In what will be the ninth edition, the historic centre will be illuminated with 400,000 highly efficient LED lights.

The biggest novelty is a 40-metre natural ice ramp, “which will provide adrenaline and smiles” describes the Trás-dos-Montes municipality.

“It will please everyone but in particular the little ones”, stated the mayor, Hernâni Dias.

The mayor hopes that the new initiative will “add to the capacity of attraction and interest”.

The usual ice rink will be returning, made of natural ice, with 300 square metres and is considered to be “the largest in Trás-dos-Montes and Alto Douro”.

This year 20 minutes on the ice rink or going down the new ramp twice costs €1.50.

Also making their comeback, the Santa Claus House, the carousels and the Christmas Tasquinhas, that will be located at the Praça Camões and Praça da Sé, in the center of the city.

According to the data from the organisation, the ice rink last year had 30,527 skaters and more than 110,000 people passed through the Praça de Camões, numbers that the city council expects to surpass in the five weeks that the initiative lasts.

Given the proximity to the neighbouring country, the Spanish are a “frequent and numerous presence”, highlighted Hernâni Dias. “More than 70 percent of tourists come from Spain. This also contributes to commerce and the local economy” explained the mayor.

The Christmas spirit will also spread to the rest of the city, with “mini-concerts, shows, workshops, Live Nativity Scenes, moments of literature and the Arrival of the Three Kings”, announced the Trás-dos-Montes municipality.

On the 1st of December, Santa Claus arrives in Bragança, at a parade “with many surprises” that starts at the Praça Cavaleiro Ferreira.

This initiative is an investment by the municipality of around €300 thousand this year, €47 thousand more than the previous edition, which is the price of the new attraction.