All About Barbados > Holidays and Festivals

• Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year's Day
• Good Friday and Easter Monday; Pentecost Monday
• Errol Barrow Day (January 21), the president's birthday
• May 1
• Kadooment Day, the first Monday of August, which marks the end of Barbados' biggest festival
• United Nations Day (first Monday of October)
• Barbados Independence Day (November 30)

Mid/Late July to the first Monday of August: Crop Over Festival
The heart of Barbados has always beaten to the rhythm of sugar cane and it is still normal for the festival to begin on the last day of harvest, being launched with the cutting of the final cane, which is a source of celebration for the whole population. The activities continue for two weeks, ending on the first Monday of August - Kadooment Day - a national holiday unequalled by any other. To the sounds of calypso and soca, men and women in colorful costumes take to the streets to the staccato Barbadian beat and thousands of fireworks. It's a spectacle that visitors won't want to miss. To allow tourists to really get into the event, you can be part of a costumed group by contacting the National Cultural Foundation at (809) 424-0907.

Second week of January - Barbados Jazz Festival
Every year Barbados welcomes some of the world's great jazz artists in an explosion of music.

Mid-February - Holetown Festival
February 17, 1627, the first European colonists arrived in Holetown, marking the beginning of a long colonization. It's always around this commemorative date that this week-long festival takes place, with street markets and dances. Medieval chant is sung in the churches and calypso rhythms resonate in the streets.

March - Opera season
Every year, Barbados hosts some of the world's great opera singers.

Around Easter - the Oistins Fish Festival
In this picturesque fishing village, a festival is held to honor those who dedicate their lives to the sea. Everyone attempts to prove his skill in his profession: catch contests, boat races, even crab races. You can also buy local handicrafts at the fair and dance to the region's steel bands, stopping for refreshment at one of the little rum distilleries along the road.

Early October to late November - National Independence Arts Festival
This is the perfect time to find all the arts represented. The high point of the festival is Independence Day, November 30.