What's on in Cascais, Portugal through the year

Quiet — travelers describe it as quiet, Cascais Christmas Village

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Winter swell season (1 Oct – 31 Mar), Cascais Christmas Village (20 Nov – 5 Jan (usually))

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

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Winter swell season (1 Oct – 31 Mar)

Busy — Easter holidays in Portugal, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Winter swell season (1 Oct – 31 Mar)

Busy — Easter holidays in Portugal, school holidays in 6 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in April.

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

Nothing new starts in May.

Busy — Summer holidays in Portugal, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

• Season

  The nortada

  15 Jun – 15 Sep · usuallyWind seasonRisk

  The north wind gets up most summer afternoons, which is why Guincho belongs to kitesurfers and why the sheltered town beaches fill instead. Mornings are the calm half of the day.

Peak crowds — Lisbon's summer coast, Summer holidays in Portugal

• Holiday

  Lisbon's summer coast

  1 Jul – 31 AugSchool holidaysCrowdedBook early

  The Cascais line runs standing-room only at weekends once the schools break, and the town is as much a Lisbon suburb on holiday as a resort. Weekdays are a different place. Source ↗

• Season

  Sea at its warmest

  20 Jul – 5 Oct · usuallySea warm enough

  The Atlantic upwelling keeps this coast cold well into summer and it only comes round in August and September. The bay beaches are always a little warmer than Guincho.

Still on: The nortada (15 Jun – 15 Sep (usually))

Peak crowds — Lisbon's summer coast, Festas do Mar

• Festival

  Festas do Mar

  20–30 AugMajor festivalCrowded

  Free concerts on the bay across the last two weekends of August, closing with the fishermen's procession for Nossa Senhora dos Navegantes. The bay road is shut on concert nights. Source ↗

Still on: The nortada (15 Jun – 15 Sep (usually)), Lisbon's summer coast (1 Jul – 31 Aug), Sea at its warmest (20 Jul – 5 Oct (usually))

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

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: The nortada (15 Jun – 15 Sep (usually)), Sea at its warmest (20 Jul – 5 Oct (usually))

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

• Season

  Winter swell season

  1 Oct – 31 MarSurf season

  The Atlantic lows that make winter here grey are the same ones that make it the serious surf half of the year, at Guincho and around the point at Carcavelos.

Still on: Sea at its warmest (20 Jul – 5 Oct (usually))

Busy — Cascais Christmas Village, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Cascais Christmas Village

  20 Nov – 5 Jan · usuallyChristmas & New YearCrowded

  The Parque Marechal Carmona is given over to a ticketed Christmas village from late November, which is what fills the town on winter weekends when the beach cannot. Source ↗

Still on: Winter swell season (1 Oct – 31 Mar)

Peak crowds — Cascais Christmas Village, Christmas holidays in Portugal

Nothing new starts in December.

Still on: Winter swell season (1 Oct – 31 Mar), Cascais Christmas Village (20 Nov – 5 Jan (usually))