When is the Dominican carnival in 2027?
There are no official dates yet, so everything below is expected, pending official confirmation, and can move. The base is the pattern of earlier years: the Ministry of Tourism says La Vega's carnival is celebrated every February, and the Ministry of Culture held its national parade on Sunday, 23 March 2025 and Sunday, 15 March 2026.
February 2027 has four Sundays: 7 February, 14 February, 21 February and 28 February. Palm Sunday falls early, on Sunday, 21 March 2027, which leaves fewer March Sundays free than in 2025 or 2026. The ministry announced its parade on 19 February 2025 and on 4 February 2026, so expect the real date around February 2027.
| Carnival | Where | 2026 reference | 2027 |
|---|---|---|---|
| La Vega carnival | Avenida del Carnaval, La Vega | Sunday, 15 February 2026 | Expected: February 2027, on Sundays |
| Santiago carnival | Parque Central, Santiago | Sunday, 15 February 2026 | Expected: February 2027, on Sundays |
| Puerto Plata carnival | Malecón, Puerto Plata | — | No date published |
| National Carnival Parade | Malecón, Santo Domingo | Sunday, 15 March 2026 | Expected: March 2027, on a Sunday |
What is the National Carnival Parade?
It is the Ministry of Culture's showcase of carnivals from every province, held in one afternoon on the seafront of Santo Domingo. The 2026 edition brought together about 180 comparsas and more than 9,000 participants, the ministry reported, with delegations from Colombia, Brazil, Ghana and Puerto Rico.
Each year it is dedicated to one place: San Cristóbal in 2025 and Puerto Plata in 2026. Devils, lechones and the robalagallina, the characters of the Dominican carnival, parade in bright costumes and masks, and in 2025 it started at 14:00.
What should you know on parade day?
Mostly that the seafront closes to traffic well before it starts. In 2026, part of Avenida George Washington closed from 22:00 on Friday, 13 March 2026, and the full closure lasted until 05:00 on Monday, 16 March 2026.
Glass bottles, cans and hard containers were banned, along with weapons, animals and kites, and there were 8 first-aid posts near the route. Those are the 2026 rules; the 2027 ones will come with the official announcement.
What is the La Vega carnival like?
La Vega's is the one with the longest history: the Ministry of Tourism calls it the oldest in the Americas and gives it a museum of its own. Its figures are the diablos cojuelos, known for the vejigazo, a blow with the vejiga, or bladder.
The carnival's website describes a fenced route along Avenida del Carnaval, between Manlio Bobadilla and Comandante Jiménez Moya, so that anyone who doesn't want a vejigazo can watch from behind the barrier. It also lists 6 artists per Sunday, in concerts from 15:00 to 18:30.
That text carries no year, so check it again in February. The Ministry of Tourism suggests up to three days in the town during carnival season.
How are Santiago and Puerto Plata different?
Each has its own character. Santiago's symbol is the lechón santiaguero, and the second outing of its 2026 carnival took place in the Parque Central on Sunday, 15 February 2026, the same day the minister of Culture also visited La Vega.
Puerto Plata's symbol is the taimáscaro, created in 1991 to set the town apart from La Vega and Santiago. The name joins the Taíno people with the masked devils of the Spanish tradition, and its costume carries sea shells instead of bells, in a carnival held mainly along the town's seafront.
Is there a carnival in Punta Cana, and how do you get to one?
We found no official carnival programme for Punta Cana, Bávaro, Verón or Higüey, so plan on travelling. The fares below come from the long-distance taxi sheet published on the airport's website, for one to four people (US$20 per extra person); it is the 2024 sheet, the latest available.
The Expreso Bávaro coach is the budget option to the capital; our guide to Santo Domingo from Punta Cana has the details. We found no direct coach fare from Bávaro to La Vega, Santiago or Puerto Plata from an official source, so we leave those cells empty.
| From Punta Cana to | Coach | Taxi, one way | Taxi, return |
|---|---|---|---|
| Santo Domingo | DOP 400 · 3 h | US$200 | US$260 |
| La Vega | — | US$260 | US$300 |
| Santiago | — | US$300 | US$330 |
| Puerto Plata | — | US$375 | US$475 |
What else happens in February in Punta Cana?
Independence Day falls on Saturday, 27 February 2027, an official public holiday that does not move; the whole list is in Dominican Republic public holidays 2027. Punta Cana's party season is also due back in February 2027, and its nights appear in our calendar as they go on sale.
For the rest of the year, from Easter to the merengue and bachata days, see the Dominican Republic festivals 2027 calendar.
