Recife Carnaval LGBTQ+

Recife's Carnaval is one of Brazil's great street carnivals, and it is not a gay event. We list it because it is open, free and mixed, and it has a long tradition of costume play and cross-dressing. Where Salvador runs on paid blocos and roped-off areas, Recife runs on frevo, the fast brass-band dance music, and on maracatu drumming, with dozens of free stages across the city. The atmosphere is local and family-friendly by day and looser at night. Queer visitors fit in easily, but don't expect a dedicated gay circuit.

The heart of it is Recife Antigo, the old port district, with the main stage at Marco Zero. Its opening night is free and huge. On Saturday morning the Galo da Madrugada, a giant rooster bloco, pulls one of the biggest street crowds in the world through the city centre. Smaller polos run in neighbourhoods around the city, and nearly everything is free. For a more openly queer scene, many people combine Recife with Olinda, ten minutes away. Rua 13 de Maio has long been a gathering point for LGBTQ+ revellers, and the Bloco da Diversidade, founded by a group of lesbian women, has paraded there on Carnival Tuesday in recent years.