&lt;p style=&quot;font-weight: 400;&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Feeling the Christmas vibe yet? It’s hard not to in Portugal, where local celebrations for this special time of the year remain refreshingly traditional. It’s a chance for families to get together, share good food and enjoy being out and about in their communities. From merrymaking with other expats to delighting in local Portuguese traditions, the Algarve is a heavenly place to spend Christmas. We look at the highlights and get comments from some of our team about how they like to spend the festive period…&lt;/em&gt;&lt;em&gt;&#160;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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        &lt;img src=&quot;/media/13pbx2bq/shutterstock_1563075625.jpg&quot; alt=&quot;Christmas Tree Beach&quot; class=&quot; max-width-100&quot; /&gt;
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&lt;p style=&quot;font-weight: 400;&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;br&gt;Swap the thermals for a T-shirt&lt;br&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Let’s start with the weather! Forget the freezing rain or snow you expect on Christmas Day in Northern Europe – in the Algarve once the sun is up it’s warm enough for shorts and sleeves, just be prepared for an extra layer later in the day. Typical daily temperatures here in December are a pleasant 16-18 degrees C, making it perfect for a stroll on the beach, an al fresco festive drink and even a round of golf.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;em&gt;“My husband and I have had BBQs on the beach on Christmas Day before,”&lt;/em&gt; says &lt;strong&gt;Angela Worrall,&lt;/strong&gt; CEO at Ideal Homes Portugal. &lt;em&gt;“We’ve even been in the sea, although I need a few wines to do that! That was before we had lots of animals and only one dog to look after! Now we stay at home.”&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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        &lt;img src=&quot;/media/pwdp543p/ideal-homes-christmas-dinner-167.png&quot; alt=&quot;Christmas party&quot; class=&quot; max-width-100&quot; /&gt;
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&lt;p style=&quot;font-weight: 400;&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Angela and the Ideal Homes team at the annual Christmas party&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Be dazzled by local festivities&lt;br&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;An important part of Christmas in Portugal are the public displays and spectacles. These bring people together to enjoy the festive spirit, often for free. From the start of December Christmas trees pop up and light displays transform town centres into fairylands, where music concerts and parades welcoming Santa Claus take place. Certain towns have their own festive events – Faro is known for its dance and ballet shows, Lagos Zoo becomes a winter wonderland, known as Natal&#226;ndia, while Lisbon’s list of attractions include what is regarded as ‘Europe’s largest Christmas tree’ (artificial but beautifully illuminated).&lt;strong&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;font-weight: 400;&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;“I live near Loul&#233;, where I think the festivities are done best,”&lt;/em&gt; says &lt;strong&gt;Carol Whittle,&lt;/strong&gt; one of our mortgage advisors and an Algarve resident for nearly 24 years. &lt;em&gt;“We have the arrival of Santa and a grotto where children can meet him, the switching on of the lights, lots of music and a very beautiful market. You can spell the chestnuts&#160;coming from the street sellers, yum!”&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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        &lt;img src=&quot;/media/iuhjpy1a/shutterstock_2272682335.jpg&quot; alt=&quot;Loule castle&quot; class=&quot; max-width-100&quot; /&gt;
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&lt;p style=&quot;font-weight: 400;&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;The medieval castle in Loul&#233;, lit-up for Christmas&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Angela Worrall enjoys soaking up the local atmosphere too. “&lt;em&gt;In the evenings leading up to Christmas we like to visit the larger towns to see the lights and enjoy a few festive drinks,”&lt;/em&gt; she says. &lt;em&gt;“We use the train when we can – they’re always on time and very cheap, just check the timetable as they don&#39;t run that late!”&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Go nuts for nativities&lt;br&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Nothing shouts Christmas like a nativity scene and Portugal embraces this tradition like no other nation. Look out for dressed-up locals re-enacting the nativity story, a common sight in towns and villages. And you’ll see plenty of nativity figurine displays of all shapes and sizes, set up in public places, including roundabouts! In Portuguese homes, a carefully decorated nativity scene takes pride of place – the figurines are cherished items within a family and get passed on between generations&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;font-weight: 400;&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Fish feast or trusty old turkey?&lt;br&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;Unsurprisingly, fish is the main event of the Christmas meal in Portugal. Called ‘consoada’, traditionally this is eaten on Christmas Eve before a trip to midnight mass. These days many families choose to have it on Christmas Day. The main course centres on ‘bacalhau’, the national dish of salted cod, although the meal usually includes other types of fish or seafood. That said, stuffed turkey is gaining popularity as an addition or alternative to bacalhau, especially on Christmas Day. Another highlight is the crown-shaped ‘Bolo-Rei’ cake, eaten as dessert along with an array of other fried-dough based pastries and biscuits!&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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        &lt;img src=&quot;/media/1bedfwvh/shutterstock_2142087997.jpg&quot; alt=&quot;Bacalhau&quot; class=&quot; max-width-100&quot; /&gt;
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&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Bacalhau a Gomes de Sa salt cod, onions and potatoes&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;font-weight: 400;&quot;&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;em&gt;“We have our meal at lunchtime on Christmas Day, when we stay at home with close family and cook bacalhau!”&lt;/em&gt; said &lt;strong&gt;Cristina Raru&lt;/strong&gt;, who works in our rentals team. &lt;em&gt;“Then we do presents before heading to the beach with all the kiddos to catch some rays of sunshine on Meia Praia or Porto de M&#243;s.”&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;For Angela Worrall, the Christmas menu depends on who she is with! “If it’s just the two of us, we have seafood,” she says. &lt;em&gt;“Our local shop sells everything fresh so we go shopping there on Christmas Eve. We’ll buy percebes (barnacles), clams, prawns, crab, oysters and scallops. We eat slowly from midday into the evening.&#160;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;font-weight: 400;&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;“Occasionally we are invited to join Portuguese friends for their Christmas Eve meal, which will be a massive banquet of seafood, including bacalhau, and loads of cakes. It goes on very late but we leave early so as not to spoil our Christmas day! Finally, we might have our [expat] friends over, in which case we have an English Christmas dinner with all the trimmings, and play old-fashioned board games.”&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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        &lt;img src=&quot;/media/udzhy11h/whatsapp-image-2023-12-08-at-115451.jpeg&quot; alt=&quot;Angela Christmas&quot; class=&quot; max-width-100&quot; /&gt;
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&lt;p style=&quot;font-weight: 400;&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Angela prepares for Christmas dinner!&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style=&quot;font-weight: 400;&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Caroline Roseblade,&lt;/strong&gt; one of our experienced property specialists, likes a relaxing Christmas Day. “&lt;em&gt;My husband Steve and I have a hectic life with lots of visitors, so we always like the day to ourselves,”&lt;/em&gt; she says. &lt;em&gt;“We start with lazy cups of tea whilst opening presents before heading to the beach with our dog Pingo at 10am. Then it&#39;s back home for the full - and I mean FULL - Christmas dinner with all of the trimmings, after which we collapse and watch TV all evening. Perfect!”&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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        &lt;img src=&quot;/media/mmvooehz/caroline-and-pingo.jpg&quot; alt=&quot;Caroline - pingo beach&quot; class=&quot; max-width-100&quot; /&gt;
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&lt;p style=&quot;font-weight: 400;&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;Caroline and Pingo on the beach at Arma&#231;&#227;o de Pera&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Arma&#231;&#227;o de P&#234;ra&lt;br&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;A popular Christmas Day event that today draws crowds from along the central Algarve is the charity swim at the beach in Arma&#231;&#227;o de P&#234;ra. For a donation, swarms of brave people, many in Santa outfits or other fancy dress, take a dip in the ocean. Spectators are also encouraged to donate to a local charity that helps local families in need. Don’t worry, if you miss this swim, you get another chance on New Year’s Day!&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;em&gt;“All the bonkers expats&#160;that sign up meet after at the Holiday Inn hotel for warming beverages, some alcoholic, some just hot chocolate,”&lt;/em&gt; reports Caroline Roseblade. &lt;em&gt;“The beach is crowded with onlookers cheering on the brave. All dogs are welcome and some also join in the swim – it’s great fun.”&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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        &lt;img src=&quot;/media/ydpboa45/shutterstock_341235062.jpg&quot; alt=&quot;Surfing Santa&quot; class=&quot; max-width-100&quot; /&gt;
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&lt;p style=&quot;font-weight: 400;&quot;&gt;&lt;br&gt;Anyone watching the swim this year should look out for &lt;strong&gt;Lindsey Lawrence&lt;/strong&gt;, one of our real estate advisors: &lt;em&gt;“My family will spend Christmas in the Algarve this year and we have ordered Santa suits to do the charity swim in Arma&#231;&#227;o de P&#234;ra. After that, we’re having Christmas Day lunch at a restaurant in Almancil called Tribulum, where they will have live singers and lots&#160;of festivities!”&lt;/em&gt; Sounds like an ideal day…&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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&lt;p style=&quot;font-weight: 400;&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;If you weren’t feeling festive before reading this, hopefully you are now. As always, our team are available to offer guidance on how to enjoy Christmas in the Algarve and help you find your perfect home that will enable you do this year after year.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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Beach BBQs and swimming Santas  – a very Algarve Christmas!

From merrymaking with other expats, to delighting in local Portuguese traditions, the Algarve is a heavenly place to spend Christmas. We look at the highlights and get comments from some of the team from Ideal Homes Portugal about how they like to spend the festive period.