Caribana Festival

admin — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 03:21:39 +0000

Caribana Parade
Saturday before Civic Day
Starts at Exhibition Place
Moves West on Lakeshore
416-391-5608

Caribana is a festival of Caribbean culture and traditions held each summer. The event attracts hundreds of thousands of tourist from the US and around the world. The carnival has been billed as North America?s largest street festival, frequented by over 1.3 million visitors each year for the festival’s final parade.

The annual Toronto Caribbean Carnival (Caribana) Festival which has been running annually since 1967, blazes with the excitement of calypso, steel pan, elaborate masquerade costumes, carnival traditions and music of many Caribbean nations including in Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Brazil, Barbados, Guyana and all West Indian nations. If you love soca, calypso or reggae music then Caribana is where you need to be!

While Caribana runs for two weeks, the highlight of the Caribana event is the final weekend where everybody comes together in the street Parade of Bands. During the parade thousands of brilliantly costumed masqueraders and dozens of trucks carrying live artists playing pulsating rhythms and melodies of Calypso, Soca, Reggae, Hip Hop, Chutney, Steel Pan, Brass Bands and Salsa jam the 1.5 km parade route all day, to the delight of hundreds of thousands of onlookers.

The final parade usually coincides with the Civic holiday weekend in Ontario, which falls on the first monday of August. The Caribana events are planned months in advance while the costumes and bad displays are elaborate and delicately designed for movement.

Like other Caribbean carnival events, Caribana attracts spectators, celebrities, musicians, and “Mas” players from all over the world including North America, the Caribbean, Europe, Africa, and Asia.

Caribana Parade Hours

Location: Exhibition Place (Lake Shore Blvd)
Date: The Saturday of Civic day weekend
Time: 10:00 am – 6:00 pm

This showcase event features an incredible display of colour, pageantry and a variety of music, commencing at Exhibition Place and proceeding west along Lake Shore Boulevard. Live Caribbean music being played from large speakers on the flat-bed of 18 wheeler trucks, keeps parade participants and spectators moving. Exhibition Place and Lake Shore Boulevard will come alive with the sights and sounds of Carnival!

Directions and Map to Caribana Parade

The Parade begins at Exhibition Place and moves west along Lakeshore Boulevard.

By Car

From the East: Take Highway 401 into Toronto and exit onto the Don Valley Parkway Southbound. As you approach Downtown, this will turn into the Gardiner Expressway. Take the Gardiner Expressway west to Spadina / Lake Shore Boulevard cutoff and follow the signs for Lakeshore Boulevard, Take Lake Shore Boulevard to the Princes? Gates (just west of Strachan Avenue) to enter Exhibition Place.

From South or West: Follow the QEW into Toronto, where it turns into the Gardiner Expressway . Take the Gardiner Expressway east to Lake Shore Boulevard/Jameson Avenue. Stay on Lakeshore Blvd. east There are three entrance points (at the traffic lights) to Exhibition Place from Lake Shore Boulevard ? British Columbia Drive, Ontario Drive and Newfoundland Drive.

From the North: Take Highway 400 into Toronto, exiting onto Highway 401 West. Continue until you reach Highway 427 southbound. Follow Highway 427 to downtown via the QEW/Gardiner Expressway. Follow the QEW into Toronto, where it turns into the Gardiner Expressway . Take the Gardiner Expressway east to Lake Shore Boulevard/Jameson Avenue. Stay on Lakeshore Blvd. east There are three entrance points (at the traffic lights) to Exhibition Place from Lake Shore Boulevard ? British Columbia Drive, Ontario Drive and Newfoundland Drive.

By Public Transit

29 Dufferin Bus -Take the Bloor subway to Dufferin Station, board the #29 bus south to Exhibition Place.

511 Bathurst Streetcar ? Take the Bloor subway to Bathurst Station, board the #511 streetcar south to Exhibition Place. There are two streetcar stops at Exhibition Place, at Strachan Avenue, and adjacent to the Horse Palace/GO Station.

509 Harbourfront Streetcar ? Take the Yonge-University subway to Union Station and proceed to the Queens Quay platform. Board the #509 streetcar west to Exhibition Place. There are two streetcar stops at Exhibition Place, at Strachan Avenue, and adjacent to the Horse Palace/GO Station.

For more information, visit the TTC at ttc.ca or call 416-393-4636

Map of Caribana Location

Video of Caribana

Contact Caribana Festival

Email: info at caribanafestival.com
Phone: 416-391-5608

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Caribana Festival