Carnival Day in Sint Maarten in 2025

Carnival Day in Sint Maarten in 2025
Dancers in the Grand Carnival Parade in Sint Maartens. Image via pxfuel
  How long until Carnival Day?
Carnival Day
  Dates of Carnival Day in Sint Maarten
2026 Sint Maarten Thu, Apr 30 Public Holiday
2025 Sint Maarten Wed, Apr 30 Public Holiday
2024 Sint Maarten Tue, Apr 30 Public Holiday
2023 Sint Maarten Sun, Apr 30 Public Holiday
2022 Sint Maarten Sat, Apr 30 Public Holiday
  Summary

The carnival is celebrated on Queen Juliana's Birthday

When is Sint Maarten Carnival Day?

Sint Maarten Carnival is a national holiday on Queen Juliana's birthday, April 30th.

The carnival itself lasts for 17 days, but only the day of the Grand Carnival Parade, April 30th, is a public holiday. Islanders also enjoy a holiday for King's Birthday on April 27th, which can make for a four day weekend in some years.

About Sint Maarten Carnival Day

The island of St. Martin is split between French and Dutch control. The Carnival on the French side takes place at the traditional time of just before Lent. 

Sint Maarten bills its Carnival as the biggest and best carnival in the North Eastern Caribbean. The carnival starts in mid-April and runs until early May.

The festivities started out as an initiative to celebrate the various holidays of the island. The first Carnival took place in 1969. It used to be held on November 11th, St. Maarten's Day, but it was moved to April in the 1970s, with Queen Juliana's birthday chosen as an appropriate date.

Like a lot of other Caribbean carnivals, it relied on local business support in the early days but has continued to grow over the years in popularity, scale and duration.


Translate this page