Festivals and Events

Join THE PARTY

Music and dancing are usually mainstays in a huge mix of events and carnivals that sees both locals and visitors immersed in local culture and colour, says Karl Cushing

Colourful and spectacular carnivals and festivals, often accompanied by the backdrop of a pulsating beat, are a Caribbean trademark.

Take the supercharged celebrations each February of J’Ouvert, Trinidad & Tobago, when costumed holidaymakers rise early to join locals on the street for technicolour paint throwing. The two-day beano across the capital is sustained by an infectious soundtrack of soca and calypso.

Excitement levels reach fever pitch ahead of events such as Jamaica’s Bacchanal (April), or Cropover in Barbados (July/August), before the streets erupt with music, dancing and fabulously costumed revellers.

Simply catching a parade, such as the joyous two-day fi nale of Saint Lucia’s Carnival (June-July), can make for an unforgettable trip. It is ‘authentic’ too, with locals celebrating for themselves not for the tourists. Quirky, uniquely local occasions, include Burying Vaval, held in Dominica on Ash Wednesday, which centres on an elaborate burial ceremony for the spirit of carnival. Or there’s always the donkey races which feature in August’s Carrot Bay Cultural Fiesta in the BVIs or Tobago’s Buccoo Goat & Crab Race Festival, held each Easter.

Food and drink events are hugely popular and music events - many with international artists – take place on the bigger islands.

Take Barbados where April’s Reggae Festival and October’s Jazz Festival share a calendar with February’s Vujaday, focused on house and techno. Or Saint Lucia, where the Jazz & Arts Festival (May) and Roots & Soul Festival (August) sit alongside September’s Wellness Music Festival. Jamaica’s reggae roots bear fruit at Sumfest, held each July in Montego Bay, with January’s Birthday Bash paying homage to Bob Marley, and the Ocho Rios Jazz Festival (May/June) among the other showstoppers. Active travellers will appreciate events such as the Hike Fest in May on Dominica.January mainstays such as the Bermuda Triangle Challenge, and the marathons in Bahamas and Trinidad kickstart a packed running calendar. Other fun challenges include the annual St. Kitts to Nevis crosschannel swim in March.

The region’s excellent sailing conditions take centre stage at such events as Antigua Sailing Week (April/May), with some great, smaller options in the European winter months, too, including Saint Lucia’s Mango Bowl Regatta (November). Those championing the world-class conditions under the water include Saint Lucia Dive & Adventure Week, held in September.

Events championing local heritage and culture include Jamaica’s Accompong Festival (January) and Saint Lucia’s Creole Heritage Month (October), while Nevis’s 12-day Culturama Festival (July/August) is among those commemorating the former enslaved people.

The events calendar is busy in December, when St Croix hosts a month-long Crucian Christmas Festiva, and Saint Lucia’s Festival of Lights & Renewal ushers in National Day, on December 13. Revellers on St. Kitts and Nevis incorporate their festive celebrations into Sugar Mas, stretching from November to January, while for Bahamians, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day means Junkanoo.

New Year’s Eve is a good time to be in the BVIs, which hosts the Trellis Bay extravaganza, while fi reworks in Philipsburg, St. Maarten, welcome the new year in with an explosive bang. •