Special Events in Cuba

Here is a list of events in Cuba throughout the year. Check the links for tours that include participation in special events.

Festival de la Trova Longina

06 - 10, Jan - 2011

This festival takes place in Santa Clara - Villa Clara. In remembrance of one of the greats of traditional Cuban trova, Manuel Corona, and his immortal song Longina, troubadours of different generations will share the stage with famous Cuban musicians. The event will include theoretical meetings, informal get- togethers and the traditional walk to Caibarién, Corona’s hometown, on the 9th.

Havana International
Book Fair

13 - 20, Feb - 2011

Publishers, writers and bookworms gather at the San Carlos de la Cabaña Fort for this popular book fair every year. You can browse through thousands of books, buy, and hear authors discuss their works. Live music, theatre, dance and cinema complete the programme.

Festival del Habano

21 - 26, Feb - 2011 Annual

2011 with the the 8th edition of Havana's International Cigar Festival. The event renders tribute to Habanos' brands that are famous throughout the world, and the program includes: visits to cigar factories, a trade fair, seminars, tastings and pairing ups, Habanosommelier contest, demonstrations on how roll a Habano, visit to tobacco plantations. Offical Website.

Muestra Internacional
de Nuevos Realizadores

22 - 27, Feb - 2011 Annual

An event for the promotion of new video/filmmakers which serves to get into contact with daring and inquisitive works usually produced outside official production. The event includes the screening of films by young filmmakers, as well as international contemporary cinema, theoretical meetings, discussions and seminars, as well as a competition of unpublished scripts workshops with the participation of important film directors, and an exhibition/competition of posters.

Esteban Salas Early
Music Festival

Feb - 2011 Annual

This is an annual festival named after Cuban classical composer Esteban Salas. It has been celebrated since 2003—the 200th anniversary of his death. Every year the event gathers outstanding performers of Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque music who perform in Old Havana headed by Ars Longa, the City Historian’s Office early music ensemble.

Memorial Guillermo Barreto
Percussion Festival

6-10 Mar, Annual

This event includes a competition, a theoretical meeting, lectures, guest speeches and concerts. It pays tribute to one of the cult figures of Cuban percussion: Guillermo Barreto, star of the Tropicana Orchestra in the 1950s and founding member of the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna.

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Memorial Santiago Álvarez
International Documentary Festival

8-13 Mar,
Annual

Santiago de Cuba is the host city for this festival which aims at highlighting the prominent role of the documentary which is an acknowledged tradition of significant quality in Cuba. Created in 2000, this festival began as a national event dedicated to the memory celebrated Cuban film-maker, Santiago Alvarez, however throughout the years it has attracted the attention of a number of filmmakers from Latin America, Europe and the United States. The event constitutes a space for exchanging opinions and experiences among filmmakers and lovers of this genre, and involves a films competition, parallel screenings, and theoretical discussions.

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International Electroacoustic
Music Festival

March 14-20, 2011 - Annual

Organized by composer Juan Blanco (a pioneer of electroacoustic music in Cuba) the Varadero Spring Festival, as it was first called, gathered important figures which included Jon Appelton, Max Matthew, Leo Kupper, Ahmed Malek, Nicola Sani, Lejaren Hiller, Manuel Enríquez, Ricardo Dal Farra and Andrew Schloss. In 1998, the event moved its venue to Havana's Historical Centre and became the International Electroacoustic Music Festival.

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International Pepe Sanchez
Trova Festival

March - Annual

Santiago de Cuba is the host city for this festival which celebrates the Trova musical genre. Musicians from different trends within this genre participate, including exponents of more traditional Cuban Trova (the troubador genre of voice, song and poetry that is usually accompanied by a guitar), filin (an evolution of bolero and trova), and of nueva trova (the very Cuban genre of personal commentary influenced by British, US and Brazilian popular music). The festival began in 1962 in homage to local Santiago de Cuba composer Jose ('Pepe') Sanchez (1856-1918), considered the father of Cuban Trova. The closing of the festival on Troubador Day, March 19th, commemorates the anniversary of the birth of Pepe Sanchez.

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Caribbean Dance Biennial

March - Biennial (2012)

Dancers, choreographers, teachers and students from the Caribbean and other parts of the world meet during this event as a way of promoting dance in a historically, ethnically and linguistically diverse region. The event will be an excellent opportunity to enjoy performances important soloists and companies from other countries of the region.

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Havana Biennial

Mar, Apr - Biennal (2011)

Contemporary art from over 200 international artists is displayed in galleries, museums and cultural spaces across the Cuban capital at this well-established biennial. Considered one of Latin America's pivotal art events, the biennial presents a variety of media, from sculpture to refreshing performance art.

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Gibara Low Budget
Film Festival

4 - 10 April, 2011

For one week, the small coastal city of Gibara, turns into Cuba's cultural hub as it hosts this film festival that celebrates low-budget, independent, and alternative cinema. Some call it the "Sundance" of Cuba, but without the actors, directors, producers, distributors, promoters and sponsors looking to get rich off the movie business. The festival involves music concerts, theatre, photographic, painting and sculpture exhibitions. Click here to read more about his event.

  • A modified version of our 15 day Original tour of Cuba from April 3 to 17 - 2011, includes in its program, 2 nights at this unique festival.

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Trinidad Cross Procession

Good Friday, April
Annual

The Way of the Cross Procession is a religious tradition that passes through the spectacular colonial streets of Trinidad, on Cuba's south coast. As part of the Easter celebrations, the procession was apparently designed originally to trick looting pirates, and it follows a route marked by crosses.

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Old Havana: City in Movement

April - Annual

National and international dancers and dance companies perform in the squares, parks and musuems of Old Havana colonial . The UNESCO World Heritage listed colonial sector of Havana makes a spectacular setting for the artists who perform both tranditional and contemporary dance. Workshops, exhibitions and conferences run alongside the dance performances.

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International Corhabana
Choir Festival

April - Annual

Through song, this festival seeks to foster international friendship and solidarity. Both Cuban and international choirs participate and there are also choral workshops to attend. perform concerts throughout Havana City. Choirs perform in major venues such as the Basilica de la Habana and the Teatro Amadeo Roldan as well as in local neighborhood venues and in schools.

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May Day Celebrations

1st May - Annual

May Day is massively celebrated in Cuba with workers in every town marching with their colleagues to the Revolution Square. Cultural and musical events are held as well as speeches from leading figures. The largest gathering in Cuba is in Havana, where every year more than a million workers, gather at the Plaza de la Revolucion at the foot of the giant statue of Cuba's godfather of the Revolution - Jose Marti. Click here to read more. In 2011 we have 3 tours that include participation in this event where, in Havana, you will join in the march to the Plaza de Revoluction:

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Romerias de Mayo

May 2 to 8 - Annual

This event in the city of Holguin involves a pilgramage to a nearby hilltop and the coming together musicians, actors, researchers, artists, writers and dancers, to share their artistic endeavours during a week long celebration throughout the city. The festival dates back to 1790 where a group of young artists decided to organise a pilgramage with the arrival of spring, and is presided over by a Taino Axe and a Wooden Cross - which are symbolic of Cuba's mixed heritage.

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Cubadisco

May - Annual

The annual Cubadisco is an excuse to show off Cuba's musical flair. Local musicians perform in different theatres and venues throughout Havana, prizes are awarded to notable figures in the industry, and the hottest new records are unveiled. Every year there is a different theme, often a specific musical genre, and a country of honour. See the Cubadisco website.

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International Ernest Hemingway
Needlefish Tournament

23 - 28 May, 2011

Hundreds of sport fishing enthusiasts head to Havana's Marina Hemingway for this annual event that was started by Hemingway himself in 1950. Hosted by the Hemingway International Nautical Club, it is one of the most important fishing events of the year. The long coral reefs off the Cuban coast create rich feeding grounds and virtually untouched habitats, a bounty that attracts migrating populations of marlin, tuna and wahoo.

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Festival del Caribe
(Festival of Fire)

2 - 8 July, 2011

Santiago de Cuba hosts this week-long festival that celebrates music and dance from all over the Caribbean area. Called by some the Festival del Caribe and by others the Festival del Fuego it aims at being a forum for exchanges between the diverse cultural manifestations of the region and is dedicated to strengthening ties between peoples and nations by highlighting common cultural elements. It features free outdoor concerts, indoor shows, processions of decorated vehicles, and parades of spectacularly attired dancers, foodstalls, beer stands, and goat powered cart rides for children. The 2010 festival will be dedicated to Curaçao and the Brazilian region of Pernambuco. It will also pay tribute to the bicentennial of Mexico’s independence and the 100th anniversary of the Mexican Revolution.
Festival del Fuego Facebook Page.

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Santiago de Cuba Carnival

17 - 25 July, 2011

The carnival of Santiago de Cuba is the largest, most famous, and most traditional carnival in all of Cuba. It is an explosion of colour, contagious drum rhythms, and dance. It is also a time for Cubans to re-gather themselves and remember their history, community, and culture, and is punctuated by the Cuban national holiday of July 26th.

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26 July Celebrations

26 July - Annual

26 July is the most important date on Cuba's revolutionary calendar. Patriotic and revolutionary fervour grips the nation, and streets are covered with communist banners, posters and official graffiti. The date is the anniversary of Fidel Castro's ill-fated 1953 assault on Santiago de Cuba's Moncada Barracks, and also the birth of Cuban writer and patriot Jose Martí. Fidel's attack in 1953 failed and the dictator, Batista, was not actually overthrown until 1959. At the Moncada barracks in Santiago, the names of the martyrs of the revolution are read out and guns are fired. A customarily long speeches are broadcast on national television.

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Havana Carnival

August 8-14, 2011

While a poor cousin to the more traditional version in Santiago de Cuba, Havana's Carnival still provides a spectacular display of music, dancing, conga lines, fanciful outfits, fireworks, beer, and rum. Parades run the length of the Malécon and rich traditional music competes with more contemporary sounds. Look out too for the Muñecones - huge satirical figures of politicians and other famous faces, in the parades. They are accompanied by the faroleros - dancers who carry a multi-coloured accessory resembling a streetlight, which they rotate constantly. Cuba's renowned carnivals were discontinued for a while during the "special period" (the immense privations which came after the collapse of the USSR and its enormous subsidising of the Cuban economy, which, combined with the US trade embargo, created a large fall in the quality of life in the country). Now that the situation has improved (partly due to the government's new emphasis on tourism), Carnival is back on the menu.

The following tours will be in Havana during the Carnival:

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Baracoa 500th Anniversary

August - 7 to 15, 2011

The enchanting town of Baracoa will celebrate its 500th anniversary this year. The week long party will take on a carnival flavour and involve street conga parades, outdoor concerts, cultural events, and dance performances. Special tributes will be paid to the city's indigenous heritage. You can experience this festival on our 15 day Original Cuba Tour from July 31 to August 14, which will be in Baracoa from August 9 to 12. Baracoa was the first place the Europeans had contact with Cuba, and the first place the Spanish settled in Cuba. For a time was also Cuba's capital. Because of it's remoteness from the rest of Cuba, the capital was moved to Santiago and then later to Havana. For many of our travellers, Baracoa is their favourite destination.

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CDR Anniversary

Sep 28 - Annual

The CDR's (Comite's de la Defensa de la Revolution) are the main grass-roots organisations of Cuba's socialist system. Each CDR is typically a block of a city. The annual birthday party involves a street party with all the residents of the neighbourhood participating. Among the traditions of the party is the preparation of a caldosa stew that is cooked by wood-fire in a pig pot in the street. Its a great time to interact with the locals. In 2011 we have 4 tours on which you can join in on the celebrations in the neighbourhood of your homestay:

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Festival Internacional
Matamoros Son

19 - 23 Oct, 2011

The Festival of Son set in Santiago de Cuba - the birthplace of music in Cuba, and is a tribute to one of the most famous names and most important composers in Cuban - Music Miguel Matamoros (born in 1894 the city of Santiago De Cuba). This festival is a meeting of all the famous musicians in Cuba and joined by international artists from all over the world. The festival has endless concerts, lectures on music Cuban music and traditional music, dances, workshops, book and CD launches, a national dance competition of Cha-cha-cha, son, salsa, casino, mambo, & danzon. A fantastic festival for lovers of Cuban music. Concerts take place in many of the well known venues around the city including: casa de la Musica, casa de la Trova, Teatro Heredia, Casa de los Dos Abuelos, and others.

You can catch this festival on the following tour:

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Havana Ballet Festival

28 Oct - 6 Nov, 2010

Founded in 1960 by Cuban Prima Ballerina Absoluta, Alicia Alonso, this festival attracts top dancers and dance companies from around the world. The Gran Teatro de La Habana and Teatro America are two of the principal venues. Photography and visual arts exhibitions, conferences and related film screenings run alongside the performances throughout the festival, that also reaches out to other cities across the island. Festival Website.

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Havana Theatre Festival

Oct, Nov - Annual

Havana's theatres and cultural spaces come alive with plays for adults and children and the fusion of theatre and dance at this annual event. There are performances from Cuban and international theatre groups as well as workshops, exhibitions and conferences.
Festival Website.

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Marabana Marathon

20 Nov, 2011

This sporting event held on the 3rd Sunday of November every year, attracts an attendance of between 1 and 2 thousand walkers and runners, including locals and international athletes from nearly 30 different countries. The half marathon route goes through some of the more scenic areas of Old Havana, Central Havana, and Vedado. Participation is offered for distances of full-marathon (2 laps), half-marathon, as well as 5, 10 and 15km. One day before the Marathon, the internationally recognized running project Maracuba takes place. It mobilizes over 1 million participants and is said to be the largest running event. Simultaneously participants of all ages from hundreds of communities, remote areas, and mountain regions take off for the 3000 and 4000 meter tracks, becoming part of a memorable running experience. Click here to download the official Marabana information pack for foreign participants.

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Havana Film Festival

1 - 11 Dec, 2011

In cinemas across Havana, film fans get their fix of the latest regional productions at the annual International Festival of New Latin American Cinema. Films featured are typically from the Latin American and Caribbean region and include feature films, short films, documentaries and animation. There is a section of films in a category called "Made in Cuba" where one can discover the intricacies of daily Cuban life on the big screen. An array of seminars also run alongside the screenings. The festival began in 1979, with the acclaimed Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez as one of the judges that year. Festival Website.

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Havana Jazz Festival

15 - 18 Dec, 2011

Organised by Chucho Valdés, this festival is an internationally renowned event that consistently attracts an excellent line-up of jazz musicians - both local and international. Cuba has its own famous genre of jazz, and the importance placed on music by the Cuban Government and the Cuban society means that there is an almost endless supply of new and exciting local talent on offer. Performances take place in the Casa de la Cultura Plaza, Teatro Nacional de Cuba and other venues across the city. More about this festival.

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Parrandas de Remedios

19 - 24 Dec, Annual

The small town of Remedios is famous for its Christmas festival, called “Las Parrandas de Remedios”. The celebrations are considered the oldest in Cuba, and by those who are familiar with them, the most wild and crazy. Events include street parades with rumba percussion ensembles, music and verses, a float display and the very dramatic fireworks competition. Read more about this festival.

You can see this event on one of the following tours:

Both tours will be in Remedios for the biggest night of the weeklong celebration - Dec 24.

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Charangas de Bejucal

Dec 24,25,26 and Jan 1
Annual

The oldest of Havana's traditional festivals takes place at the end of every year in the small Havana provincial town of Bejucal. It involves a performance from Los Tambores de Bejucal (a typical Cuban percussion band of high International prestige), and festivities formed by a traditional rivalry between two conga groups. The Ceibistas (members of the Ceiba de Plata group, characterised by the colour blue and a scorpion as their symbol) compete with the Espinistas (Members of the Espina de Oro, who wear red and have a rooster as their symbol), to see who can play the loudest drums and construct the most impressive float.
Read more about this festival.

You can see this event on one of the following tours:

If you are on a different tour, but you will be in Havana on any of the these nights - Dec 24,25,26 or Jan 1 you can join one of our guides who will be taking anyone to the festival who wants to go. The cost of return transport is 10CUC and payable to the guide.

New Years Eve in Havana

Dec 31
Annual

The biggest New Year's Eve party in Havana is a special dinner/show put on at the impressive Cathedral Plaza in Old Havana. The only restaurant in the Square called El Patio brings all their tables outdoors and caters for 300 diners. Wine, champagne, beers and all sorts of spirits, including the famous Habana Club rum, are served plentifully and the food is a assortment of Cuban recipes. A purpose built stage hosts a spectacular Tropicana style outdoor music and dance show. You can see this event on our New Years Cuba Tour from Dec 23 to Jan 02, annually.

If you are on a different tour, but you will be in Havana on the night of Dec 31 you can join with some of our other travellers and go to the party. The cost of the dinner (including drinks and show) is expected to be about US$135. Once the event details are finalised, we will contact you with an offer to advance purchase tickets through us.