Events and Festivals | Varadero, Cuba

Special Events & Festivals

Varadero Carnival – Once a year (dates varies)
This festive event was first held in the 1980’s until the early 1990’s, and then after a gap of several years the Carnival returns to Varadero in 2007. This festival celebrates the purest Cuban essence and includes lots of activities, music, dancing and parades.

Cuba Golf Grand Tournament - April or October
This elite tournament organised by the Grupo Empresarial Extrahotelero Palmares S.A. is held at the Varadero Golf Club each year. The event brings together professional and amateur golfers to compete for two prizes per category and a prize for the best gross result on this fabulous 18-hole par 72 golf course. Players must be over 18 years of age, with certified handicap of 24 or under for gentlemen, and 30 or under for ladies.

Melia Cuba Golf Cup - Third week of October
The Cup is held at the Varadero Golf Club. The Meliá Las Américas hotel has been hosting the event since it was first held. The tournament is played in stroke-play format for the first Gentlemen's and Ladies' categories, and in Stableford format for the second categories. Players must be over 18 years of age, with a handicap of 26 or below for men and 36 or below for women.

Los Cactus Varadero Golf Tournament (formerly SuperClubs Breezes Golf Tournament) - Late October
Hotel Los Cactus (formerly SuperClub Breezes Varadero) is hosting the event. All participants staying in this resort have the opportunity to enjoy a week of activities and the two-day tournament that takes place at the spectacular Varadero Golf Club.

Tourism Convention FIT-Cuba (Fiera Internacional de Turismo) – In May
This is the largest trade show for the tourism industry in Cuba; it takes place at the Plaza America Convention Center. This convention is not being held in Varadero every year, it's in Havana every other year, and sometimes in other Cuban tourist poles (Holguin, Cayo Santa Maria, Cayo Coco).

Varadero World Music Festival - In June
Musicians from all over the world come to Varadero to join the local talent and perform concerts and open-air shows in more than 10 places in Varadero. All kinds of music are played, modern and traditional.

National Rock Atenas Festival - first half of June
It's the biggest rock music event in Cuba, with live performances, audiovisual projections, tattoos, etc. This festival is attended by the best professional bands in the country and some amateur musicians. But, as far as we know, it seems that this festival is not held every year.

Varadero Gourmet Festival - usually between April and June
The main goal of this international culinary event is to promote the advancement of gastronomy and oenology in Cuba. Visitors can sample international and Cuban cuisine from famous chefs. Venue: Convention Center Plaza America, every year.

Varadero Jam Session (Festival de Jazz) – September
First held in 2007 under the direction of jazz maestro and Grammy winner Chucho Valdes, this event features local and foreign jazz musicians in a spectacular festival of improvisation.

National Holidays:
Liberation Day: January 1
Victory of Armed Forces: January 2
Labor Day: May 1
Independence Day: May 20
Days of Rebelliousness: July 25 to 27
Revolution Day: July 26
Anniversary of the beginning of the 1868 War of Independence: October 10
Christmas Day: December 25

Other important dates:
Birth of Jose Marti: January 28
Anniversary of the beginning of the 1895 War of Independence: February 24
International Women’s Day: March 8
Anniversary of the Bay of Pigs victory: April 19
Day of the Martyrs of the Revolution: July 30
Anniversary of the death of Che Guevara: October 8
Anniversary of the death of Camilio Cienfuegos: October 28
Anniversary of the death of Antonio Maceo: December 7