What's on in Cap-Haïtien, Haiti through the year

Busy — Independence Day and soup joumou, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Holiday

  Independence Day and soup joumou

  1–2 JanNational holidayClosures

  Every household cooks and gives away the pumpkin soup the enslaved were forbidden, on the anniversary of the day that ended. Shops shut and the day is spent in kitchens and at neighbours' tables rather than out. Source ↗

Peak crowds — Kanaval, Rara season

• Festival

  Kanaval

  5–25 Feb · usuallyCarnivalCrowded

  The three days before Ash Wednesday are the biggest street event in the north, with bann a pye walking bands and floats along the boulevard. The national carnival rotates between cities and has been called off outright in bad years. Source ↗

• Festival

  Rara season

  10 Feb – 25 Apr · usuallyEaster & Holy WeekCrowded

  From the first Sunday of Lent until Easter, rara bands walk the streets on Sunday nights with drums and bamboo vaksin horns, growing louder each week toward Holy Week. Many head for the Souvenance vodou gathering near Gonaïves at Easter. Source ↗

Busy — Rara season, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Rara season (10 Feb – 25 Apr (usually))

Busy — Rara season

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: Rara season (10 Feb – 25 Apr (usually))

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in May.

Busy — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

• Hazard

  Hurricane season

  1 Jun – 30 Nov

  The north is more often hit by the rain than the wind — Matthew in 2016 destroyed the southern peninsula and largely spared Cap-Haïtien. Water off the mountains closes the coast road and the plain before a storm arrives. Source ↗

Busy — Saint Jacques pilgrimage, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Saint Jacques pilgrimage

  23–27 JulPilgrimage seasonCrowded

  Thousands walk out to Plaine-du-Nord, half an hour from town, to go into the mud basin for Ogou on Saint James's day, then on to the sea at Limonade. It is a religious event first and a spectacle second, and photography is not always welcome. Source ↗

Still on: Hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Shoulder season — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Quiet — one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in October.

Still on: Hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Quiet — one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in November.

Still on: Hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Busy — Christmas and midnight Mass, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Holiday

  Christmas and midnight Mass

  15–25 DecChristmas & New YearCrowded

  Markets fill with decorations and crafts in the run-up, families living abroad come home, and Christmas Eve centres on midnight Mass with carollers going round the neighbourhoods. Source ↗