What's on in Braga, Portugal through the year

Busy — Christmas holidays in Portugal, school holidays in 7 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Braga e Natal (28 Nov – 6 Jan (usually))

Busy — Carnival holidays in Portugal, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Carnaval

  1 Feb – 10 Mar · usuallyCarnivalClosures

  A night parade winds through the old centre from Arco da Porta Nova, and the Mercado Municipal hosts several days of music and food. On Shrove Tuesday most council services close. Source ↗

Peak crowds — Semana Santa, Easter holidays in Portugal

• Holiday

  Semana Santa

  15 Mar – 20 Apr · usuallyEaster & Holy WeekCrowdedBook early

  Portugal's most elaborate Holy Week: hooded farricocos with torches, the Ecce Homo procession and streets laid with flower carpets. The old centre closes to traffic on procession nights and hotels book out months ahead. Source ↗

Still on: Carnaval (1 Feb – 10 Mar (usually))

Peak crowds — Semana Santa, Easter holidays in Portugal

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: Semana Santa (15 Mar – 20 Apr (usually))

Busy — Braga Romana, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Braga Romana

  20–24 MayMajor festivalCrowded

  The city plays at being Bracara Augusta for five days, with a market, re-enactors and the Roman baths open late. It is aimed at families from the Minho rather than at foreign visitors. Source ↗

Peak crowds — São João de Braga, Summer holidays in Portugal

• Festival

  São João de Braga

  15–24 JunReligious feastCrowded

  A week of giants, rusgas and cavaquinho bands ending on 24 June, which is the municipal holiday and closes the offices. Less commercial than the Porto version of the same night. Source ↗

Busy — Summer holidays in Portugal, school holidays in 7 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in July.

Peak crowds — Romaria de Sao Bento, Summer holidays in Portugal

• Festival

  Romaria de Sao Bento

  10–15 AugPilgrimage seasonCrowded

  Portugal's second most visited sanctuary, above the Caniçada reservoir in Geres, draws huge crowds of pilgrims, many of them emigrants home for August. Roads out of Braga toward the park are slow. Source ↗

Busy — Summer holidays in Portugal, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Season

  Vinho Verde harvest

  1 Sep – 10 Oct · usually

  The vines trained overhead on granite posts around the city are picked through September, and the quintas in the Cavado and Ave valleys open for it. Warm days, and the first cold nights of the year. Source ↗

Shoulder season — school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in October.

Still on: Vinho Verde harvest (1 Sep – 10 Oct (usually))

Quiet — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

• Festival

  Braga e Natal

  28 Nov – 6 Jan · usuallyChristmas & New Year

  The city's Christmas programme runs for about six weeks, with a market of artisans and regional sweets on Avenida Central, lights across the old town, concerts and street entertainment. Source ↗

Busy — Christmas holidays in Portugal, school holidays in 7 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in December.

Still on: Braga e Natal (28 Nov – 6 Jan (usually))