Carnival Home

ABOUT CARNIVAL

Home ABOUT CARNIVAL

Edinburgh Festival Carnival is Edinburgh's largest multicultural celebration. Taking place every year on the first Sunday of the Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival, Edinburgh Festival Carnival transforms Edinburgh’s West Princes Street Gardens into a kaleidoscope of colour, sound, and movement. Our carnival brings together local and international artists for an awe-inspiring display of costumes, dance, music - the perfect FREE day out for all ages. Every year, carnival teams work with communities across Edinburgh, encourages those who have little or no access to the arts the chance to learn a new skill and join in the carnival atmosphere.

Edinburgh Festival Carnival is produced by Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival, with a dedicated Carnival team headed up by Giles Agis, Carnival & Communities Manager. This year's Edinburgh Festival Carnival takes place on Sunday 14 July - look out for more information coming soon! 

In 2023, over 800 performers took to Edinburgh’s City centre with a celebration of music, dance, costumes, puppets, circus and acrobatics. Check out some of the highlights programme below and keep your eyes on the website for updates on the 2024 Carnival. 

Edinburgh Festival Carnival 2023

Experience the 2023 Edinburgh Festival Carnival and go behind the scenes with the team who made it happen! 

Edinburgh Festival Carnival Parade

2023 EFC

Over 800 performers took to Edinburgh’s City centre with a celebration of music, dance, costumes, puppets, circus and acrobatics. This year’s parade included:

Pulse of The Place (Edinburgh), Goodtrees Neighbourhood Centre (Edinburgh), KalentuRa drums (The Netherlands), Wester Hailes Carnival Group (Edinburgh), Valley Neighbourhood Youth (Edinburgh), Nepal Community (Edinburgh), TESS School of Samba (Edinburgh), Burnt Island and District Pipe Band (Fife), Phelan School of Dance (Edinburgh), ‘ZarifAtToul-AsSamer’ Palestinian Dabke Troupe (Edinburgh), Bombrando (Portugal), Edinburgh Arts Collective, Edinburgh Chinese Community, Edinburgh Indian Community, Brazil Drum Groups, Latin American Community Association of Edinburgh and Ihayami Dance Company (Edinburgh).

 

EFC 23

The festivities continued with performances at Ross Bandstand and throughout Princes Street Gardens. At 2.40pm, we kicked off the entertainment with dancers and dragons from the Edinburgh Chinese Community, followed by our Samba Xplosion and a set of music from Latina Turners. Hosted by actor, writer and comedian, Sanjay Largo, our Ross Bandstand programme culminated in 'Windrush 75' - a celebration of Caribbean music.

There were also three zones featuring performances from drummers, dancers and Chinese artists located throughout the gardens. 

Carribean Music Festival: Windrush 75

Windrush

We closed our Carnival celebration with a very special project created in partnership with The Caribbean Music Festival. Taking place at the Ross Bandstand, 'Windrush 75’ was a musical showcase that celebrated, recognised, and honoured the contributions of the Windrush generation and their descendants. From Ska to Reggae, Calypso to Soca, artists recreated the songs from generations of Caribbean and Black British artists, highlighting the rich cultural heritage and contributions of the Windrush generation to UK culture, whilst celebrating of the creativity and resilience of the human spirit in the face of adversity.

July Events

We had two other events taking place in the lead up to Carnival:

Goodtrees Mini Carnival, Friday 7 July 2023, 11:30am-3pm | Goodtrees Neighbourhood Centre

Wester Hailes Community Carnival, Saturday 8 July 2023, 2-5pm | The Community Wellbeing Space, Wester Hailes