The Minho has the greenest, wettest climate in Portugal — winters are mild but rainy, summers warm and occasionally hot. Spring and early summer (April–June) are the most pleasant for walking and sightseeing, when the Lima valley is intensely green and the gardens of the manor houses are in bloom.
The alternate-Monday market — Ponte de Lima's most famous event — runs year-round and is worth timing a visit around. The Vaca das Cordas festival in early June (the Thursday before Corpus Christi) is one of the strangest events in the Minho: a bull is run through the town centre on ropes held by men in traditional dress, a ritual dating from the 17th century. The Festas de São João in late June are the town's main summer celebrations. The Feira das Colheitas (Harvest Fair) in late September brings food, wine, crafts, and livestock into the riverside meadows.