17 – 26 February 2023
There are also some events in January, so check the programme on their website.
Where: Santa Cruz, Tenerife, Spain
When: 17 – 26 February 2023
In Puerto de la Cruz
Official Website and Programme: carnavaldetenerife.com
Hotels: Hotels in Santa Cruz
Slip into some fishnets, put on your highest heels, and get ready for some hedonistic street celebrations in the Canary Islands.
And if you’re a man, borrow a party dress, and stuff a couple of balloons down the front ;).
When Tenerife Carnival starts, it’s time to shed your inhibitions and join in with the revelry!
If a trip to Rio is beyond your budget, the Tenerife Carnival is the most Brazilian of the Spanish carnivals, an extravaganza of colour, light, music and mayhem.
Tenerife Carnival arrived along with the conquistadors at the end of the 15th century.
It was a chance for a last big bash before Lent, like carnivals everywhere.
The Catholic Church tried to ban it, then Franco’s regime sent it underground.
Masks and cross-dressing were crucial for identity concealment – now they’re simply a part of the electrifying atmosphere.
Tenerife gets into the Latin spirit weeks before Lent begins, so the start date varies each year.
Main celebrations are in the capital city, Santa Cruz – and most events are free.
Carnival Tenerife-style can be both exhausting and exhilarating.
The best street parties occur over the opening and closing weekends but check the dates for the main events in each part of the island.
Santa Cruz is a popular base, so the crowds can be overwhelming.
The first major event of the Carnival is the opening parade – this year’s theme in Santa Cruz is cartoon characters.
What follows is a full week of masked balls, daytime parades full of scantily-clad dancers in flamboyant outfits, and long nights of dancing in the streets to the pulsing beat of Latino-style bands, old-school disco classics and Spanish pop.
Hundreds of thousands of people take part, and it’s very much a pick-and-mix party.
Don’t think you must see everything, or you’ll end up worn out on the first day.
The elected Carnival Queens and their entourages ride elaborately-decorated parade floats, in overwhelmingly huge costumes.
So enormous that they have to be mounted on wheels so that their wearers can move.
There is no real need to pack a picnic for the parades – roadside stalls provide an endless flow of beer for the thirsty while tempting food stands to fill the air with the aroma of street food specialities.
Every Canarian carnival celebration tempts visitors with typical dishes to try.
On Tenerife, snack on tortillas de Carnaval, small round pancakes served warm and drizzled with honey.
The most surreal of the carnival events in Santa Cruz has to be the Burial of the Sardine.
On Ash Wednesday, a giant paper-mâché sardine, fluttering long eyelashes and painted with bright red lipstick, is carried through the streets.
The Sardine is followed by a funeral cortège of men in drag.
It’s not often that you get to see a huge transvestite fish at the centre of an ostentatious funeral, so make the most of it.
The mourners do – they’re decked out in a parody of widows’ weeds, wailing and sometimes collapsing with grief (or perhaps one too many beers).
It’s a little like the Rocky Horror Show crossed with a gipsy wedding, and the night ends with a flashy firework display as the Big Sardine meets a fiery end.
Tenerife has an all-year-round holiday climate so that you won’t need lots of layers during the daytime on the Island of Eternal Spring.
But February nights can be a bit chilly, and long hours watching the parades mean that sensible shoes are advisable – unless you’re entering the High Heels Marathon.
But you will need a fancy dress to make the most of the Carnaval – and anything goes.
Regulars bring a different outfit for every night.
The giant supermarkets stock Carnaval costumes, and even specialist shops sell outfits and kitsch accessories.
Stalls on the main plazas can provide anything from face paint to unconvincing fake breasts.
The only way to tackle Carnaval’s craziness and full-on sensory attack is to slip into those stockings, throw away your hang-ups, and come well-prepared to stay up all night long.
You’ll want somewhere within a stroll of the main action, but far enough away from the noise when you need a bit of shut-eye.
In Santa Cruz, try the area around Las Ramblas – the Iberostar Grand Hotel Mencey on Calle Dr José Naveiras is a stylish choice.
In Puerto de la Cruz, Apartamentos Masaru sits in the quieter La Paz district, in lovely sub-tropical gardens.
The northern coastal town of Puerto de la Cruz runs a close second to the capital in the size of its celebrations.
It also has characteristic attractions, including the Mascarita Ponte Tacón the High Heels Marathon.
A male drag-race with contestants picking their way through obstacles, wearing outrageous high-heeled shoes.
Nothing lower than ankle-busting is allowed.
It’s uproarious, not at all “politically correct”, and fast becoming the most popular event of the Carnaval calendar.
But it’s not for the easily offended. Don’t take your prim great-aunt.
There are smaller celebrations in most towns and villages across Tenerife.
If you have the time, settle in for a couple of weeks, hire a car, and combine Carnaval with a few days trips around the island.
Sitges Carnival, Spain. 16 – 22 February 2023