ANGUILLA’S SUMMER FESTIVAL ROCKS THE ISLAND IN JULY AND AUGUST
Celebrate Summer in Anguila with Beaches, Boats and Bacchanal
The Valley: July 2023: The biggest party of the year, Anguilla Summer Festival rocks the island from July 23 – Aug. 13. Packed with street parades, soca and calypso live music shows, the Festival invites with boat races and beach pop-ups dishing up local food and drinks. www.ivisitanguilla.
The festival’s roots are found in traditional August Monday fairs and bazaars. One of the most significant days is the first Monday of August, closely associated to August 1, 1838, the day when enslaved Africans in British colonies were freed of chattel slavery after centuries of enslavement. Anguilla started its formal August Monday celebration in 1940. Since then, the island’s national sport of boat racing, born out of the Anguillians’ natural love for the sea, has been merged with other cultural aspects of carnival.
July 2023 Pageants, Competitions, Food Festival and first Boat Racing
The Anguilla Summer Festival gets going in late July with pageants celebrating local talent and beauty including the Miss Anguilla Swimsuit Competition, Talented Teen Competition and Prince & Princess Competition. The Home Grown Street Poker & Food Festival on 22 July is a party starter, and the Boat Racing gets underway with the Pioneers Weekend and Peter Perkins Boat Race on July 29 & 30.
Thursday, August 3 Opening Night & The Street Parade
The official opening night of the Anguilla Summer Festival will heat up the streets with a spectacular Light The Street Parade. The energy for 2023 will be electric as the brightly lit floats, event participants wearing glowing jewellery and carrying neon torches and colourful music events light up the night sky.
Sat. Aug. 5 South Valley Community Street Festival
The South Valley Community Street Festival is a celebration of entertainment, art and culture, which keeps the community spirit alive! Patrons will discover a showcase of live music, DJ sets, local arts and crafts, and cultural food and drink.
Mon. Aug. 7 August Monday J’ouvert
This day’s events are a highlight of the Anguilla Summer Festival as the combination of a street jam and beach party equals 24 hours of party time, attracting thousands of revellers to the island. J’ouvert, a street parade which begins in The Valley and ends in Sandy Ground, capitalizes on the talents of local musicians and artists who compete for the title of ‘Road March Champion’.
Thurs. Aug. 10 Eyes Wide Shut
The crowd will be hyped by performances from the biggest soca music stars in the world including Nadia Batson, Patrice Roberts, Ricardo Drue, Terri Lyons, Barrie Hype, DJ Avalanche, Grand Masters & many more.
Fri. Aug. 11 Grand Parade Of Troupes
The troupes are formed from different villages and a panel of judges rate the troupes to find a winner.
Sat. Aug. 12 Anguilla Poker Run & Leeward Islands Calypso Competition
e Leeward Island Calypso Competition is held at the Landsome Bowl. Calypso and this final event, which brings together calypso kings and queens from the Leeward Islands is a must-see.
Sun. Aug. 13 Champ Of Champs Boat Race
The vlast day of Carnival is when the Champion of Champions boat race is held. The winner from each race during carnival week will compete in the final boat race of the year.
How to get to Anguilla
Anguilla (AXA) is accessible from the USA via JetBlue Airways, Delta Airlines, United Airlines, Spirit, Frontier and American Airlines, on services to Sint Maarten (SXM), followed by a short boat transfer or flight. American Airlines also operates a service from Miami International Airport (MIA) directly into Anguilla, with connections to a number of gateways on the West Coast and in the Midwest, Southeast and Southwest. American, Delta and JetBlue also have code share agreements with Silver Airways for direct service to Anguilla via San Juan (SJU).
