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Popular festival · Olinda
The party on the cobbled hills of Olinda’s historic center, a World Heritage site: blocks and troças without a trio elétrico, frevo orchestras on foot and giant puppets, led by the Homem da Meia-Noite.
In the photo: Olinda
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
Click a photo to enlarge it.
Olinda Carnival — Olinda
From Saturday to Carnival Tuesday, beginning with the departure of the Homem da Meia-Noite at midnight between Saturday and Sunday; Carnival falls in February or March, depending on Easter.
February/March
Dates change every year: check this year's date before you travel.
The festival
Olinda, neighboring Recife, holds Carnival in its own historic center, listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage site. The narrow streets that climb and descend among churches, convents and colorful townhouses become the stage for the celebration, with no bleachers and no cordoned-off areas.
Local tradition does away with the trio elétrico. Blocks, troças and clubs parade on foot, pulled along by brass orchestras that play frevo live, and the crowd follows behind, up and down the hills. The groups have their own names, banners and colors, and many depart at fixed times known by residents.
The giant puppets are Olinda’s trademark. Made of papier-mâché and fabric, three to four meters tall, they are carried by a person hidden inside and dance amid the crowd. The most famous is the Homem da Meia-Noite, created in 1932, who leaves his headquarters at midnight between Saturday and Sunday; he is recognized as a living cultural heritage of Pernambuco. After him come the Mulher do Meio-Dia and other figures.
From Alto da Sé, at the top of the town, you can see the sea and Recife in the distance, and the square becomes a meeting point between one block and another. Those who stay in Olinda wake up with the party at their door; those based in Recife arrive by taxi, ride-hailing app or bus.
The departure of the Homem da Meia-Noite, in the early hours of Sunday. A whole day following the orchestras up and down the hills. The other giant puppets, like the Mulher do Meio-Dia. Alto da Sé, between blocks.
The hills are steep and paved with stone: wear sturdy sneakers and carry very little. The most traditional blocks have known departure times; ask residents and follow the municipal schedule. For the Homem da Meia-Noite’s departure, arrive early. A frevo umbrella and some costume pieces suit the spirit of the celebration.
Tapioca and cuscuz at the square stalls, skewers along the hills and small broths at the bars in the historic center.
Guesthouses and homes in the historic center sell out early, and many require multi-night packages. Book well in advance or stay in Recife. Check the year’s Carnival dates.
In the city
February/March
February/MarchFrom the Thursday before to Ash Wednesday of Carnival week, which falls in February or March according to Easter.
Salvador’s street Carnival, led by trios elétricos and by Afro blocks, across three main circuits: the Barra to Ondina waterfront, the downtown Campo Grande, and the Pelourinho.
February/MarchDuring Carnival week, in February or March, with the official opening at Marco Zero before Sábado de Zé Pereira, when the Galo da Madrugada parades; main programming continues through Tuesday.
The state capital’s street Carnival, to the sound of frevo and maracatu: the Galo da Madrugada in the center on Sábado de Zé Pereira, the official opening at Marco Zero, and poles with stages and processions spread across the neighborhoods.
February/MarchIn February or March, depending on the Carnival calendar, which changes each year with the date of Easter.
The samba school parades at the Sambódromo da Marquês de Sapucaí and the street blocos spread across the city during Carnival days.
Your questions
At midnight between Saturday and Sunday of Carnival, opening the parades of Olinda’s giant puppets.
Not in the historic center. The blocks and troças parade on foot, with frevo orchestras playing live.
Figures of papier-mâché and fabric three to four meters tall, carried by a person hidden inside them. The most famous is the Homem da Meia-Noite, from 1932.
In guesthouses and homes in the historic center to be inside the party, or in Recife, traveling to Olinda by taxi, ride-hailing app or bus. Book well in advance.
Festivals and events in Brazil
FebruaryOn February 2, with the House of Iemanjá opening to receive offerings on the eve, February 1.
Tribute by the fishermen of Rio Vermelho, in Salvador, to Iemanjá, orixá of the salt waters: devotees and visitors bring flowers and gifts, which are placed in baskets on boats and taken out to the open sea late in the afternoon.
February/MarchEvery two years, in even-numbered years, between mid-February and early March, during the grape harvest. · Every two years
The grape harvest and Italian immigration festival in Caxias do Sul, in the Serra Gaúcha, featuring a parade of floats in the city center, grapes served in the park, colonial food and Italo-Gaucho culture.
March/AprilFrom Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday, in March or April depending on Easter’s date; the sawdust carpets are made in the early hours of Holy Saturday for Sunday.
Holy Week celebrations in Ouro Preto’s baroque churches and steep streets, with nighttime processions and, on Easter Sunday, streets covered by colorful sawdust carpets made by residents and visitors.
JanuaryOn January 20, the day of the city’s patron saint, which is a municipal holiday in Rio de Janeiro.
The patron saint’s day in Rio de Janeiro, with masses and the procession that carries the saint’s image from Tijuca to the Metropolitan Cathedral in the downtown area.
JanuaryOn the Thursday before the second Sunday after Epiphany (January 6), which is the Sunday of the Feast of the Lord of Bonfim; therefore it always takes place in January, usually on the second or third Thursday of the month.
A walking procession of several kilometers from Cidade Baixa to the Sacred Hill in Salvador, where baianas dressed in white wash the steps of the Basilica of the Senhor do Bonfim with scented water.
May/JuneOn the days leading up to Pentecost Sunday, 50 days after Easter; therefore it falls in May or June.
Paraty’s most traditional religious festival, with a novena, processions through the historic center, a solemn Mass and a Sunday Pentecost procession.