Carnaval de Barranquilla & Carnaval Gay

Carnaval de Barranquilla is the four days before Ash Wednesday, and it is the reason most visitors come to the city. UNESCO proclaimed it a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2003. In 2027 the main days are Saturday 6 to Tuesday 9 February, with the Batalla de Flores on the Saturday; the season opens on 16 January with the Lectura del Bando.

The LGBTQ+ side of the carnival has its own institution. The Carnaval Gay, run for about 45 years by the Corporación Autónoma del Carnaval Gay, crowns its own queen and Rey Momo and holds the Guacherna Gay, a night parade along Carrera 44 the weekend before the main days (7 February in 2026), with the coronation at Plaza de la Paz. The neighbourhood of Rebolo runs a separate gay carnival too.

Hotels fill and prices rise for the whole week, so book well ahead. The Guacherna Gay date for 2027 had not been announced at the time of writing.