--- title: "Carnivals of South America, the 10 best to join | Wimup" description: "Ten South American carnivals ranked on scale, tradition and how far a visitor can join in, from Rio and Salvador to Oruro and Barranquilla." url: https://wimup.com/carnival-south-america type: Themed list updated: 2026-10-28 publisher: Wimup (https://wimup.com) --- # Carnivals of South America, the continent that owns the season. By Wimup desk · 10 picks · 2 films · ≈ 3 min read Ten carnivals across five countries, from the Sambadrome to an Andean devil dance and a summer of Saturdays by the Paraná, ranked on how far a visitor can join in. South America holds more great carnivals than any other continent. We ranked these ten on the carnival itself: its scale, how deep its tradition runs, and how much a visitor can take part rather than watch. Most peak in the days before Lent; three run on summer weekends. ## Carnivals of South America, the continent that owns the season. ### 1. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Rio de Janeiro · Brazil The benchmark: samba schools spend a year on one night in the Sambadrome, and anyone can buy a costume and parade with one. Skip the stands and the free street blocos fill every neighbourhood from dawn. - **Best for:** Samba parade - **Where:** Sambadrome · blocos - **Runs:** Sat–Tue before Lent Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/rio-de-janeiro.md) · [Watch the Rio de Janeiro film](https://wimup.com/watch/rio-de-janeiro.md) ### 2. Salvador, Brazil Bahia · Brazil Six days of trios elétricos, trucks carrying live bands through a crowd of hundreds of thousands. An abadá buys you a place inside a bloco's rope; outside it, on the Barra-Ondina circuit, the party is free. - **Best for:** Street party - **Where:** Barra-Ondina · Campo Grande - **Runs:** Thu–Ash Wednesday Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/salvador.md) ### 3. Oruro, Bolivia Altiplano · Bolivia The Andes' great carnival, UNESCO-listed since 2001, is a pilgrimage danced to the shrine of the Virgin of the Socavón. Diablada devils in masks and armour lead the entrada, which runs into the night; book a stand seat. - **Best for:** Masked dance - **Where:** Route to the Socavón - **Runs:** From Carnival Saturday Links: [Bolivia guide](https://wimup.com/country/bolivia.md) ### 4. Barranquilla, Colombia Atlántico · Colombia UNESCO-listed since 2003, it puts Colombia's Caribbean folk dances, cumbia, congo and garabato, on the street for four days. The Batalla de Flores on the Vía 40 opens it, and its grandstand seats sell out first. - **Best for:** Folk dance - **Where:** Vía 40 - **Runs:** Sat–Tue before Lent Links: [Colombia guide](https://wimup.com/country/colombia.md) ### 5. Olinda, Brazil Pernambuco · Brazil The most open carnival on the list: frevo bands and crowds climb the hills of a UNESCO-listed colonial centre, with no ropes and no stands. It opens at midnight with the Homem da Meia-Noite, a giant puppet first paraded in 1932. - **Best for:** Frevo · giant puppets - **Where:** Historic centre - **Runs:** Sat–Tue before Lent Links: [Brazil guide](https://wimup.com/country/brazil.md) ### 6. São Paulo, Brazil São Paulo · Brazil Now Brazil's biggest by numbers: the city planned for 16.5 million revellers and more than 600 street blocos in 2026. Its samba schools parade at the Anhembi Sambadrome, but the free blocos are where a visitor joins in. - **Best for:** Street blocos - **Where:** Anhembi · city streets - **Runs:** Weeks around Lent Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/sao-paulo.md) · [Watch the São Paulo film](https://wimup.com/watch/sao-paulo.md) ### 7. Gualeguaychú, Argentina Entre Ríos · Argentina A summer-long show rather than a street party: rival comparsas parade feathers, floats and drums in the Corsódromo on Saturday nights from January. Buy a seat ahead and stay for the river beaches by day. - **Best for:** Comparsa parade - **Where:** Corsódromo - **Runs:** Saturdays, Jan–Feb Links: [Argentina guide](https://wimup.com/country/argentina.md) ### 8. Cajamarca, Peru Northern Andes · Peru Peru's most joyful carnival, and no one stays dry: water, paint and coplas fill the streets around the arrival of Ño Carnavalón. The next day the barrio patrullas compete in costume; wear clothes you can lose. - **Best for:** Water and paint - **Where:** Streets · barrios - **Runs:** Sat–Tue before Lent Links: [Peru guide](https://wimup.com/country/peru.md) ### 9. Encarnación, Paraguay Itapúa · Paraguay Paraguay's carnival capital, with comparsas parading feathers and samba down a sambódromo by the Paraná. It runs on Saturday nights through January and February, and crowds cross the bridge from Posadas, in Argentina, to watch. - **Best for:** Samba parade - **Where:** Sambódromo · Costanera - **Runs:** Saturdays, Jan–Feb Links: [Paraguay guide](https://wimup.com/country/paraguay.md) ### 10. Florianópolis, Brazil Santa Catarina · Brazil The beach carnival: samba schools parade on the Passarela Nego Quirido, and the long-running Pop Gay costume contest fills the centre. By day the blocos move to the island's beaches, which makes it the easiest week of the ten. - **Best for:** Beach blocos - **Where:** Nego Quirido · centre - **Runs:** Sat–Tue before Lent Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/florianopolis.md) ## FAQs ### When is carnival in South America in 2027? The pre-Lent carnivals end on Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday, which falls on 10 February in 2027. That puts the main days from 6 to 9 February. Gualeguaychú and Encarnación parade on Saturdays through January and February. ### Can visitors take part, or only watch? In most of these, yes. In Rio you buy a costume from a samba school and parade in it, and in Salvador an abadá puts you inside a bloco. Olinda, São Paulo and Cajamarca need nothing but the street. ### Which of these carnivals are UNESCO-listed? Oruro was proclaimed a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2001 and Barranquilla in 2003. Frevo, the music of Olinda's carnival, was inscribed in 2012. ### How far ahead should I book? Six months or more for Rio and Salvador, where carnival week prices climb and many hotels sell only multi-night packages. Samba school costumes, abadás and grandstand seats in Oruro and Barranquilla sell out months ahead too. ### Is carnival safe for visitors? The big carnivals draw crowds in the hundreds of thousands, and pickpocketing is the common risk. Carry a copy of your passport, a little cash and a cheap phone, keep to the official circuits, and agree a meeting point with your group. ## Sources - Rankings are Wimup editorial picks. Prices, durations and budgets are editorial estimates, not live quotes; check the official site before you go.