# Extremadura Day long weekend from Badajoz: getaways for 8 September Getaways from Badajoz for 8 September: the Virgin's festival in Guadalupe and, in Portugal, which works that day, the last coves, Nazaré, Óbidos, Tomar and the Serra da Estrela. Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/extremadura/badajoz/getaways/extremadura-day-long-weekend · Revisado: 2026-11-13 Origen: Badajoz - [A weekend in Guadalupe and the Villuercas, three hours from Madrid](https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/extremadura/guadalupe/itineraries/guadalupe-villuercas-weekend-from-madrid.md) (2 nights, Guadalupe): 8 September is the day of the Virgen de Guadalupe, patron saint of Extremadura, and so Extremadura Day: the monastery celebrates its great festival and the village receives pilgrims from across the region. If you want to experience it, go that day and book the bed well in advance. - [Two Nights in Sesimbra and Azeitão, 40 Minutes from Lisbon: Coves by Boat, Fish and Moscatel](https://www.geocalia.com/en/portugal/lisbon-region/sesimbra/itineraries/two-nights-with-coves-and-moscatel.md) (2 nights, Sesimbra): From June to September boats go to the turquoise coves beside the Arrábida, and in early September the bay water is at its warmest. 8 September is not a holiday in Portugal: there is room on the boat and at the cataplana tables. - [Monsaraz: lake beach and sunset](https://www.geocalia.com/en/portugal/alentejo/monsaraz/itineraries/summer-lake-beach-and-sunset.md) (Day itinerary, Monsaraz): The Monsaraz river beach has lifeguards from June to September, with dates set each year by the council: in early September it is usually still supervised and Lake Alqueva keeps the summer's warmth. Go up to the village when the sun goes down. - [Two Nights in the Serra da Estrela, Two and a Half Hours from Salamanca](https://www.geocalia.com/en/portugal/central-portugal/serra-da-estrela/itineraries/two-nights-from-salamanca-by-car.md) (2 nights, Serra da Estrela): September is one of the good months in the Serra da Estrela: high roads open, paths dry and the plateau heat far away. From Badajoz it is a little over three hours: with two nights in Manteigas there is time for the Zêzere glacial valley and the Torre. - [A Weekend in Nazaré, an Hour and a Half from Lisbon: Surf, the Sítio, Giant Waves and Alcobaça](https://www.geocalia.com/en/portugal/central-portugal/nazare/itineraries/weekend-giant-waves-alcobaca.md) (2 nights, Nazaré): From May to September is beginner surf season in Nazaré bay, with the least cold water of the year. In September, around the 8th, the Sítio celebrates the festivals of Nossa Senhora da Nazaré, beside the sanctuary. On Sunday, the Alcobaça monastery. - [A Night in Óbidos from Lisbon: the Walls at Dusk, Dinner by the Wall-Walk and a Canoe on the Lagoon](https://www.geocalia.com/en/portugal/central-portugal/obidos/itineraries/one-night-with-walls-and-canoe.md) (1 night, Óbidos): Early September is the start of Óbidos's best season: the Rua Direita without August's crowds and canoeing on the lagoon still in season. Sleep inside the wall and stroll at dusk. A Nova Casa de Ramiro is closed on Sundays. - [A Stargazing Night in Monsaraz, an Hour and a Half from Badajoz](https://www.geocalia.com/en/portugal/alentejo/monsaraz/itineraries/stargazing-night-in-monsaraz.md) (1 night, Monsaraz): In September the Alqueva nights are mild and the sky remains clear after summer. The Cumeada telescope session runs Tuesday to Saturday and starts about an hour after sunset: book it and choose a night near the new moon. - [A Templar Weekend in Tomar, an Hour and a Half from Lisbon: Convent, Almourol, Medieval Banquet and Castelo de Bode](https://www.geocalia.com/en/portugal/central-portugal/tomar/itineraries/templar-weekend-with-almourol.md) (2 nights, Tomar): September opens Tomar's good season after August's heat, with the boat on the Castelo de Bode reservoir still in season. 8 September is a working day in Portugal and the Convent of Christ opens on its normal hours: go first thing, before the groups. ## A holiday only in Extremadura 8 September is Extremadura Day, a holiday across the region every year and only there. It is the day of the Virgen de Guadalupe, patron saint of Extremadura. There is a three-day long weekend when it falls on a Friday or Monday, and four if it falls on a Tuesday or Thursday and you take the day in between. If it falls on a Wednesday or at a weekend, it stays a single day. It arrives at an odd moment: summer has not yet gone, schools are about to start and in the rest of Spain, and in Portugal, it is a working day. For someone leaving Badajoz, that means travelling when nobody else is on holiday. ## Guadalupe, on its day If there is one Extremaduran place for 8 September, it is Guadalupe. The monastery celebrates its Virgin with the great festival of the year, and the village receives pilgrims from across the region that day. It is a way of living Extremadura Day from the inside. If you prefer the monastery in peace, do it the other way round: arrive the day after and stay to walk in the Villuercas, which in early September begin to cool in the morning. ## The summer's last sea Early September is the best moment on the Portuguese coast: the Atlantic water is at its warmest, the beaches have lost August's crowds and, since the 8th is not a holiday there, everything runs at the pace of an ordinary week. Sesimbra, two and a half hours away, has the calmest bay on the Lisbon coast and boats to the Arrábida coves until September. Nazaré, a little further, combines beginner surf in the bay with the festivals of its Virgin at the Sítio, also held around the 8th. Closer, Lake Alqueva gives the freshwater beach: that of Monsaraz, with lifeguards and a children's area. ## If you prefer the cool September in Extremadura can still have afternoons of 35 degrees. The Serra da Estrela, the roof of Portugal, is the mountain getaway: glacial valley, lagoons among birches and the Torre at almost two thousand metres. And between the sea and the sierra, Tomar and Óbidos offer stone, convents and walls with the mildest days. ## Still water for the little ones The Monsaraz river beach, with still water and a children's area, is the perfect plan for small children. In Nazaré, the funicular to the Sítio and the surf lesson for the older ones. In Óbidos, the walk along the wall, with care: it has no railing in many stretches. And the Cumeada stargazing session starts after dark, past nine local time: better with children over seven or eight. ## The bed in Guadalupe, first In Guadalupe, the bed, well in advance if you are going on the 8th. In Portugal there is more margin than in August, but it is wise to book the Sesimbra coves boat, the Nazaré surf lesson and the Cumeada session, which has places per night. ## Heat, hours and roads The exit from Badajoz towards Portugal the day before the holiday goes calmly, because there it is an ordinary day. The return, the same. What you do have to bear in mind is the midday heat in the Alentejo, which in September still goes above 30 degrees: travel early or late. And remember that in Portugal it is one hour earlier, for the boat and surf bookings too. ## Preguntas frecuentes ### Is 8 September a holiday across Spain? No: only in Extremadura, where it is Extremadura Day, the festival of the Virgen de Guadalupe. In the rest of Spain and in Portugal it is a working day. ### What happens in Guadalupe on 8 September? It is the great festival of its Virgin, patron saint of Extremadura. The monastery and the village receive many pilgrims. ### Is the beach season still on in Portugal in early September? Yes: the water is at its warmest and the boats to the Sesimbra coves run until September. ### Is there anything nearby for a single day? The Monsaraz river beach, an hour and a half away, with the climb to the village at sunset.