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The deep religious feelings of the people of the Azores are expressed in their festivals, which keep up the devotion and color of the past.

The festivals of the Holy Spirit, of medieval origins, are common to all the islands, although they have slight local adaptations; the presence of the emperor, the exhibion of his insignia in the chapel called "teatro" or empire, the existance of the "bodo" or banquet which is the culmination of the festivals, are all ethnographic elements that turn these events into living pages of tradition and history. The Festas do Senhor Santo Cristo (Festivals of the Lord Christ) at Ponta Delgada (Sao Miguel), which are truly colourful and entertaining events, the Sanjoaninas at Angra do Heroi­smo (St. John's Festivals) or Praia da Vitoria (Terceira), with folk dancing and the always animated bull-fights on a rope and the playing with cattle at the "espera do gado", the Sea Festivals at Horta (Faial), with lively sports activities, are high points in a calendar of events that are genuinely popular and last from January to December.