Carnaval in Ecuador

On 2023 it takes place the long weekend of February 18 - 21.

Carnival marks the passage from winter and darkness to spring, fruits and fertility. It’s the Mardi Gras of Latin America. Carnival in Ecuador is a major national holiday and like none other in Latin America. It celebrates excess and abundance before Catholic Lent introduces sobriety and prudence. Carnival in Ecuador also honors the indigenous Kichwa holiday of Paucar Huatay – the end of the solar year. Friends and families in Quito – in a show of gluttony – throw eggs, flour, water at each other during days leading up to Carnival’s Fat Tuesday. Kids and adults alike spray foam at each other in the streets to “play” Carnival. Yet, it’s the cities and towns outside the capital that have the most memorable Carnival in Ecuador, specially Guaranda and Ambato.

National Cacao Museum

Tourism guides