By Abigail Cattell
There's nowhere in the world quite like the Caribbean
when it comes to parties. Here's our run-down of Caribbean carnivals and festival
fun guaranteed to liven up your usual beach break!
It's seems like the whole island comes out to celebrate Barbados' most popular festival, the famous Crop Over, which runs for three weeks from mid-July to early August. Originally it was a celebration for the end of the sugar growing season and it still kicks off with an opening gala at which the last canes are paraded. Then it's time to join in the fun as you dance along to calypso bands competing at the official Pic-o-de-Crop, dine on delicious Bajan dishes and discover local handicrafts at the Street Market in the middle of Bridgetown. Crop Over culminates in Grand Kadooment Day, a public holiday where costumed bands fill the streets and fireworks light up the evening skies.
Antigua's many sheltered harbours have made it popular with sailors since the time of Lord Horatio Nelson so it's only fitting that Sailing Week continues to be Antigua's biggest sporting event. It's a spectacular sight as more than 200 yachts gather in Falmouth and English Harbours at the start of the myriad races that take place over the week. While the sailors battle it out in a series of fast-paced in-shore, endurance off-shore and round-the-island races, landlubbers are kept amused with endless beach parties and music. If you can't bear not to take part, Ondeck has a select number of individual daily places on crewed Farr 65 yachts which will compete in races.
This is the longest-running jazz festival in the Caribbean and there is a wide variety of al fresco performance venues at which you can enjoy St Lucia's spectacular scenery while toe-tapping to some of the world's biggest R 'n' B, soul and jazz acts. The main stage is on historic Pigeon Island, offering views of both the Caribbean and Atlantic. But keep your eyes fixed on the stage, as in previous years the line-up has included stars such as Dionne Warwick, Wyclef Jean, Al Green, Rihanna and UB40.
Combining the best of reggae, rock and roots, Reggae Sumfest attracts a mix of local and international performers to its open-air stage in picturesque Montego Bay. Over the week there is a series of lively gigs including the beach party to kick things off on Sunday night, at which top DJs perform. International stars jet in for the last two nights to perform alongside the cream of the local talent. Previous artists have included Mary J Blige, Ne-Yo, Akon and Keyshia Cole.
This annual festival sees Tobago come alive in a riot of music, dance, storytelling and feasting as locals celebrate their African and Amerindian roots. Events kick off with an official gala opening in Scarborough at its Cultural Complex, where some of the island's best performers take part in a vibrant show. There's plenty to see over the festival duration with different events taking place in each village. From the Festival of Dance on Patience Hill to the 'Ole Time' wedding in Moriah, a ceremony which highlights how European and African cultures have affected islanders, you'll find it impossible not to get caught up in the excitement. Other highlights include the Heritage Queen Show - a locals' beauty contest - and the dramatic re-enactment of the Belmanna slave uprising in Roxborough.
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Abigail Cattell is a freelance travel journalist who has written for Wanderlust,
The Guardian, ASOS Magazine and TTG Luxury