Caribana Festival - Toronto Caribbean Carnival

This festival of music, dance, food and costumes of Jamaica, Guyana, the Bahamas, Brazil and other cultures of Toronto, was created in 1967, as a tribute to Canada's Centennial Year. It is marking its 40th anniversary in 2007.

The festival has its origin in Trinidad and Tobago carnival. Toronto festival is now an international event showcasing numerous activities like Jamaican reggae, Brazilian Samba and African djemba rhythm.

Caribana or Toronto Caribbean Carnival is North America's largest street festival. This is celebrated every year in Toronto during July and August. Carnival Parade is the major highlight of this festival, comprising of thousands of amazing costumed masqueraders and scores of trucks carrying live soca, calypso, steel pan, reggae and salsa artists.

More than a million people from all over North America attend this festival, marked with month long celebrations. The festival features different cultures of all the Caribbean people, hence the name Caribana.

In addition, one also gets a taste of Caribbean and international cuisine, dramas, story telling, Caribbean art and the best and biggest cemadia calypsonians battle for the crown. This takes place between all kings and queens of bands the night before the caribana Parade Day.

This Parade is the major element of the whole festival which takes place along the 3.6 kilometer route on Lakeshore west Boulevard, featuring stunning display of colors and pageantry in the first week of August. 2007 Caribana Parade is being held on Saturday, August 4.

The festival is very important for the economy of Toronto as well, bringing in more than $100 million in revenue every year.

Whole city of Toronto is jam packed with foreign visitors and dignitaries from all over North America and Caribbean.

It is not only a matter of pleasure bur also that of honor to be a part of this spectacular event at least once in the lifetime of a person.