When is carnival in Rio?

The date of carnival changes each year and depends on the date of Easter. It starts on the Friday before Ash Wednesday with the biggest parades held on the Sunday and Monday, then on the following weekend the Champions’ Parade is held.

Rio Carnival Dates

Rio Carnival 2022: Fri 25 Feb – Wed 2 Mar
Rio Carnival 2023: Fri 17 Feb – Wed 22 Feb
Rio Carnival 2024: Fri 9 Feb – Wed 14 Feb

Rio Champions’ Parade Dates

Champions’ Parade 2022: Sat 5 Mar
Champions’ Parade 2023: Sat 25 Feb
Champions’ Parade 2024: Sat 17 Feb

The History of Rio Carnival

Carnival’s roots lie in ancient Greek traditions. The drunken revelry of the legendary festivals worshiping Dionysus, the god of wine, later influenced Roman customs. The Romans put their own spin on things by trading clothes for a day with their slaves and drinking together as equals. Later the Catholic Church amended a few points, ensuring the celebrating occurred before the first day of Lent, Ash Wednesday. This way the long period of self-denial could be somewhat balanced by the preceding festivity of indulgences. Think of bachelor parties before the wedding. Not altogether dissimilar. Since then, Carnival was spread, especially by the Portuguese explorers, to dozens of countries around the world. It is perhaps one of those very few gems of colonization if that’s not a complete oxymoron. The celebrations vary considerably; though costumes and music are common elements, and nowhere else does the party shine quite as brightly as in Rio.

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The reason most people associate Carnival with Rio de Janeiro is due to the wildly popular flavor that samba has paired with an already successful Carnival. Samba evolved from candombe, African drumbeats imported during the West African slave trade. In the early 20th century samba rose to prominence, with recordings expressing a much slower, romantic mood. During the 50’s a new style of samba was incubated within Brazil’s favelas (or shantytowns), known by the name of samba-de-batucada. Much quicker and more powerful than previous incarnations, this was the flavor of samba that would emerge as the sound the world most associates with Carnival.

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Today, samba’s popularity has reached fever pitch. Sambadromes (stadiums) have been constructed around Brazil, reminiscent of the Roman Coliseum. After all, it is a competition. Other elements of Rio’s particular Carnival have borrowed from the invention of cars, colorful characters from Rio, and now corporate sponsors as well. Today, Rio’s Carnival groups can be compared to professional sports teams. Like a sports game, teams fiercely compete in an entertaining and highly structured environment.

Other carnivals in Brazil and South America

Salvador Carnival – The capital of the Northeastern Brazilian state of Bahia and the largest city on the northeast coast typically begins its Carnival celebrations early! It is said this is a much more intimate Carnival than Rio’s and is a close second when it comes to greatest Carnival celebrations ever. Parties run for six consecutive days, starting around 5 PM each afternoon and run until 5 AM and beyond the next morning.

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Cajamarca Carnival – In the northern mountains of Peru, is known for its colonial charm, but during the Carnival season the town changes, with a colorful and lively festival. At the end of Carnival week, the King of the Carnival parades into town singing traditional songs, and then the locals symbolically bury the king.

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Oruro Carnival, Bolivia
Located near Lake Uru Uru and southwest of Cochabamba, this highland mining town is a popular destination for Bolivian party-goers. The distinctive traditions of the present-day Carnival has its roots in ancient Andean history.

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Barranquilla Carnival, Colombia
Another major Carnival, this is a serious rival to Brazil’s carnivals. The city is not normally a popular tourist attraction, but that all changes during carnival and visitors decent from around South America and the world to take part in the semi-organized chaos!