Curaçao Carnival 2025

Curaçao Carnival 2025

The Curaçao Carnival is a unique celebration that takes over the entire Island with amazing competitions such as the Tumba music and Calypso festivals, beauty pageants, street parties and more.

• Stay at the Curaçao Marriott Beach Resort close to all of the festivities, and right by the beach so you can relax in between street parties and parades.

The Carnival

• Curaçao Carnival is the largest and longest-running Carnival celebration in the Caribbean.  The event was brought to the island by the Venezuelans in the early 1900’s and the tradition continues today.
• The Carnival is full of mythical characters including the Carnival Queen who bestows fertility and peace, Prince and Pancho who embody the crazy spirit of Carnival and the villain, King Momo, a straw-filled figure that symbolizes infertility, sins, and bad luck.

Where is Curaçao Carnival held?

• Most of the Carnival activities are concentrated in the Island’s Capital, Willemstad, on the streets of downtown.
• Carnival attracts thousands of visitors from across the Caribbean and the USA.
• Opening and closing concerts and the Tumba are held at Curaçao Festival Center, in Brievengat is one of the largest venues in Curaçao.

Carnival Parade Highlights

• Carnival’s most unmissable events are the two main parades: Gran Marcha (The Grand Parade), and Marcha di Despedida (The Farewell March).
• Enjoy the suite-life on the island with your own boutique apartment. The PM78 Boutique Apartments are rated “Superb” by guests, with a pool, parking, balcony, sea-views and beautiful terrace.

Carnival Horse Parade

• Sunday – Awaiting dates – The first parade of the carnival season is done on horseback, through the streets of downtown Willemstad.

Gran Marcha

• Sunday March 2nd 2025 – Beginning the Sunday prior to Ash Wednesday, Gran Marcha is as boisterous as any Carnival event.
• Tourists and locals alike line the streets during Gran Marcha to cheer on the processional of costumed dancers and performers.
• The procession begins at 11 am.

Marcha di Despedida

• Tuesday March 4th, 2025 – The Marcha di Despedida signals a farewell to Carnival, taking place on the eve of Ash Wednesday.
• An evening event, kicking off at 6 pm; the floats glow with twinkling lights as they parade through Curaçao with Momo in tow.
• Momo is then burned at midnight at the parade’s and Carnival’s grand finale.
• Stay close to the parade celerbations at The Dolphin Suites, offering stylish rooms and suites in Willemstad, within walking distance of the famous Sea Aquarium Beach and the Curacao Sea-Aquarium.

Tumba Festival

• Awaiting dates  – The Tumba Festival is an event that is unique to Curaçao taking place at the Curaçao Festival Center.
• Aspiring local musicians, performers, and composers compete in the four-day Tumba Festival in the hopes that their tumba (or song) will be chosen as the year’s official Carnival song.
• Like the rest of carnival, this festival brings with it beer, food, and some of the best dancing in the Caribbean Islands.
• The winner of the Tumba Festival is then crowned Rei di Tumba, and will walk in the carnival parades along with their original tumba.
• After opening day, Carnival groups also take to the streets, wearing t-shirts specific to their group. Following local bands, these groups dance, sing, and spread the carnival spirit through Jump Ups (outdoor) and Jump Ins (indoor), where they also sell t-shirts to raise money for their floats in the Gran Marcha.

Where to stay during Curacao Carnival?

The Following hotels are currently trending with our readers. All have high review scores and are close to the Carnival festivities:

Curacao Avila,   Papagayo Beach Resort,   Sombré di Kabana,   Champartments Resort