A breath of freedom during the 3-day Walk & Art Fest

From 1 to 3 November, 950 people of 30 different nationalities came to Barão de São João (Lagos municipality) to take part in the many activities programmed for the 7th edition of the Barão de São João - Walk & Art Fest, including walks, themed tours, mountain bike routes, workshops, activities for children, wellness sessions, cooking, poetry, concerts and, of course, the art installation, which once again brightened up the village.

More than half of the activities scheduled for this festival sold out, even with some rain on the first day of the event. There were a total of 1,850 registrations for the 118 programme activities, which means that many participants chose to enjoy more than one activity.  The festival also once again affirmed itself as a meeting of cultures: the 950 participants were from 30 different nationalities, from four continents, a number that shows even more diversity than in the previous edition.

The 7th edition Barão de São João - Walk & Art Fest and the impact it has been having on Barão de São João set the tone for an inaugural conference on the theme ‘Walking festivals: what has changed in the Algarve?’, which took place in the ‘A Paragem’ building. As well as announcing the dates of the next walking festivals on the Algarve Walking Season calendar, there was time for a debate on the role of these events and nature tourism in the sustainable development of the interior. The conference opened with a surprise performance by the Primavera Choir, a moment in which the resident foreign community treated the audience to some traditional Portuguese songs.

This year, the usual art installation brought together 17 local artists, the authors of the 25 works on display in various parts of the village and woodland. The installation's inaugural tour took place on the first day of the event and was, as always, a moment of meeting and sharing in which the artists, who led the guided tour, gave visitors a personal insight into their creations. This year's theme was ‘Freedom’, and it inspired the artists to create works with very different approaches and techniques, exploring everything from intimate and creative dimensions to social and political themes.

This edition was also marked by three concerts. The church of Barão de São João filled up and surrendered to the performance of the Algarve Youth Guitar Orchestra at the end of the day on Saturday. In the evening, it was Josephine Nightingale's turn to enchant the audience at the Barão de São João Cultural Centre with her warm voice and deep soul. On Sunday afternoon, it was time to hear Gustavo Miranda and his guitar at the Beco do Sol Restaurant.

Several new activities on the programme proved to be a success with the participants: the theatre workshop, painting with the pointillism technique, the upcycling workshop, bamboo pyrography, ecstatic dance in the forest and meditation sessions. One of the new activities that aroused a lot of curiosity was the nocturnal butterfly workshop, during which 30 different species were identified - a testimony to the biodiversity of the Barão de São João Forest.

The Barão de São João Cultural Centre was once again the crucial meeting and socialising point. As well as hosting the festival secretariat, the space where local artisans and small producers could exhibit and sell their products was renovated.

The 8th edition of the Barão de São João - Walk & Art Fest will take place in November 2025.