What's on in Caracas, Venezuela through the year

Busy — Winter baseball season, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Winter baseball season (12 Oct – 31 Jan (usually)), Dry months on the Ávila (15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually))

Busy — Carnaval, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Holiday

  Carnaval

  16–17 FebCarnivalClosures

  Monday and Tuesday are national holidays and Caracas empties towards the coast and the interior. Traffic disappears, which is the one week of the year the city is genuinely easy to cross, and half of it is shut. Source ↗

Still on: Dry months on the Ávila (15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually))

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

• Festival

  Palmeros de Chacao

  27–29 MarEaster & Holy Week

  A group climbs into the cloud forest on the Ávila days before Palm Sunday, cuts palm and carries it back down into Chacao in procession. The tradition is more than two centuries old and the descent draws a crowd. Source ↗

Still on: Carnaval (16–17 Feb), Dry months on the Ávila (15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually))

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: Palmeros de Chacao (27–29 Mar), Dry months on the Ávila (15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually))

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

• Festival

  Diablos Danzantes de Yare

  4 JunReligious feastCrowded

  Masked dancers in red walk backwards before the sacrament at San Francisco de Yare, an hour and a half south of the city, on Corpus Christi Thursday. It is on the UNESCO list and the village is packed for it. Source ↗

Busy — Diablos Danzantes de Yare, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in June.

Still on: Diablos Danzantes de Yare (4 Jun)

Peak crowds — Independence Day parade, School holidays at the coast

• Holiday

  Independence Day parade

  5 JulNational holidayClosuresCrowded

  The national holiday brings a large civic-military parade along the Paseo Los Proceres by Fuerte Tiuna; roads in the south of the city close for the day and the rehearsals before it. Source ↗

• Holiday

  School holidays at the coast

  15 Jul – 15 Sep · usuallyCrowded

  School and university holidays run from July to mid-September, and weekend traffic pours over the mountain to the La Guaira beaches. Coastal lodging prices peak while the city itself is calmer. Source ↗

• Festival

  Founding of Caracas

  24–25 JulMajor festivalCrowded

  Bolivar's birthday on 24 July runs into the city's founding day on 25 July, when the mayor's office puts on concerts, food fairs and exhibitions around the historic centre and the National Pantheon. Source ↗

Busy — School holidays at the coast

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: School holidays at the coast (15 Jul – 15 Sep (usually))

Busy — School holidays at the coast, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: School holidays at the coast (15 Jul – 15 Sep (usually))

Busy — Winter baseball season

• Festival

  Winter baseball season

  12 Oct – 31 Jan · usuallySporting eventCrowded

  The Venezuelan league opens in mid-October and runs to the January finals. Leones del Caracas now play at the Estadio Monumental in La Rinconada, and games against Magallanes are the ones that sell out. Source ↗

Busy — Winter baseball season

Nothing new starts in November.

Still on: Winter baseball season (12 Oct – 31 Jan (usually))

Busy — Winter baseball season, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

• Season

  Dry months on the Ávila

  15 Dec – 15 Apr · usuallyDry season

  The mountain wall on the city's north side is walkable and mostly cloud-free in these months, and the trails up from Altamira and Cotiza fill with runners from first light. By May the cloud is back on the ridge.

Still on: Winter baseball season (12 Oct – 31 Jan (usually))