Havana Carnival

Date: July/August; Weekends only
Venue: El Malécon, Havana

The Havana Carnival takes place at weekends during July and August. Expect music, dancing, processions, parades, fanciful outfits, fireworks, beer, rum and lots of fun. Successive parades and processions run the length of the Malécon, while rich traditional music competes with more contemporary sounds - intense dancers and conga lines are everywhere. Everyone celebrates life as a Carnival and rips it up like there's no tomorrow.

Look out too for the Muñecones, huge satirical figures of politicians and other famous faces, in the parades along the Malécon. They are accompanied by the faroleros, dancers who carry a multi-coloured accessory resembling a streetlight, which they rotate constantly. This is also a great time to try the island's distinctive cuisine, the wonderful Havana Club Rum and cold beer!

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.