Christmas is whenever a man wants and, for the people of Cabeça, the preparations for the festivities begin in the first days of autumn: in this mountain village, located on a hill (or cabeço, hence the name) on the northern slope of Serra da Estrela, all the inhabitants help to erect one of the most genuine and sustainable Christmas parties in national territory.

Cabeça has become, in recent years, the quintessential Christmas crib village. In December, its shale streets and houses are filled with lights and handmade Christmas decorations, using recyclable or naturally sourced materials (such as yellow brooms, vines, fern leaves or wool from the bordaleira sheep). At the same time, the locals open their doors and share their knowledge and flavours with the thousands of visitors the village attracts at that time of year.

This is a genuine party, made by genuine people. But that does not mean that in Cabeça, tradition does not intersect with innovation. There, in one of the first national parishes with free wi-fi coverage, we find the first LED village in Portugal (in 2011, it was a pioneer in replacing traditional public lighting with the most economical and ecological LED technology).

There are more than enough reasons for a visit even outside the festive season, whether to get to know the architectural heritage of its churches (that of São Romão and the Mother Church) and chapels (Santo António and Nossa Senhora da Nazaré) or to appreciate the terraced fields that local farmers have shaped over centuries and continue to cultivate to this day. After all, the people of Cabeça honour traditions every day of the year.