What to Listen To
The headliners this weekend are veterans: Alphaville and Rui Veloso are bringing two consecutive evenings of nostalgia to Campo Pequeno. The freshest sounds are in Porto, where Casa da Música celebrates the centenary of John Coltrane, while Lisbon has no premieres this time around, but plenty of good intimate concerts.
Lisbon and Surroundings
Alphaville
📅 October 16, 21:30
📍 Sagres Campo Pequeno
💸 €45–60
Marian Gold’s German band gave us “Forever Young,” “Big in Japan” and “Sounds Like a Melody” — songs that have outlived their decade and still make an appearance at pretty much any ’80s-themed party. “Forever Young” has since been covered and sampled by dozens of artists, from Jay-Z to indie bands. This tour celebrates more than 40 years of the group, with their hits in refreshed arrangements alongside newer material. Campo Pequeno, a bullring dating back to the late 19th century, makes synth-pop sound more grandiose beneath its dome than it ever could in a club. If you miss this show, you can catch the band the following day at Multiusos in Guimarães.
Rui Veloso Trio
📅 October 17, 21:00
📍 Sagres Campo Pequeno
💸 €25–75
Rui Veloso is known in Portugal as the father of Portuguese rock. His 1980 album Ar de Rock and the song “Chico Fininho” are generally considered the starting point of Portuguese rock, while “Porto Covo” and “Não Há Estrelas no Céu” are familiar to practically every family in the country. In Lisbon, he will take to a circular stage in the middle of the venue alongside guitarists Alexandre Mania and Eduardo Espinho, making the show easy to see and hear from anywhere in the room. At his October 9 concert in Porto, Veloso told the audience he was considering taking a break from his career, so this could be your last chance to see him live for a while. Two hours should be enough to understand the music your Portuguese neighbours grew up with.
Steve ’n’ Seagulls
📅 October 18, 20:30
📍 República da Música
💸 €25
This Finnish quintet, dressed in work overalls, play Metallica, AC/DC and Iron Maiden on banjo, mandolin, accordion and double bass, as if hard rock had been born on a farm. Their country-style version of “Thunderstruck” went viral in 2014, and the band has since racked up hundreds of millions of YouTube views and played metal festivals including Wacken and Download. They are performing in Portugal for the first time, bringing their album The Dark Side of the Moo, whose title nods to Pink Floyd. A great option for a group where one person loves metal and another can’t stand it.
Strawberry Guy
📅 October 16, 21:00
📍 Casa Capitão, Beato
💸 From €21.63
This Cardiff musician makes gentle dream pop that sounds like it was recorded in a bedroom, with everything captured in a single take. The Give Me A Dream tour marks his first live shows in five years, following his last album. Argentine singer-songwriter Malena Zavala opens with her Latin American folk-pop. Buying online is cheaper than paying at the door (€26). He plays in Porto the following day.
Sophie Hutchings / Surma
📅 October 17, 21:30
📍 Casa da Cultura, Setúbal
💸 €10
Australian pianist Sophie Hutchings writes meditative neoclassical music, built around quiet piano loops in the vein of Nils Frahm, the German composer and one of the genre’s leading figures. The second half features Surma, a Portuguese multi-instrumentalist who builds experimental songs from voice and electronics. Two very different performances for just €10, with Setúbal only 45 minutes from Lisbon.
V Aniversário Futura: Rui Reininho, Best Youth and more
📅 October 17, from 16:00
📍 Casa Capitão, Beato
💸 €24
A daytime marathon celebrating the Portuguese music scene at the venue now occupied by the team behind the former Musicbox club. Femme Falafel kicks things off at 16:00, followed by Best Youth at 18:00, a dream-pop duo from Porto. At 20:30, Rui Reininho takes the stage — the voice of GNR, one of the classic Portuguese rock bands of the 1980s. The finale comes at 22:00, when Ditch Days perform Daft Punk’s Discovery in its entirety. The daytime programme in the attic and on the terrace is free. From 23:59, a separate club night featuring Xinobi takes over.
“Spooky Classics”
📅 October 18, 17:00 (doors open at 16:45)
📍 Espaço Aberto Cascais
💸 €25
Pianist Nadezhda Drapkina and violinist Oksana Startseva have put together a Halloween programme of dramatic, slightly mystical music, ranging from dark Romanticism to tales of the supernatural. A little over an hour of unhurried chamber music, with plenty of Sunday evening still left afterwards. Adults are offered a glass of champagne before the concert, while teenagers get a non-alcoholic drink. Halloween costumes are welcome but not required, and admission is open to ages 14 and up, so you can bring your teenage children along.
Nadezhda Drapkina and Oksana Startseva, “Spooky Classics”
Margarida Campelo
📅 October 16, 20:00
📍 CCB, Small Auditorium
💸 €17.50–20
Singer and keyboardist from the circle around Bruno Pernadas, the Lisbon composer known for blending jazz and psychedelic pop, presents her new album Música de Elevador. Expect mellow indie pop, jazz harmonies and ironic lyrics. An intimate venue, a 90-minute set, and Portuguese Sign Language interpretation throughout the concert.
Noites de Orfeu: Mozart’s Requiem
📅 October 17, 21:00
📍 São Miguel de Odrinhas Archaeological Museum, Sintra
💸 Free
The Noites de Orfeu series closes with Mozart’s Requiem, arranged for string quartet and performed by musicians from Sintra Estúdio de Ópera. The music unfolds among Roman tombstones and early Christian stonework in the museum, with the setting itself serving as part of the stage design. Booking is required: call 219 238 608 or email dbmu.masmo.geral@cm-sintra.pt.
Orquestra Académica da ULisboa
📅 October 17, 21:00
📍 Aula Magna
💸 Free
The University of Lisbon’s academic orchestra opens its season with Debussy’s Première Rhapsodie, featuring clarinettist Rui Barbosa, and Haydn’s Symphony No. 104, the last of his symphonies, also known as the London. Admission is free, subject to availability, and no registration is required.
Porto
Tomoki Sanders + Flat Earth Society: The Coltrane Mutations
📅 October 18, 21:00
📍 Casa da Música, Sala 2
💸 €22
The flagship concert of the Jazz Station festival, which this year celebrates the centenaries of John Coltrane and Miles Davis. Saxophonist Tomoki Sanders is the son of Pharoah Sanders, a spiritual jazz legend who played with Coltrane during the final years of his career. Tomoki spent years performing with the band of drummer and producer Kassa Overall and is making his Portuguese debut. Belgian big band Flat Earth Society is known for absurdist arrangements somewhere between free jazz and circus music. Together, they take Coltrane apart and put him back together again, and this is unlikely to be a reverential tribute.
Knobil + Jazzanova feat. Wayne Snow
📅 October 16, 23:00
📍 Casa da Música, Sala 2
💸 €22
Since the late 1990s, Berlin collective Jazzanova have been blending jazz, soul and broken beat, with their remixes helping define the nu-jazz sound. On their In Between Revisited tour, they are joined by Wayne Snow, a Berlin-based soul vocalist with Nigerian roots. Opening the evening is Knobil, the project of Swiss double bassist and singer Louise Knobil, who mixes jazz with French chanson. Jazzanova take the stage at 00:15, with the late-night set giving way to dancing.
Jazz Sinfónico
📅 October 16, 21:00
📍 Casa da Música, Sala Suggia
💸 €26–30
The Porto Symphony Orchestra shares the stage with Orquestra Jazz de Matosinhos, the big band from neighbouring Matosinhos that has performed with saxophonists Lee Konitz and Mark Turner. The programme features Nuno Côrte-Real’s Tuba Concerto, with Sérgio Carolino as soloist, and a concerto for jazz ensemble and orchestra by British composer Alex Paxton. There is also an open rehearsal at 10:00 in the morning, with free admission.
Strawberry Guy
📅 October 17, 20:00
📍 M.Ou.Co
💸 Tickets
Dream pop from Cardiff, Wales, on the same Give Me A Dream tour that brings Strawberry Guy to Lisbon the night before. The concert is part of Primavera Tours, a series of club shows organised throughout the year by the Primavera Sound festival.
Laura Misch
📅 October 16, 21:30
📍 Sala M.Ou.Co
💸 €30
The London-based saxophonist and singer builds meditative jazz from looping saxophone, vocals and electronics. Her concert opens Misty Fest, the autumn festival whose main programme gets underway in November.
Tempers
📅 October 16, 21:00
📍 Auditório CCOP
💸 Tickets
The New York duo play icy darkwave drawing on the legacy of Cocteau Twins and early Depeche Mode. They are bringing their new album, Delusion, to Porto.
O Swing de Bach
📅 October 18, 18:00
📍 Casa da Música, Sala Suggia
💸 €22
The Casa da Música Choir and a jazz trio explore how Bach’s motets were transformed into swing by the Swingle Singers, the French vocal ensemble of the 1960s who sang Bach using scat syllables like “doo-ba-da”. A Sunday evening for anyone who loves both Baroque music and jazz.
Pedro Melo Alves: ΞIIIIIIΞ
📅 October 18, 18:30
📍 Serralves Museum Auditorium
💸 €7.50
Drummer and composer Pedro Melo Alves, a prominent figure in Portugal’s new jazz scene, arranges the musicians in a circle around the room, allowing the sound to travel 360 degrees around the audience. The title, made up of Greek letters and lines, is simply pronounced “imm”. The performance also features Vera Mantero, the choreographer who helped launch contemporary dance in Portugal.
Dia da MPB: A Weekend of Brazilian Music
📅 October 17 from 4:30 PM, October 18 from 10:30 AM
📍 Instituto Pernambuco–Porto Brasil, Rua das Estrelas 143
💸 Free
Portugal is celebrating Dia da MPB (música popular brasileira, or Brazilian popular music, from bossa nova to tropicália) for the first time, with a two-day programme in Porto. On Saturday, after a guided tour of an exhibition on Brazilian modernism, there will be a documentary about singer Fernanda Abreu. At 9:30 PM, Almério, a singer from Pernambuco, takes the stage for an acoustic concert.
Sunday kicks off with a drumming workshop for children. At 5:30 PM, Sérgio Godinho, Mayra Andrade and Samuel Úria look back at the history of Brazilian music in Portugal. At 7:30 PM, Geraldo Azevedo talks about his career, and Djâmen closes the evening with a concert.
Throughout the event, four record shops from Lisbon and Porto will run a vinyl and CD fair, alongside Brazilian food and DJ sets.
Where to Dance
Saturday is packed: a house music festival at Pavilhão Carlos Lopes, a 12-hour marathon at Lux, and Plano B’s 20th-anniversary celebration all happen on the same night, so you’ll have to choose. Sunday is quiet on the dance floors, so save your energy for Saturday.
Lisbon
Jackie’s Lisboa House Music Festival
📅 October 17, 20:00–04:00
📍 Pavilhão Carlos Lopes
💸 Tickets
Barcelona-based brand Jackies bills this as Portugal’s first festival dedicated entirely to house music, taking over an early-20th-century pavilion in Eduardo VII Park. Headliner Chris Stussy, the Dutch star of minimalist house and founder of the Up The Stuss label, is joined by British DJ Dan Shake, known for disco and funk-infused house; South African afro-house artist DESIREE; New York’s Bridge; and Piem, a Jackies resident in Barcelona. Eight hours of one genre in one of the city’s most beautiful venues.
presente: 12 hours, 24 DJs
📅 October 17–18, 00:00–12:00
📍 Lux Frágil
💸 Tickets at the door
Lux takes over both rooms for a 12-hour club marathon. In the disco room, Rui Vargas, a resident DJ who has helped define the club’s sound since it opened in 1998, plays alongside Switchdance. In the bar, DJ Marfox and DJ Nigga Fox, pioneers of Lisbon’s batida scene — suburban electronic music shaped by Angolan rhythms — represent the Príncipe label, joined by scene veteran Yen Sung. You can leave around Sunday noon, when daylight is already spreading across the Tagus.
Shoal (live)
📅 October 17, 17:00–03:00
📍 Collect, LX Factory
💸 €10
Dutch producer Kenny Kneefel performs live as Shoal, creating deep, hypnotic dub techno full of echoes and noise. He releases music on Monument and Animalia and has played at Berlin’s Tresor and Amsterdam’s De School. The event starts while it’s still light, so you could make it here and Jackie’s on the same evening. Ages 18 and over.
Tropicana on the Cruise Terminal Rooftop
📅 October 16, 17:00–23:00
📍 CAVO Rooftop, Lisbon Cruise Port
💸 Free
Tropicana Records brings soulful house and disco to the cruise terminal rooftop, with views of the Tagus and the sunset. The lineup features Erika Fatna, C4STRO b2b Lou and Vini Pistori. Free registration via Shotgun is required, and you must arrive before 22:00; entry may be charged after that.
Porto
20 VINTE XX: 20 Years of Plano B
📅 October 17, from 18:00 until morning
📍 Plano B
💸 €15
One of Porto’s leading clubs celebrates its 20th anniversary with an all-night marathon featuring 20 bands, 20 DJs and 20 artists spread across every floor. Before midnight, the stage hosts Sunflowers, a garage-psych band from Porto, and grindcore veterans Holocausto Canibal. After that, DJs take over, including SAYA from the Zamaan collective, known for its blend of Arabic club sounds and batida. A whole slice of the city’s younger music scene in one night: start with garage rock and finish with DJs as dawn breaks.
Plano B, one of Porto’s leading clubs, celebrates its 20th anniversary.
Mescla
📅 October 17, from 14:00
📍 Casa da Música
💸 €30
For one day, Casa da Música turns Rem Koolhaas’s building over to wine, art, yoga and breathing practices, transforming its three halls into three dance floors: electronic music, world music and disco. The DJs include Alex Barck, co-founder of Jazzanova, and Portuguese duo Ohxala. Originally scheduled for May, the event was postponed until autumn, and tickets bought in the spring remain valid. Ages 16 and over.
Crepúsculo Porto
📅 October 17, 23:59–06:00
📍 Maus Hábitos
💸 Tickets at the door
The Lisbon underground party series comes to Porto for the first time, bringing breakbeat, house and electro powered by a VOID Acoustics sound system. There is a playroom and a tea room. The dress code — leather, latex, avant-garde and fetish looks — is strictly enforced, so you won’t get in without an outfit that fits the theme.
Sandrien
📅 October 17, 23:00–06:00
📍 Gare Porto
💸 €10
The Amsterdam DJ spent years playing at clubs Trouw and De School and at the Dekmantel festival. Expect groove-driven techno with plenty of character in former warehouses near the railway station.
DJ Masda
📅 October 17, 23:59–06:00
📍 Pérola Negra
💸 €15
The Tokyo-based DJ co-founded Cabaret Recordings, the label that helped shape Japan’s minimal house scene. His long, hypnotic sets flow seamlessly from one track to the next. Ages 21 and over.
Jonathan Kaspar
📅 October 16, 23:00–06:00
📍 Switch
💸 €10
The Cologne-based producer is part of the orbit around Kompakt, the label that helped make Cologne a capital of minimal techno. Expect melodic, slightly melancholic techno for a Friday night.
ZAMAAN: hayk karoyi + SAYA
📅 October 17, 23:59–05:00
📍 Passos Manuel
💸 €7 at the door
The Palestinian-rooted Zamaan collective brings Arabic club sounds, batida and gqom (South African electronic music) to the dance floor. Hayk karoyi makes his Portuguese debut with a live set blending Mediterranean influences with Armenian medieval music.
Beyond Lisbon and Porto
Dançarém
📅 October 17, from 17:00
📍 São Francisco Convent, Santarém
💸 €13–15
A traditional folk dance gathering in a Gothic convent. At 17:00, there’s a Portuguese dance workshop; at 18:30, Grupo Arrebenta a Gaita takes the stage; at 22:00, the ball gets underway with Trigueirinha, followed by a DJ after midnight. Under-18s get in free. Advance sales closed on October 14, but you can still try your luck at the door if space remains. About an hour’s drive from Lisbon.
What to See
This week revolves around two festivals, Doclisboa and Amadora BD, while the major new opening is in Porto, where Lee Ufan has placed stones throughout Serralves Park. There are no major new exhibitions in Lisbon, leaving Joana Vasconcelos at MAAT as the main reason to head to Belém.
Lisbon and Surroundings
Doclisboa
📅 October 15–25
📍 Culturgest, Cinema São Jorge, Cinemateca, Cinema Ideal
💸 €3.20–5
Portugal’s largest documentary film festival presents 198 films from 51 countries this year, including 34 world premieres. All screenings have English subtitles. On Friday, catch Knife by Alex Gibney, the Oscar-winning American documentary filmmaker, about the attempted assassination of Salman Rushdie, alongside the opening of a retrospective dedicated to Lino Brocka, a classic of Philippine cinema. Saturday brings My Imaginary Country, a new film by Chilean documentary filmmaker Patricio Guzmán; Douglas Gordon by Douglas Gordon, about the Scottish artist; and Brocka’s Macho Dancer in the evening at the Cinemateca. On Sunday, there’s Ash Is Purest White director Jia Zhangke’s Torino Shadow, followed by The Life of Borges, an almost six-hour film by Argentine filmmaker Mariano Llinás. Tickets cost €5, or €4 for under-30s; screenings at the Cinemateca cost €3.20. A five-screening pass is €19.
Doclisboa, Portugal’s largest documentary film festival.
Amadora BD
📅 October 16–25
📍 Parque da Liberdade, Amadora (Reboleira metro station)
💸 €2–6
The country’s longest-running comics festival returns for its 37th edition, with 14 exhibitions. Highlights include celebrations of 80 years of Lucky Luke and Blake and Mortimer, 65 years of the Fantastic Four, and a retrospective of Canadian artist Guy Delisle, known for his graphic travelogues about Pyongyang and Jerusalem. More than 20 international artists are attending, including Craig Thompson, author of the graphic novel Blankets. Signing sessions include Ryan North, writer of the Fantastic Four comics, and Brazilian artist Marcelo Quintanilha on Friday at 18:30; North returns on Saturday at 15:00 alongside French artist Romain Renard. There’s also a video game zone, so you won’t have to persuade teenagers to come along. The awards ceremony takes place on Sunday, and children under 12 get in free.
VÉNUS: Valentino Through the Eyes of Joana Vasconcelos
📅 Until February 22, 2027
📍 MAAT, Belém
💸 €12–16
Joana Vasconcelos, Portugal’s best-known artist, famous for her shoes made from cooking pots and chandeliers made from tampons, creates a dialogue with haute couture gowns by Valentino Garavani. The exhibition marks the 10th anniversary of the museum on the banks of the Tagus. Tickets cost €12 for Portuguese residents; children under 12 get in free.
Lusco Fusco: Open Studios
📅 October 16, 18:00–23:00
📍 Fábrica Moderna, Rua Pereira Henriques 24, Marvila
💸 Free
More than 50 studios in a former factory in Marvila open their doors to the public. There’s an art market in the courtyard, with music throughout the evening. A good chance to see where Lisbon’s emerging artists are working today, then drop by the neighbouring breweries.
Igor Jesus: “trans-”
📅 October 17 – January 10, 2027
📍 Torreão Nascente da Cordoaria Nacional, Belém
💸 Free
Lisbon-based sculptor Igor Jesus builds works from discarded televisions, projectors and other obsolete equipment, adding video and sound to the mix. His films have been shown at London’s Whitechapel Gallery and Lisbon’s MAAT as part of the Artists’ Film International programme.
For this exhibition in a tower of the former Royal Rope Factory, Jesus has created new sculptures, a series of photographs and three video sculptures exploring things caught between one state and another. The exhibition is curated by Delfim Sardo, one of Portugal’s leading curators.
Open Tuesday–Sunday, 10 AM–1 PM and 2–6 PM. There’s also a LEGO exhibition nearby, in the same Cordoaria complex, so you can combine the two for a family outing.
Porto and Surroundings
Lee Ufan: “Fragments of Infinity”
📅 From October 16
📍 Serralves Villa
💸 €24
The first major exhibition in Portugal by the Korean art master, who turns 90 this year. Lee Ufan was one of the founders of Japan’s Mono-ha movement, which explores simple materials such as stone, steel, glass and empty space. A retrospective of his work is also running in Venice. In Porto, three sculptures are installed in the park and another three inside the Art Deco villa, alongside six paintings, one created specifically for this location. The exhibition runs until March 2027, but autumn is the ideal time to see it, while the trees in Serralves Park are turning golden. The ticket covers both the museum and the park; children under 12 get in free.
FIMP: International Puppet Theatre Festival (Final Weekend)
📅 October 16–18
📍 Rivoli, Matosinhos, streets of Porto
💸 From €2.50
On Friday and Saturday, Rivoli hosts Nocturne (Parade) by French artist Phia Ménard: inflatable figures and darkness, no dialogue, ages 12 and over. On Saturday in Matosinhos, the Polish Puppet Theatre from Białystok presents Transport: Connecting Flights, a story about refugees in an airport, performed in English. Tickets cost €7.50. On Sunday at 11:00, Teatro Dom Roberto performs for free near Trindade metro station. It’s a traditional Portuguese glove-puppet show.
“Megeras”
📅 October 18, 20:00
📍 Teatro Nacional São João, Praça da Batalha
💸 €39–59
A comedy by American playwright Don Nigro about two former Hollywood stars, Ruth and Mildred, who get a chance to return to the screen. There’s just one problem: they have to star together in a horror film, and each wants to remain the leading lady. Directed by Olga Gavrilyuk, the production rests on the performances of Oleksii Vertynskyi and Artem Yemtsov, who play both heroines. The show is performed in Ukrainian in Porto’s historic national theatre. It will be staged in Lisbon the following day, October 19.
Catarina Leitão: “O Mote do Mundo é a Floresta”
📅 October 17, 16:00
📍 Soares dos Reis National Museum
💸 Free
The opening of an installation by Portuguese artist Catarina Leitão, assembled from objects in the collection of the country’s oldest national museum. Forests, plants and natural forms provide the inspiration, drawing on items held in the museum’s archives.
Where to Eat and Drink
It’s a wine-focused weekend: on Friday, the world’s best sommelier is crowned at the Coliseu, and on Saturday, the country’s biggest wine fair opens. The rest of the food scene revolves around rural harvest and sweets festivals, some of which require an hour’s drive.
Lisbon and Surroundings
Best Sommelier of the World: Final
📅 October 16, 14:30
📍 Coliseu dos Recreios
💸 €35–100
The International Sommelier Association holds its championship every three years, and Portugal is hosting it for the second time — the first in almost half a century, since Lisbon in 1978. This time, 66 sommeliers took part in the qualifying rounds, including competitors from Moldova, Kenya, India and Lebanon for the first time. On stage, the finalists identify wines blind, decant bottles and serve imaginary guests before the jury announces the winner. The event lasts around three hours. Ages 18 and over; business attire is required. If you can’t get into the venue, you can watch the livestream on YouTube.
Participants in the 2019 World’s Best Sommelier Championship in Antwerp.
Grandes Escolhas: Vinhos & Sabores
📅 October 17–18, 15:00–21:00
📍 FIL, Parque das Nações, Pavilion 3
💸 Tickets
More than 400 wine producers from across Portugal, from Minho’s vinho verde to fortified Madeira wines, plus live cooking demonstrations and workshops. This year’s featured region is Alentejo. The fair is open to the public on Saturday and Sunday; Monday is reserved for industry professionals. A tasting glass is included in the ticket price. Ages 18 and over. Single-day and two-day tickets are available. The best way to discover what Portugal has to offer beyond the house red at your local tavern.
Oktober Festa
📅 October 17, 13:00–03:00
📍 Marvila
💸 Free
Marvila’s brewery district celebrates its own Oktoberfest across four breweries: Dois Corvos, Fermentage, Musa and Oitava Colina. Expect local craft beer, street food and live sets by Lisbon bands. It starts in the afternoon and turns into a neighbourhood-wide party as the night goes on.
Feira das Mercês
📅 October 15–18 and 23–25
📍 Tapada das Mercês, Sintra
💸 Free
A celebration of saloio traditions — the rural culture of the communities around Lisbon — with homemade food, crafts and folk music. On Saturday at 22:00, Sebastião Antunes & Quadrilha take the stage. Their song “Cantiga da Burra” has become a folk hit in recent years.
Expo Itália
📅 October 16–18
📍 Oeiras Municipal Market
💸 Free
An Italian fair held as part of the Week of Italian Cuisine in the World, featuring regional products, wine tastings and crafts. Cheese, salami and pasta from producers rather than supermarket shelves.
Beyond Lisbon and Porto
Douro Boys Day
📅 October 17, 13:00–21:00
📍 Quinta do Vallado, Douro Valley
💸 €75
Douro Boys is a collective of five wine estates that have helped bring Douro table wines to the world stage since 2002. Quinta do Vallado was founded in 1716 and once belonged to Dona Antónia Ferreira, the legendary matriarch of the region’s wine industry. Spend the day tasting wines with views over the terraced vineyards, just after the harvest. Separate workshops are available for red wines, whites and port. About an hour and a half from Porto. Ages 18 and over.
Mostra de Doces Conventuais
📅 October 16–18, from 10:30
📍 Diocesan Museum, Santarém
💸 Free
A fair dedicated to convent sweets, the desserts Portuguese nuns spent centuries perfecting with egg yolks, sugar and almonds. The programme also includes music, medieval dancing and demonstrations of sword fighting. An hour from Lisbon.
Festa das Adiafas
📅 October 17–25
📍 João Francisco Ribeiro Corrêa Pavilion, Cadaval
💸 Free
A celebration marking the end of the grape harvest, combined with a national festival of vinho leve, Portugal’s young, low-alcohol wine. Expect taverns serving homemade food, folk performances, competitions and equestrian shows. An hour from Lisbon.
Activities
Lisbon has very little on offer this weekend for those who want to get moving themselves — just an evening of bachata. Porto fares a little better, with an oceanfront run and a walk through the dunes, both worth planning ahead for.
Lisbon
Caselas Dancing Days: Bachata
📅 October 17, 22:00–00:00
📍 Caselas, Rua Padre Reis Lima, Restelo
💸 €5 at the door
A Saturday night bachata party, featuring the Dominican partner dance you can learn in a single evening. Beginners are just as welcome as experienced dancers.
Bachata is a Dominican partner dance whose basic steps can be learned in an evening.
Porto and Surroundings
Corrida do Bombeiro
📅 October 18, 09:00
📍 Senhor da Pedra, Miramar, Vila Nova de Gaia
💸 Registration
A race honouring the volunteer firefighters of Valadares. The start and finish are at the Senhor da Pedra Chapel, perched on a rock by Miramar beach. The 10 km route follows the Atlantic coast through Miramar, Francelos and Valadares before looping back. Those who prefer not to run can join a separate 5 km walk.
Coastal Landscape Walk
📅 October 17, 09:30
📍 Aguçadoura, Póvoa de Varzim
💸 Free
A four-kilometre walk along the Atlantic coast through dunes and masseiras — vegetable plots dug into the sand where crops have been grown for centuries using seaweed as fertiliser. About 40 minutes from Porto. Registration required.
Where to Go with Kids
Lisbon and Surroundings
“Sushi à brás”
📅 October 17, 16:00
📍 Museu da Marioneta
💸 €7.50
Japanese artist Beniko Tanaka tells the story of her life between Japan and Portugal through puppets and shadows. The performance is almost entirely wordless, so children can follow it regardless of language. Afterwards, you can explore the museum’s collection of puppets from around the world. The show lasts 45 minutes and is suitable for ages 6 and up.
Beniko Tanaka’s Sushi à Brás: the story of a Japanese woman in Portugal, told through puppets and shadows.
LEGO Exhibition
📅 Daily, 10:00–21:00
📍 Cordoaria Nacional, Belém
💸 €11–12
Millions of LEGO bricks fill the vast building of a former rope factory, with creations inspired by Star Wars, Marvel and Minecraft, plus a miniature Lisbon built from bricks. Weekend tickets cost €12, while entry after 19:00 is €9. Children under 95 cm tall get in free.
Porto and Surroundings
Teatro Dom Roberto
📅 October 17, 16:00; October 18, 11:00
📍 Jardim de São Lázaro; near Trindade metro station
💸 Free
A traditional Portuguese glove-puppet street show with a history stretching back centuries. The hot-tempered Dom Roberto beats up just about everyone, much to the audience’s delight. The 35-minute performance needs no translation and is suitable for ages 3 and up.
Fimpalitos: Puppet-Making Workshop
📅 October 17, 10:00–13:00
📍 Teatro Constantino Nery, Matosinhos
💸 Free
Children make their own puppets from leftover theatre set materials, learn how to operate them and take their creations home. Advance registration at fimp.pt is required. Suitable for ages 6 and up.
Other Things to Do
Lisbon and Surroundings
IRONMAN Portugal
📅 October 17, from 07:35
📍 Cascais Bay
💸 Free for spectators
The full-distance triathlon is a serious test of endurance: 3.8 km of ocean swimming, 180 km on the bike through Sintra-Cascais Natural Park and along the Estoril circuit, once home to Formula 1 racing, followed by a full marathon — all in a single day. The half-distance race (70.3) starts at 07:35, with the full-distance race beginning at 08:40. The running loops follow the waterfront around the bay, so you can watch the athletes pass several times. The first finishers in the full-distance race are expected later in the afternoon.
IRONMAN participants run towards the water at the start of the swim in Cascais.
Flea Markets and Markets
📅 October 17–18
📍 Campo de Santa Clara, LX Factory
💸 Free
On Saturday, head to Feira da Ladra, Lisbon’s main flea market, where azulejo tiles sit alongside old cameras. On both Saturday and Sunday, from 10:00 to 19:00, LX Market takes over a former textile factory in Alcântara, offering vintage finds, vinyl records and pieces by independent designers.
Porto
Antiques Market
📅 October 17, 08:00–18:00
📍 Praça Velásquez (Praça Francisco Sá Carneiro)
💸 Free
On the third Saturday of every month, the square fills with antiques dealers selling porcelain, books, coins and furniture. Get there in the morning before the best finds are snapped up.
