The 4º Passeio de Pais Natal or 4th Father Christmas Parade was held yesterday Saturday 5th December in Armação de Pêra, and for us this event heralds the start of the festive season in the Algarve.

This is a fabulous charity event organised by the Junta of Armação de Pêra, Portugal4U, BTT Algarve Maniacs, Urban Gym and the Holiday Inn Algarve and each year the event seems to grow in size and popularity.

The event started on the promenade in front of the Holiday Inn Algarve at 10 am and saw well over a hundred Santas of all ages lined up ready to enjoy themselves!

Warm-up exercises were provided by Angelo, of the UrbanGym, followed by a taste of a Zumba class. It was lovely to see everyone joining in and enjoying themselves and we caught up with so many friends from last year’s event.

There was even a horse-drawn Santa sleigh!

Complete with Mr and Mrs Santa!

Participation is free but participants were asked to bring food items (rice, pasta, olive oil, milk, canned food) as a donation, which will be given to the ‘Espaço Amigo’ charity in Armação de Pêra who are providing food and support for local families in need.

The Santa Parade then began through the streets of Armação de Pêra and it is quite a sight to see so many Santas setting off on their walk together.

It’s so nice to see all ages enjoying themselves:

It was hard to spot amongst the crowds .. but the real Santa was also there giving out sweets and treats to everyone as he walked around!

The tour takes in all of the sights and areas of the main town and lasts for about an hour .. although you can duck in and out as much as you want to – we saw several Santas having a break on the way!

It’s so amusing seeing the reactions of the local people as the Santas all walk past them!

It’s a real family event with people of all ages – and sizes – joining in and walking together

There were so many children and families there – and some fabulously creative Santa outfits

And even some Santas with four legs too!

The Holiday Inn are always so generous in their support of local and charity events, today they were providing hats and Santa suits to purchase with all profits going to the chosen charity .. just in case you thought you could get away with not dressing up!

There was the obligatory group shot outside the main church for everyone – complete with hat-throwing:

and singing!

As well as the walk around the town, this year there was also a festive bike ride of about 20km, led by BTT Algarve Maniacs group.

The event also gives you the chance to capture some wonderful moments as the Santas all walk around the town:

Special thanks must go to Vicki Good of the Holiday Inn hotel and all of the organisers and helpers of the event, including the red cross and ambulance support too:

And if you are not sure what to do on Christmas Day morning – or New Year’s Day .. why not bring your Santa suit out again for another airing on Christmas Day – or wear your pajamas on New Year’s Day – and this time jump in the sea for charity!

We’ll be there with our cameras again!

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Please enjoy a further selection of images from the Santa Walk in the slideshow below (click on any image to start the slideshow) or click here to view the whole album via Dave’s Facebook page.

With thanks to all the sponsors of the event – just click on the images below to visit their websites:

and click on the images here to find the links to their Facebook pages: