The 2019 Guide to San Francisco's Carnaval
The Mission District will sizzle with the sights and sounds of samba, salsa and more for Carnaval's festival and grand parade on Memorial Day weekend, May 25-26, 2019.
Highlights
The Carnaval San Francisco Festival will be held on Sat. and Sun., May 25-26, 2019. The festivities center on Harrison Street in the Mission District between 16th and 24th Streets.
The Grand Parade on Sun., May 26, begins at 9:30 a.m. Spectators return year after year to see the floats depicting multicultural themes. Brazilian-style escola samba schools with as many as 300 performers dance through the streets in lavish, feathered headdresses and swirling Bahia skirts, while Caribbean contingents perform the music and dance of the Bahamas, Cuba, Jamaica, Puerto Rico and Trinidad. Other groups in the parade include Mexican Aztec performers, traditional African drummers, Polynesian dancers, Japanese drummers, giant puppets and folkloric groups representing Guatemala, Honduras and Bolivia.