Haitian Defile Kanaval is the Haitian Creole name of the main annual Mardi Gras carnival held in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The parade is known as "Kye Marn". Haiti's largest carnival is held in the capital and largest city, Port-au-Prince, with smaller celebrations taking part simultaneously in Jacmel, Aux Cayes, and other locations in Haiti . The When is Carnival in Haiti. Carnival in Haiti is not a one-day event, as you might know it from other countries. In fact, it spans from January to the big parade during the Trois Jours Gras (three fat days) in February or March. Throughout the season, there are festivities and celebrations held every Sunday in many of the major cities in Haiti. 2. Key Dates of Carnival in Haiti. Haitian Carnival generally begins in January and culminates in the three days preceding Ash Wednesday. - Dimanche Gras, Lundi Gras and Mardi Gras: These three days are the most important, marked by spectacular parades and a general festive atmosphere. Upcoming holidays in Haiti. Holidays in Haiti 2025. Holidays in Haiti 2026. Shrove Tuesday is the last day before the fasting period of Lent (for Western Christians), 47 days before Easter Sunday. Shrove Tuesday is also called Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday, or Pancake Day. Is Carnival/Shrove Tuesday a Public Holiday? Carnival/Shrove Tuesday is a Carnival 2025, 2026 and 2027 in Haiti. The Carnival holiday in Haiti comes each year in February or March, as in many other significantly Roman Catholic countries. The date varies, but it always immediately precedes Ash Wednesday, which is the first day of a 40-day Lenten fast leading up to Easter. The carnival celebration in Haiti started shortly after their independence in 1804, making it even older than the famed New Orleans Mardi Gras. It stems from a fusion of African traditions, local customs, and French colonial influences, amalgamating them into an event that beautifully showcases Haiti’s rich cultural heritage. A show of extravagance and indulgence before the Lenten fasting period begins, the largest Carnival in Haiti is celebrated in Port-au-Prince, with many more smaller scale festivities occurring in all parts of the island. Port-au-Prince’s annual carnival is one of the largest Mardi Gras carnivals in the Caribbean and North America. Instead, you should fly into Cap-Haïtien, Haiti’s northern hub, and then take a Sunrise Airways domestic flight to Les Cayes in the south, which costs around $100 USD. Once in Les Cayes, you can get to Jacmel via public transport in minivans known as tap-taps or by hiring a private taxi. The drive takes around five hours, but luckily, it’s Today, Carnival in Haiti has 3 parts: the parade of costumes in the afternoon, traveling rara bringing local flavor and at night, and the procession of huge floats carrying the popular music groups playing their Carnival themed songs for the year until sunrise. via Christian Nerette fotokanaval.com This victory led to the surrender of French troops and marked the end of French colonial rule in Saint-Domingue. On January 1, 1804, Jean-Jacques Dessalines proclaimed the independence of Haiti, making the country the first independent nation in Latin America and the second independent republic in the Western Hemisphere, after the United States. Read about Carnival Tuesday in Haiti in 2025. Carnival Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday, takes place on the day before Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. Where to stay. If you book in advance, you can find accommodation at a spectrum of hotels, from historic lofty-ceilinged mansions of Victorian coffee barons like Hotel Florita to ocean view Airbnb villas with their own pool overlooking Jacmel bay like the Chic Chateau to family-owned hotels with private beach like Cyvadier Plage and maybe even a couchsurfing couch. Explore the 2025 Public Holidays in Haiti and organize your long weekends with our comprehensive guide. Lundi Gras: 2025-03-04: Tue: Mardi Gras: 2025-04-18: Fri Mardi Gras masks, beads and festive outfits are welcome. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. The Haiti Humanitarian Fund at St. Pius X Church helps support a sister parish, Our Lady of the Presentation, in Los Palis, Haiti. A small group of parishioners, from Conyers and from Haiti, started the HHF in 1998 with Father John Kieran, who was then pastor. Jacmel is considered the best destination for its rich history and lively pre-carnival activities, with Lansèt Kòd groups starting their weekly performances from the first Sunday of January and continuing every Sunday until the Trois Jours Gras (the three fat days), where the main carnival parade takes place. Visit Sakapfet.com for information, photos and videos of Mardi Gras in Haiti since 2001. Mardi Gras "always falls on the Tuesday that is 46 days before Easter. It is always the day before Ash Wednesday, which is the start of Lent." Future Mardi Gras dates are: Feb. 24, 2009, February 16, 2010, March 8, 2011 and February 21, 2012. In Haiti during the Carnaval and Mardi Gras, families, relatives, and friends gather together to enjoy the festivities and this delectable casual dessert made with bananas. Blue Ribbon Recipe These Haitian beignets are not like the French beignets you'd find in New Orleans, but you'll enjoy them just as much. thelucaszoo. Come Mardi Gras, king cake reigns above all else. "Better than bakery's! Living and eating in New Orleans for my entire life I was a bit skeptical if I could actually pull off a king cake," writes New Orleans local and home cook Laur5270, who recommends omitting the raisins to make the recipe more traditional. The similarity between Carnaval and Mardi Gras in New Orleans is just one connection the two places share. Swoan Parker / REUTERS In 1809, when the Haitian Revolution ended and Haiti became indpendent, thousands of white, free black and enslaved people fled to New Orleans, doubling the city's population in just a few months. A few years ago, a new Mardi Gras krewe sprung up with the aim of celebrating the Haitian roots that run deep through the city's cultural identity. It was co-founded by two members of Arcade Fire.
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