of a pirate’s life. During the week, various activities and shows are carried out to bring to life an era of indomitable adventurers wagered to conquer the seven seas.
The two editions, called Volume I: The Alchemist of Senhora da Rocha and Volume II: Assault of Alvor will offer exciting narratives that aim to captivate the whole family. There will also be stalls for artisans and jewellers and food.
Entrance is free.
Al-Buhera
The Al-Buhera Festival aims to travel back in time to an era when the Algarve region was dominated by the Arabs and Albufeira was named Al-Buhera. For 5 days, at the end of July, the sunny town receives samples of handicrafts, regional gastronomy products and a luxury animation program. At the stage of Fisherman’s Square artists such as Miguel Araújo or Matias Damásio have performed on previous editions of the Al-Buhera Festival.
The Arab-themed festival also features pieces made from traditional materials such as copper, wood, cork, stones or beach shells, leather, jewellery, textiles, painting and decorative objects, including Moroccan and Ecuador handicrafts and tea sandals produced in Goa. Visitors can also find gastronomic products such as nuts, jams, honey, liqueurs and regional sweets.
Admission is free.
Ria Formosa Festival
The Ria Formosa Festival is one of the largest gastronomic events in the county of Faro and is usually held between the end of July and the beginning of August, in Largo de São Francisco, Faro. For about 10 days it is possible to taste the best seafood from Ria Formosa, as well as other regional specialties.
The animation of the event is ensured by the presence of several local and national artists.
Admission is free and the opening hours of the festival are between 7pm and 1am.
Sons do Atlântico – World Music Festival
The World Music Festival takes place during the end of July and beginning of August in 3 different locations: Senhora da Rocha, Ferragudo and Carvoeiro. During these days, these localities will be the scenery of different styles of music that aim to cover the various musical genres scattered around the globe.
Admission is free.
Festival da Sardinha (Sardine Festival)
The Sardine Festival in Portimão is usually held during the first week of August. For five days Portimão celebrates its gastronomic specialty – the sardine. Accompanied by the traditional baked potato or the famous regional salad, the delicious sardine is cooked perfectly to the delight of the more than 50 thousand visitors that usually visit the festival every year.
This good mood festival is also accompanied by live concerts every evening. The entrance to zona ribeirinha, where the event takes place, is free. Come taste the region’s specialty and participate in the Sardine Festival!
Silves Medieval Fair
The Medieval Fair of Silves is usually held in the first fortnight of August, and for ten days the medieval period of the former capital of the kingdom of Al-Gharb (Algarve) is recreated.
Between August 9 and 18, 2018, the city of Silves will welcome visitors from a distant past as dancers, fools, acrobats, jugglers, snake charmers and Christian knights re-enact the conquest of the city.
Music and poetry are also present at this event, as proof of the importance attributed by the old capital to culture and arts. Two tournaments on horseback per day, animation in the Castle of Silves, medieval delicacies, dancing and animation, a coin of its own and a children’s space transport the visitors in time to an enchanted time of knights and maidens. Silves Medieval Fair has more than two hundred exhibitors and taverns.
Prices vary depending on the attraction and experience you may seek:
Animation Castle of Silves
5€ (includes entrance ticket to the fair perimeter)
Horse Weapons Tournament
5€ (includes entrance ticket to the fair perimeter)
Daily Ticket
2€
Free Transit Bracelet
3€ (pre-sale)
4€ (during the Medieval Fair of Silves)
Renting a Costume
Adult – 3€
Child – 2€
Medieval Experience
Up to 6 years old: Free
From 6 to 10 years: 25€
Over 10 years: 50€
MEO Sudoeste
MEO Sudoeste Festival is a summer festival that takes place at Herdade da Casa Branca in Alentejo. With a campsite where visitors can stay overnight during the festival period, MEO Sudoeste attracts thousands of people who, in addition to the musical experience, try to find out what it’s like to camp for a week in a gigantic homestead.
The days are spent in company with the other campers and festivals. To do so, the venue has several activities including a beach volleyball field and a water channel, which serves as a beach when buses that transport people, free of charge, from the festival to the beach of Zambujeira do Mar are too full. The fantastic rock, pop, hip-hop or electronic music aims to warm the cold Alentejo nights.
MEO Sudoeste is undoubtedly one of the most fun festivals in the country, having received more than one million visitors since it opened its doors for the first time in 1997. Scheduled for the days between 7 and 11 August, this is a week that will relieve you of any stress you might have.
The general pass costs 115€ and a daily ticket costs 50€.
Festival do Marisco (Seafood Festival)
The Seafood Festival is one of the most well-known festivals in the entire Algarve. The Cubist City of Olhão brings to its people an exotic architecture bandled together with the most delicious seafood dishes of the region. Held at Jardim Pescador Olhanense, next to the Ria Formosa, the festival features a wide variety of traditional cooking, regional sweets, handicrafts and live shows.
Every year thousands of people organize their vacations so that they can eat tons of seafood while they listen to concerts of some of the best artists in Portugal. This year, the festival will run from 10 to 15 August and will feature names like Xutos & Pontapés, Pedro Abrunhosa and Ana Moura.
The daily ticket, depending on the day in question and the artists that will perform on that day, costs between 6€ and 9€, and the pass for the entire event is usually priced at 18€ for children and 36€ for adults.
Lagos Sunset Color Party – Youth Party
This solidarity event brings together nationally renowned artists and local heroes, since part of the funds raised is donated to the Lagos Volunteer Firemen’s Humanitarian Association. Usually held on August 12, when the International Youth Day is celebrated, this festival joins the pleasure of enjoying a late afternoon, to the sound of an excellent concert, with the thrill of being dipped in colourful inks.
Admission costs 3,50€, granting you access to the venue and a coloured powder bag.
Medieval Days in Castro Marim
Traditionally held in the penultimate week of August, the medieval days of Castro Marim try to bring to life the imagination of a medieval universe. Legends and narratives come to life and the Castle of Castro Marim is the main stage of distant times.
The event, which is already considered one of the major cultural events south of Tejo, will allow you to enjoy five days and five nights of mystery and magic among the medieval era.
Join the thousands of visitors who visit the village of Castro Marim in a journey back in time to medieval days.
Prices vary depending on the attraction and experience you seek:
Market Access Ticket:
0 to 11 years old: € 0
From 12 years old: € 3.00
Note: Is it possible to buy tickets for access to the Castle in the Market | price: € 5.00
Access ticket to the Castle:
0 to 5 years old: € 0
6 to 11 years: 3 € *
From 12 years old: 7 € *
* Includes entrance to the Medieval Village and the Fort of São Sebastião and gifts alluding to the Edition of Medieval Days
Medieval Banquet
Reservations: 281 510 778 | gam@cm-castromarim.pt
Single price: 35 €
* Only accessible by reservation
** It includes the Medieval Banquet, entrance to the Castle, the Medieval Village and the Fort of São Sebastião and gifts allusive to the Edition of the Medieval Days
FATACIL – Craft, Tourism, Agriculture, Commerce and Industry Fair of Lagoa
Created in 1980 with the 1st Lagoa Regional Fair with the objective of developing the main economic sectors of the region, FATACIL, as its name indicates, has exhibitions of commerce, industry, agriculture, handicrafts and gastronomy.
The event lasts ten days and will take place between 16 and 25 August 2019. The gigantic fair also has several concerts to brighten the nights and late afternoons. The festival also offers various shows and entertainment for the whole family.
TICKETS
Daily Ticket – 1 person …………………… .. € 3.50
Daily Ticket – Family (4 people) ………… € 12,50
10 Days Ticket – 1 person …………………… € 20.00
Children up to 12 years old do not pay entrance
Folkfaro
Forlkfaro brings to the Algarve the colourful music and dances of the world. This event, which covers a total of 15 Algarve localities, pays tribute to the songs, dances and costumes of peoples from different continents, having international participants – among them groups from Costa Rica, Italy, Mexico or Poland – eager to show the Portuguese audience the popular traditions of their lands.
The festival also has street entertainments and a parade with the participating groups, creating an atmosphere of celebration and joy.
The festival lasts for 9 days and usually takes place in the second half of August. Each ticket costs 10€ with a discount of 20% for children under 12 or over 65 years of age.
White Night Algarve
This festival, usually held on the last Saturday of August, attracts thousands of people to the streets of Loulé. The whole town is dressed in white, the obligatory colour of the clothes of those who want to participate in the event, and bids farewell to another great summer in the Algarve.
The White Night has hundreds of live music and dance shows, entertainment spaces and play spaces spread around key points at the heart of Loulé. This event, one of the largest in the country, has sought to innovate year after year, and also features performances that seeks to engage the participation of visitors, jugglers, fire breathers, statue men, clowns, magicians and gymnasts.
During the party, the stores are open all night, dressed in white, and offer various discounts on their products. Admission is free.
Noites de Levante in Olhão
In the Ribeirinha area, in Olhão, the Noites de Levante take place during 4 days at the end of August. From 5:00 p.m., every night, the town offers summer entertainment with a strong cultural component, including music, theatre, dance, circus and street shows.
Until midnight, the public (residents and tourists) are invited to come to the street to celebrate the joy of summer, in an event that acclaims the good weather and joy of the Algarve.
Admission is free.
Festival F
Festival F takes place in early September to mark the end of summer in the city of Faro, in the area of Vila Adentro. The festival repeats the formula of Festival Med, and turns the streets of the historic city centre into one of the best music festivals in the country. For three days, the best national artists perform throughout the night in a farewell to another fantastic summer.
In the year 2017, the festival featured names such as Rui Veloso, Xutos & Pontapés, Salvador Sobral, Valete, Jorge Palma and Miguel Araújo. Stroll through the Portuguese cobble streets and typical Algarve houses and let yourself be carried away by the good mood feeling that invades the city during Festival F.
The pass for the 3 days is priced at 30€, if purchased on a pre-sale basis, otherwise the price is 40€. The daily ticket is worth 15€. Children up to 12 years old do not pay entrance.
Didgeridoo Festival (FATT) in Estômbar
The Didgeridoo is an Australian wind musical instrument. Every year, by the end of summer and at the beginning of September, the Didgeridoo Festival takes place at Sítio das Fontes, in Estômbar, in the municipality of Lagoa. This municipal park hosts the event for a few days, with grills, tables, an amphitheatre, public toilets, support houses, and where it is possible to camp. In addition to camping in tents, it is also possible to stay in caravans.
This is a festival where good mood and relaxation take place.
For more information, please see http://www.apdidgeridoo.pt/fatt2017eng/ .
Algarve Classic Festival
The Autódromo Internacional do Algarve organizes, since 2009, an international event in October dedicated to classic cars. Taking advantage of the good weather that still takes place in mid October, in the southern region of Portugal, the event gathers more than 300 teams and more than 500 drivers.
In addition to the races, the festival features a parade on the track that includes the competition cars and privately owned old and classic cars.
For more information on tickets and schedules, please see http://algarveclassicfestival.com/ .
Rota do Petisco (Snack Route)
The Snack Route is an organisation that aims to introduce the snacks of the Algarve. To this end, it organizes every year the Algarve Snack Route (RPA), which this year will run from October 4 to November 4, 2018, giving those who wish to participate in the event a passport that gives entitlement to a snack and a drink for 3€ at the different stops that make up the Snack Route.
There is no predefined order to go through the Route, nor limit to the number of repetitions in the menu. When snacking at each establishment a stamp is placed in the corresponding space of the passport. Depending on the number of stamps you can qualify to receive different prizes.
For more information on how to participate in the event, please visit www.rotadopetisco.com or send an email to rotadopetisco@teiadimpulsos.pt.
St. Martinho Fair
The Fair of São Martinho is the oldest popular event that takes place in Portimão, dating back to 1662. The fair takes place in the first week of November, celebrating the day of Saint Martin on the 11th of the same month. At this autumn fair, the visitor can find exhibitors of traditional food products, crockery, plastics, toys, costume jewellery, footwear and textiles. There are also the famous roasted chestnuts, farturas, popcorn, cotton candy, hot dogs, roasted octopus, bread with chorizo, bifanas and other snacks.
Gambling games, bumper cars and tombolas are also present for the delight of the entire family.
Entrance is free.
LUZA Festival
The LUZA Festival is an innovative project, held at the end of November, in the Municipality of Loulé, which aims to insert Portugal in the itinerary of the international festivals of artistic lighting. This festival has initiatives like the Torch Light Parade, in which 2000 torches are distributed and lit by the participants with the intention of illuminating the route between Mãe Soberana and the land in which the fair takes place.
During the festival it will be possible to visit various exhibitions and attend conferences.
All facilities will be free of charge and the public will be able to walk the streets, monuments and buildings of the city for an unforgettable and illuminated experience.
Sweet Potato Festival in Aljezur
During a Friday and last weekend of November, the gastronomy shines in the locality of Aljezur. The variety of gastronomic offers goes through 4 restaurants, 3 bars and several street food stalls, where the most elaborate dishes are made using sweet potato as the main ingredient, from chocolate with sweet potato to sweet potato candies. At this festival you will also have the opportunity to taste handmade sweet potatoes beers.
More than a hundred exhibitors participate in this event to the delight of the thousands of visitors who come to Aljezur at this time.
Admission and parking are free.
Guia Natal
Guia Natal aims to take thousands of people to the small town of Guia, Albufeira. For about two weeks, several exhibitions will be exhibited and there will be activities, with the Christmas theme, that turn Guia into a magical place.
The exhibition “Presépios do Mundo”, present at Ermida de Nossa Senhora da Guia, consists of 30 Christmas cribs ceded by embassies, consulates and private citizens, thus forming a unique set that reveals how the birth of Jesus Christ is represented throughout the world. Among the exhibited sets, there are three cribs from the private collection of former First Lady Maria Cavaco Silva.
In addition to the exhibition “Presépios do Mundo”, there is also a Christmas Market and an impressive Street Crib.
The event is free.
