Viagem Medieval em Terra de Santa Maria is a 12-day historical recreation that takes over the historic centre of Santa Maria da Feira, below its restored castle, every year from late July into early August. The 2026 edition, the 29th, ran 29 July–9 August and marked 30 years since the first event in 1997; its theme was the Condado Portucalense and the conflict between Countess Teresa and her son Afonso Henriques in the years before Portugal’s foundation.
Each edition builds its programme around a chosen period of Portuguese history. The town’s streets and squares are dressed as market, camps, taverns and craft workshops, with daily processions, theatre, music, dance, a mounted tournament, siege and battle scenes and a large children’s programme. The organisers listed 29 official programme ‘contents’ for 2026 alongside hundreds of costumed participants, and the recreations run late into the night.
Entry is ticketed: in 2026 a daily ticket cost €6 (Sunday–Thursday) or €8 (Friday–Saturday), a 12-day bracelet €12, with children under 6 free; the opening evening on 28 July was free. Daily tickets do not allow re-entry. The site opens at 13:00 on weekdays and 12:00 at weekends and closes at 00:30.
Santa Maria da Feira is about 30 km south of Porto, reached by car via the A1 or A29/A32 motorways; Porto airport is roughly 45 minutes away. Weekends are very busy; weekdays are calmer and cheaper.
