Superheroes, movie stars, minions, dominoes... You'll find it all at Famalicão Carnival, the most fun and spontaneous in the country! It's clear that on the night of 12 to 13 February all roads lead to the city in Minho, where the party goes on until dawn.
"I like the atmosphere, it's a lot of fun (...) I walk the streets, go to the bars, watch the masked parade. It's a good way to celebrate Carnival. It should continue!" says Mafalda Almeida, from Matosinhos, who has chosen Famalicão to experience Carnival night since 2018.
"I remember that the first time I went down to the street, I was 13, 14 years old," says Daniela Oliveira, from Famalicão, who has been taking part in the city's Carnival "for almost 20 years", a night that "I've always followed" and of which she feels "great pride", because "it's already part of Famalicão's history".
The Famalicão woman has already started preparing the costume she'll be wearing next Monday night. "It's already a tradition in my group of friends. We usually start thinking about a theme just after Christmas," she said.
This evening, those who come to Famalicão will not only find a lively atmosphere, full of masked people and good humour, but will also find musical entertainment in four parts of the city.
Diogo Fonseca, Ricardo Reis and Mc Mano are responsible for the entertainment on the Praça 9 de Abril stage. Viktor Soul, Manuel Fonseca and MC Landu Bi will be in charge of the music at the space in Praça D. Maria II, while João Nogueira, Meninos do Rio and Pedro Ribeiro will perform on the Praça stage. The entertainment programme also includes the traditional masquerade parade and contest and a performance by the Pentágono Orchestra on the Luís Barroso Street stage.
The bars and cafés will also open their doors and join in the festivities, with various DJs offering music to revellers into the early hours of the morning, in an open-air Carnival mega-party where there's room for everyone.
And to make sure no one misses out on this great night, there's a huge public transport operation planned, with twelve free bus routes provided by the municipality, which will leave from various parishes in the county, and promotional tickets on the urban and regional trains from Porto, stopping and departing in Vila Nova de Famalicão, at a cost of 3 euros (round trip), as a result of the partnership established between the municipality and CP - Comboios de Portugal.
Tickets can be purchased at CP ticket offices until Saturday, February 10.
All the information about the Famalicão Carnival can be found here.