While beach fun, museum visits, exquisite resorts, activities and tours are often a given among “tropical vacationers,” Caribbean festivals, on the other hand, help break down barriers and bring people together. islanders and locals through music, parades, dancing and food. with its own unique touch of celebration. This festival acts as a showcase for the distinctive culture of the Caribbean, giving you an authentic experience that goes perfectly with relaxing on the beach.
Let’s take a walk through the celebrations offered by many Caribbean vacation deals while visiting the tropics.
reggae party
The festivals in the tropical islands really show the soulful atmosphere of their rich culture and unrivaled history. They provide a great way for travelers to meet and interact with locals. Reggae Sumfest is one of them. Reggae music emerged in 1993 and is very popular in Africa, in fact all over the world. More than 3,000 fans gather each year to enjoy these musical delights. The festival hosts locally and internationally renowned artists, including Shaggy, Sean Paul, Dennis Brown, Gregory Isaacs and more, who grace the stage each year with their performances. The upcoming Reggae Sumfest 2014 is set to mark a grand 22nd annual edition of the event.
Saint Lucia Jazz Festival in Saint Lucia
This 10-day grand musical gala is for all jazz lovers and gives an international flavor to the age-old tradition of jazz and blues. The Saint Lucia Jazz Festival, founded in 1991, has become one of the main events in the Caribbean and is scheduled in May of each year. Both local talents and international jazz artists perform various series of live concerts that will keep you enjoying yourself all the time.
Crop Over Festival in Barbados
Crop Over is a ceremony originally held to celebrate the end of the sugar cane harvest in July. But today, the essence of this festival lies in traditional calypso music, which infuses the entire event with its infectious rhythm and pithy lyrics. The celebration also features a myriad of street fairs, parades and the festival ends with the Grand Kadooment parade, concert and party.
Junkanoo in the Bahamas
Junkanoo is a famous street parade with music, which traditionally occurs in the Christmas season. The festival originated in the 17th century during the slave trade when slaves were given 3 days off at Christmas, Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years, to celebrate their temporary freedom. The largest parade or “rush” takes place in the Bahamian capital, Nassau, where thousands of revelers fill Shirley and Bay streets, dance, sing and watch the parade.
Carnival-Port of Spain, Trinidad and Santiago, Dominican Republic
It is by far the largest carnival in the region in February, packed and frenetic for 48 hours. Carnival is not just a local affair; vacationers can also purchase a costume and join in the celebration. Carnival is heaven for lovers of steel bands, Calypso or Soca music with even more concerts and a series of themed parades.
Grave Festival in Curaçao
Tumba is the form of music that precisely means “drum” in Spanish; just a few beats of the driving rhythm and everyone will understand why it’s called Tomb. The Festival is a four-day musical extravaganza that takes place every year in mid-January and features the island’s best Tumba bands vying for the honor of playing that year’s official Carnival Road March song. The event typically hosts a dozen or more musicians, costumed dancers, sponsored logos, and elaborate stage set-ups.
Pirate Week in Cayman Islands
Pirates week is coming this fall in November. The only major pirate festival to take place in the Caribbean proper, it’s an 11-day celebration filled with music, street dancing, scavenger hunts, food, parades, sporting events, heritage days, costume contests, even a simulated “surprise” pirate invasion. in the port of George Town. So enjoy it as part of the all-inclusive tropical vacation packages available on major Caribbean vacation websites.
Merengue Festival in Santo Domingo
Head to the Dominican Republic in July and you can hear the upbeat, compelling rhythm of merengue and its musical cousin, bachata, just about anywhere. The annual Festival del Merengue lasts less than a week and sprouts a series of outdoor stages and huge sound systems, and thousands of constantly moving fans gather around each one to listen to their favorite band or DJ.
Sailing Week in Antigua
The venue provides a perfect sailing base attracting the international racing elite, as well as amateur sailing enthusiasts, for a week-long competition in April. The iconic Antigua Regatta has been a fixture on the yacht racing calendar since 1967, when around 10 boats sailed from one beach resort to another propelled by the constant easterly trade winds.
National Carnival in St Kitts
This carnival comes into celebration the day after Christmas and is named after Boxing Day in many parts of the world along with a traditional J’ouvert party and runs through New Year’s Day. However, like other Caribbean carnivals, there are street parties, performances, and musical competitions to keep you glued.