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Dates to remember for Portugal Carnaval 2025. Carnaval Tuesday, March 4th 2025: Shrove Tuesday or Carnival Tuesday is the last day before the fasting period of Lent. It’s also known as Mardi Gras (in New Orleans), Fat Tuesday, or Pancake Day. It is always 47 days before Easter Sunday. Wednesday, March 5th 2025: Ash Wednesday, the beginning of One of the liveliest festivities in the whole year, carnival is celebrated all over Portugal with the biggest and brightest Mardi Gras parades to be found in Ovar, Sesimbra, Torres Vedras (indicated on the Google map below), Funchal and Loulé watched by hordes of revellers with a great many in fancy attire. Carnival, known as "Entrudo" in Portugal, is an ancient tradition that celebrates the arrival of spring. The term "Entrudo" means "entrance" and refers to festivities marking the beginning of Lent in the Christian calendar. Historically, it involved spontaneous street celebrations where people threw water and eggs at each other.Today, Carnival in Portugal features parades, samba dancers Carnival Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday, takes place on the day before Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, the 40 day period that precedes Easter. As the date of Easter changes each year so does the date of Carnival Tuesday. The earliest date Carnival Tuesday can be is Tuesday 3 February and the latest date is Tuesday 9 March. The highlight is Carnival Tuesday, a public holiday on March 4, 2025, when towns and cities across Portugal come to a halt for colorful parades and lively floats. Many of the celebrations actually begin the weekend before.Carnival is celebrated throughout Portugal, with the most spectacular Mardi Gras parades taking place in Ovar, Sesi Carnaval de Loulé is the oldest continuous pre-Lenten party in Portugal, with 119 years of celebrations. Thousands of revelers jam the streets. Those in costume strut their stuff. Others are there to watch and enjoy. Upcoming holidays in Portugal. Holidays in Portugal 2025. Holidays in Portugal 2026. Shrove Tuesday is the last day before the fasting period of Lent (for Western Christians), 47 days before Easter Sunday. Shrove Tuesday is also called Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday, or Pancake Day. Is Carnival / Shrove Tuesday / Pancake Day a Public Holiday? Carnival or Mardi Gras is a rowdy festival leading up to Ash Wednesday. It’s one last orgy of celebration before the rigors of Lent, when Catholics should abstain from eating meat. In Portugal, some of the wildest parties take place in Ovar and Torres Vedras. When there is a reason to party in Portugal, you do it (just like the locals would)! Carnival is a fun event for the Portuguese as well as tourists, in any region of the country. It’s a fun excuse for friends, families, and even solo travellers to dress up, drink, eat, and dance for five days long. Carnival conjures images of brightly decorated floats, scantily clad dancing women, and a party that lasts for weeks on end, equivalent to New Orleans’ Mardi Gras. Of any other celebration, Carnival is beloved in Europe! (photo by Rosino) But what is Carnival? The Carnaval traditions in Portugal are very rich and varied. Interestingly, its roots are in Babylon and Rome. However, through the ages, Christianity absorbed it and later it evolved into what we are familiar with today. You may know it as “Mardi Gras”, “Pancake Tuesday”, “Fat Tuesday” or “Shrove Tuesday”. Carnival is a festival of rejoicing, where people used to eat fatty foods before eating « lean » foods for 40 days. This precedes the period of Lent (quarantine). In ancient times, people considered that the new year began in March and not in January. Carnival Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday, takes place on the day before Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, the 40 day period that precedes Easter. As the date of Easter changes each year so does the date of Carnival Tuesday. I found it interesting to learn about one Portuguese Carnival celebration that has been classified by UNESCO as an Intangible Heritage of Humanity.The community of Podence, which is part of the municipality of Macedo de Cavaleiros in the district of Bragança, hosts the Caretos de Podence Carnival Party with celebrations throughout the small villages of this northern region of Portugal. Click on the Mardi Gras krewes below for further information about the krewe and to see their usual route for each parade. Please note: Events and activities are subject to change without notice. Stay tuned to the site for further info. The Portugal Carnival is not completely unique. In fact, it is like many carnivals held around the world right before the beginning of lent. You may have heard of Mardi Gras, held in Louisiana. The carnival in Portugal is just like Mardi Gras. Both carnivals celebrate the same thing and they include many of the same rituals and activities. 2025 mardi gras information Lafayette, LA – Lafayette Consolidated Government (LCG) is finalizing preparations for the 2025 Mardi Gras season. To ensure a safe and enjoyable celebration, residents and visitors are urged to follow regulations regarding barricades, street closures, parking, and public safety. Click on the Mardi Gras krewes below for further information about the krewe and to see their usual route for each parade. Please note: Events and activities are subject to change without notice. Stay tuned to the site for further info. The second parade, called ‘trapalhão’, traditionally floods the streets of the city centre with thrilling joy on ‘Mardi gras’ (Tuesday ending the Carnival period). Everybody can take part in this parade, and the – sometimes quite daring – costumes and depicted caricatures are left to the participants’ own imagination. Music during Mardi Gras 2024: Freedia Gras, Portugal.The Man, Galactic, Dumpstaphunk Other options include Matisyahu, The Iceman Special, a John 'Papa' Gros/Big Chief Monk Boudreaux collaboration
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