What is the difference between Summer Festival and Carnival Week boat racing?

Summer Festival is the full month-long celebration: pageants, calypso and soca competitions, street festivals, and parties. Carnival Week (August 2 to 9) is the boat racing portion specifically, organized by the Anguilla Boat Racing Association (ABRA), and is the island's national sport.

Where do the main festival events take place?

Most stage shows, pageants, and music competitions are held at the Landsome Bowl Cultural Center in The Valley. Boat races start mostly from Sandy Ground Beach, and J'ouvert Morning runs through The Valley's streets.

Is the Anguilla Summer Festival free to attend?

Street events, boat races, and J'ouvert are free to watch from public areas. Ticketed stage shows at the Landsome Bowl Cultural Center, such as the pageants and calypso finals, typically require an entry ticket, so check the official festival site for current pricing.

How do I get to Anguilla for the festival?

The public ferry runs year-round between Marigot, St. Martin and Blowing Point, Anguilla, taking about 25 minutes. From Blowing Point it's a short taxi ride to The Valley or Sandy Ground, where most festival events are held.

What is J'ouvert Morning?

J'ouvert is an early-morning street celebration, held this year on August 3, where revelers cover themselves in paint, powder, and mud and dance through The Valley's streets to soca and steel pan music. It's one of the most photographed mornings of the entire festival.

Anguilla Summer Festival 2026

Name: Anguilla Summer Festival 2026
Start: 2026-07-10
End: 2026-08-09
Location: Anguilla

A month of calypso, pageantry, street parties, and the island's national sport of boat racing, running July 10 through August 9, 2026.

View Full Schedule Boat Race Guide

31

Days of Festival

17

Event Days

29

Total Events

7

Boat Races

What Is Anguilla Summer Festival

A Month of Music, Pageantry, and National Pride

Anguilla Summer Festival is the island’s largest annual celebration, running for four weeks from July 10 to August 9, 2026. What began as a small village carnival has grown into a month-long calendar of calypso and soca competitions, beauty pageants, street parties, and the island’s national sport of wooden boat racing, all organized by the Anguilla Festivals Development Commission.

The festival opens gently in mid-July with Village-Rama and the Calypso Semi-Finals, builds through pageants and the WASTED Cooler Festival, and turns up several notches for Opening Night’s fireworks display on July 29. From there, the final ten days, Carnival Week, belong to the boats: six days of sailing races staged mostly off Sandy Ground, interspersed with J’ouvert, beach parties, and the Grand Parade of Troupes.

Whether you’re planning a trip around a single event or the whole run, the schedule below covers every date, time, and venue currently confirmed by the festival organizers and the Anguilla Boat Racing Association (ABRA).

Full Schedule

Every Event, Date, and Time

Filter by category or switch to list view to scan the whole festival at a glance. Tap a day to expand its full lineup.

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Wet Fete
Party
9:00 PM – 5:00 AMLandsome Bowl Cultural Center

South Valley Community Street Festival
Community
6:00 AM – 8:00 PMSouth Valley
Band Clash / Band-O-Rama
Music
8:00 PM – 2:00 AMLandsome Bowl Cultural Center

Liberty Co-op Boat Race & Welcome Party
Boat Race
12:30 PM – 8:00 PMSandy Ground Beach
A Series at 3:00 PM
Prince & Princess Show
Pageant
6:00 PM – 10:00 PMLandsome Bowl Cultural Center

J'ouvert Morning
Parade
6:00 AM – 11:00 AMThe Valley - Sandy Ground
Caribbean Beach Party
Party
10:00 AM – 2:00 AMSandy Ground
Sir Emile Gumbs Boat Race
Boat Race
12:30 PM – UntilSandy Ground
A Series at 3:00 PM

Island Harbour Boat Race
Boat Race
2:00 PM – UntilIsland Harbour
Miss Talented Teen Pageant
Pageant
7:00 PM – 11:00 PMLandsome Bowl Cultural Center

Errol Romney Boat Race
Boat Race
2:00 PM – UntilSandy Ground
Miss Anguilla Pageant: Part II
Pageant
8:00 PM – 11:30 PMLandsome Bowl Cultural Center

Eyes Wide Shut
Party
1:00 AM – 11:00 AMSandy Ground Field
Meads Bay Boat Race & Beach Party
Boat Race
12:30 PM – 11:30 PMMeads Bay
A Series at 3:00 PM
Senior Calypso Monarch
Music
8:00 PM – 11:30 PMLandsome Bowl Cultural Center

Grand Parade of Troupes
Parade
8:00 AM – UntilThe Valley

Poker Run
Special
10:00 AM – UntilSandy Ground
Leeward Islands Calypso Monarch
Music
7:00 PM – UntilLandsome Bowl Cultural Center

AASPA Champ of Champions Boat Race
Boat Race
12:30 PM – UntilSandy Ground
A Series at 2:30 PM
Splash III
Special
TBAThe Valley

Want the full boat racing breakdown?

Read our deep dive on Carnival Week: the daily race schedule with B and A Series start times, the 2026 planned routes by class, and the full A Class and B Class prize purses.

Read the Boat Racing Guide

Getting to the festival by ferry

The public ferry runs year-round between Marigot, St. Martin and Blowing Point, Anguilla, about 25 minutes each way. Check live departures, fares, and terminal tips before you travel.

Read the Ferry Guide

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

The Anguilla Summer Festival runs from July 10 through August 9, 2026. It opens with Village-Rama and calypso competitions in mid-July, builds through the Opening Night fireworks on July 29, and culminates in Carnival Week boat racing from August 2 to 9.