Holidays

Meet the Martins family from Porto! Learn more about what each family member does for work and how they like to spend their holidays.

Welcome to Torres Vedras Carnival, a lively festivity that remains faithful to the tradition of celebrating Carnival in Portugal. Learn more about how the Portuguese like to party during this exciting multi-day event!

Feliz Ano Novo! Find out how the Portuguese like to celebrate New Year’s Eve.

‘Tis the season… to spread misinformation about the origins of Christmas and Santa Claus! In this special holiday episode, Rui and Joel explore the food and other traditions of Christmas in Portugal, while featuring one of our latest Shorties, “a Consoada“. Boas festas a todos! 🎄

Christmas dinner is a sumptuous meal that brings the whole family to the table for socialization and celebration. Learn more about the treats and traditions of Christmas Eve in Portugal.

The sardine is a very important fish for Portuguese people and is highly consumed during the Popular Saints’ Festivals. Learn more about the economic and social impact of the sardine and the tasty meals that can be prepared with it.

Always looking for ways to escape school, Maria and Pedro figure out how many public holidays there are in the school year.

This holiday season, a Practice Portuguese TV reporter takes to the streets to hear directly from Portuguese natives about their family Christmas traditions… until a particularly talkative woman steals the show!

In a special TV report about Christmas, Fernando, Sara and Bruno take the spotlight, after Fernando is invited to talk about his family’s holiday traditions.

What better way to celebrate the season than with a bit of snow and -11°C temperatures? Check out the holiday hijinx we got up to while almost freezing to death in Toronto, Canada this month… and learn a bit of seasonal vocabulary at the same time!

The Portuguese calendar has several holidays and holiday periods throughout the year. Holiday can have two meanings in Portuguese:

• feriado holiday – A public holiday, or day to celebrate something of specific cultural or religious importance at a local or national level.
• férias holiday, holidays – A planned period of time off work or school. Férias are often scheduled around important feriados.

Some of the Main Holidays in Portugal

Date / Time of Year	Holiday
1 de janeiro January 1st	Ano Novo New Year’s
fevereiro February	Carnaval Carnival, Mardi Gras
março March or abril April	Páscoa Easter
25 de abril April 25th	Dia da Liberdade National Freedom Day
10 de junho June 10th	Dia de Portugal Portugal Day
25 de dezembro December 25th	Natal Christmas

Date Format

In Portuguese, the structure of dates is dia de mês de ano (day of month of year), and the numbers are typically cardinal, not ordinal. That means that you say um de janeiro January one instead of primeiro de janeiro January first. You may have also noticed that the names of the months and days of the week are not capitalized in Portuguese, as they are in English.

In written form, dates appear

What could be better than a holiday episode in January? (Just about anything!) Listen to find out what happened to Rui that delayed this episode… and be extra prepared for when the holidays come around again in about 355 days! We also discuss some quirky traditions and superstitions that Portuguese natives take part in during […]

In this Lenda (tale), we explore a famous Portuguese tale of a woman… with goat feet! She manages to keep the secret hidden her entire life, until a nobleman falls in love with her and learns the truth. (special thanks to Luís Relógio for writing this episode!)

In Portugal, A noite de Ano Novo New Year’s Eve is full of traditions and superstitions. Just like Christmas, the celebration begins with a family dinner, and even more holiday sweets.

It’s All About o Dinheiro!

Superstition says that you can attract dinheiro money in the new year by eating chocolate.

Celebrating Christmas: Then and Now

Portugal has no official religion, but most of its population is Christian (81% Catholic). However, only about 19% attend mass and take the sacraments regularly. In Portugal, Church and State are formally separate, but the Catholic institution still has a strong influence, especially for the older population.

Like other parts of the world, holidays like o Natal Christmas have gradually transformed from being purely religious to being more commercialized, cultural holidays, especially for the younger generations. Despite the growing commercialization and consumerism of the holiday, it is still possible to find some old traditions, especially in as aldeias the small towns, villages of Portugal.

In more recent years, the Portuguese have incorporated as árvores do Natal the Christmas trees and Santa Claus imagery in their homes. Parents tell their children that

Na nossa casa, animação não falta! Neste vídeo, a avó Odete cria o caos ao tentar explicar o que é o Natal e o fim do ano. Consegues adivinhar as suas resoluções para 2016?
(Atenção: Nível de dificuldade = MÁXIMO!)

Na nossa casa, animação não falta! Neste vídeo, a avó Odete cria o caos ao tentar explicar o que é o Natal e o fim do ano. Consegues adivinhar as suas resoluções para 2016? Like this special video-only episode? Tell us in the YouTube comments! (Atenção: Nível de dificuldade = MÁXIMO) • Because of the […]

Christmas in Portugal — the habits, the traditions, and the typical dishes. Discover everything in a two-speed text. Slow so you can understand, fast so you can practice!

O Rui e a Mãe têm uma dúvida: em que local do planeta se celebra o Novo Ano em primeiro lugar? Alguém sabe?

Learn more about Lisbon’s biggest festival, Santo António, with a shorter, simpler article. Enjoy!

Listen to this dialogue about the 25th of April, a Portuguese national holiday commemorating the Carnation Revolution.

Half Jesus, half chocolate! Portugal and its Easter traditions, in a video with subtitles so you can practice at your own pace.