march, 2025
Event Details
Trinidad Carnival: The World’s Greatest Street Party
The biggest cultural event in the Caribbean calendar, Trinidad Carnival transforms the sun-kissed island into a party-goers paradise. Any Trini will tell you that Carnival is a year-round project, but for the main events, visiting the week leading up to Lent will do the trick. Trucks packed to the hilt with speakers drive ahead of the crowds, throwing out high energy beats from steel pans, Soca bands and DJ’s. Each procession has its own theme reflected in the music and costumes of its participants, led by an elaborately decked out King and Queen. Whether you’re dancing to Calypso, originally sung to mock the pomp of the slave masters, or the Soca subculture native to Trinidad, you’ll be guaranteed to make plenty of new friends to ‘wine’ around the clock.
What To Expect At Trinidad Carnival
Whether you’re an early bird or a night owl, cover your modesty with few feathers and step out sequinned to the gods to catch the official start of Carnival. Meaning ‘break of day’, J’Ouvert kicks off the pre-Lent celebrations around 4am on Monday morning. Skin-baring revellers shimmy through the streets until sunrise, coated in paint, oil and mud, before around 35,000 visitors descend and turn the Port of Spain into a chorus of colour. If you thought that the skimpy trunks or neon bikini in the back of your drawer would never see light of day: think again. Carnival is about confidence, and it’s imperative that all ages, body sizes and shapes celebrate and shake their thing, however revealing the garment. Trinidad Carnival is the friendliest 24 hour street party on earth, and you’ll find only body positivity here.
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Trinidad Carnival Events
Trinidad Carnival isn’t just a big street party and parade, there are many other several events; from the humble limbo to Extempo song battles, Carnival has tonnes of competitions, and winning is the name of the game.
Panorama: The steel pan is Trinidad’s national instrument, honoured by the greatest steel band competition in the world. It’s held the Saturday before Carnival, and features 100 musicians drumming infectious hip winding rhythms.
Dimanche Gras: With costumes weighing up to 200lbs, the crown of costume King and Queen really is a heavyweight title. With lasers, light shows, and everything but the kitchen sink, the Sunday night competition is proof that when it comes to masquerade band leaders: bigger is better.
Calypso Monarch: Double up on Sunday night entertainment, as calypso contenders take on last year’s champion for the most revered title in Trinidad: Calypso Monarch.
The History of Trinidad Carnival
French plantation owners threw masquerades before fasting throughout Lent. Slaves were excluded so threw their own version known as ‘mas’, where the French tradition was mixed with other African, Asian and Arawak customs. That’s why Trinidad Carnival holds a reputation as the greatest: because of its multicultural influences. Now, ‘playing mas’ is all about taking part in dressing up and dancing through the streets.
Trinidad carnival is one of the biggest events in the Caribbean and many of the other Caribbean carnivals stem from this one. It’s an incredible experience and definitely one for the bucket list!
Booking Your Trinidad Carnival Holiday
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