In Vila do Bispo, many social and cultural practices have endured over time and are now regarded as traditions, others have fallen into disuse due to a loss of practical purpose, whilst still others have adapted and been reinvented in response to new contexts and needs. Whether religious or profane in nature, some of these traditions follow a long-standing cyclical pattern that continues to this day. Among the traditional popular festivals, the following stand out: St Vincent’s Day, celebrated on 22 January, which is also Vila do Bispo Municipal Day; the Salema Festivities, dedicated to Our Lady of the Navigators, held on 2 and 3 August; the Festivities of Our Lady of Grace, which take place in the village of Sagres on 15 August; the Barão de São Miguel Festivities and the Candlelight Procession, held between 28 and 29 September; the (re)Partir do Folar, a day of gathering and socialising for the local people, which takes place on the Monday following Easter Sunday; the Maias, an ancient tradition of making and dressing straw dolls which are placed in the streets in May, accompanied by verses and rhyming couplets; the Banho de 29 (of August), an ancestral custom marking the end of the harvests, taking people from the countryside to the beaches for a night-time dip in the sea to ward off evil spirits, and which counts as 29 baths.

As for traditional activities, these stemmed from a cumulative body of artisanal knowledge, refined over time, which, in a particularly ingenious way, enabled families to meet their needs and develop the local economy through the sustainable use of the natural resources available in the region. On land and at sea, there were many trades whose practices adapted to local conditions, carried out by farmers, shepherds, millers and beekeepers; by fishermen, shellfish gatherers, seaweed harvesters and lighthouse keepers; by artisans specializing in palm and esparto basketry, by masters of lace-making, embroidery and sheep’s wool knitting; not forgetting, of course, the excellence of the local cuisine, which brings together at the table the gestures, knowledge and flavours of the countryside and the sea, in such a genuine and particularly delicious way ...