Caribbean Carnival of Manchester at Alexandra Park

Caribbean Carnival of Manchester at Alexandra Park, Manchester, 12–13 August 2017, free entry - Visit now

Manchester knows how to party and no more so than at this annual festival of Caribbean music and carnival arts. The theme this year is Bacchanal so we can expect revelry of legendary proportions in the stunning setting of the recently restored Alexandra Park.

For early birds, the morning J’ouvert parade (marking struggles suffered on the road to independence) starts warming up from 8am on Saturday morning with two trailers of DJs and Soca bands and food vendors serving souse, dumplings, salt fish and rice. This parade is adjacent to the park from Grierson Street Car Park to Quinney Crescent and is set to wake the neighbourhood up in style.

The main Carnival parade leaves Alexandra Park on Saturday at 12.30, returning at 3.30 featuring spectacular costume, dance, music and performance.

Each day in the park, indulge in Caribbean food and dance to Mas bands, street bands and leading DJs.  Ten stages of live music include a Soul Tent, African Corner, Bajan Village, Irish folk music and the UK’s first dedicated Soca and Calypso stage featuring renowned artists Terrah Dan, Jo Money, Joshie Cotton, King Kenzie and One Plus Soca Band.

This happy and friendly carnival is intergenerational, of the community yet world class, and wows the crowd with even more jaw-dropping costumes and performance each year.