Caribana Toronto

TORONTO CARIBANA PARADE 2011

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EventDetails

Toronto Caribana Parade @ Exhibition Place & Lakeshore Boulevard

The Caribana parties and events are great but the main attraction of the Caribana Festival is the 2011 Scotiabank Caribana Parade (North America's largest Caribbean Parade). With over a million people set to attend, this year's Toronto Caribana Parade will start off inside Exhibition Place as the competing Masquerade Bands (also known as Mas Bands) will fill the stadium with live Soca, Calypso and Steeplan music! The elaborate costumes, props and lively dancers bring everything to life and add to this incredible experience that happens only once a year.

You can of course catch the Parade free of charge by lining up along the Lakeshore Parade route. However, if you want a comfortable seat within Exhibition Place (200 Princes' Blvd.) where you can catch the whole performance up close, tickets are affordable ($20 before tax) and considering the parade's length (approx 4-6 hours), it is definitely worth it.

The Caribbean calypso beat has been a staple at the Toronto Caribana Parade since the festival's debut in 1967. Soca is newer to the scene, popping up about 15 years ago. For those not familiar with this sexier cousin of Calypso, its sound is faster and lyrically can be sexually charged or just plain comedic, depending on the song. Steelpans will be all over the parade route and Toronto's Caribana attracts some of North America's most skilful players.

Don't forget to catch the King & Queen Show on Thursday July 28th at Lamport Stadium to get a glimpse of some of the most elaborate costumes and dynamic performances that will highlight the Official 2011 Caribana Parade.

The Toronto Caribana Parade 2011 kicks off Saturday July 30th starting at 10am and ends at 6pm (just enough time to get ready for one of Saturday's many Caribana nightlife celebrations). The Parade route begins at Exhibition Place, travelling down Lakeshore Blvd West and ends at Lakeshore and Parkside Drive (approximately 4.5 kilometres).

Purchase Tickets

  • Contact

    416-391-5608

  • Address

    Exhibition Place & Lakeshore Boulevard , 15 Saskatchewan Road, Toronto, ON

  • Event Type

    Special Event, Caribana

  • Dates

    Saturday July 30th, 2011

  • Hours

    10am-6pm

  • Crowd

    Family Event

  • Dress Code

    None

  • Music

    Soca, Calypso, Live Music

  • Price

    Free

  • Notes

    $20-$25 to enter the exhibition place. However, most of the parade is held on Lakeshore Boulevard which is FREE!

EventComments

  • BEZ said on Feb. 2, 2012:

    I m 27. Black young fly and flashy...lol Last year was the first year i went to caribana... the weekend is nice be ware of police.. if your into smoking and drinking. If you like hot women and soca and reggae this is the spot to be...I m jamaican N me cant par wi deh soca too much.. but its all apart of the culture.. women will come to you in the middle of street and show off their dancing skills...wine wine wine... ill be back..love toronto..PS I did not pay for anything that dealt with the parade except beer tent ... BEZ

  • DOnt B MAd said on Aug. 2, 2011:

    I HAd the time of my life i was hotTTT and of course its not for kids...wut carnival is???? plz ppl dnt b mad

  • eDDY said on Aug. 2, 2011:

    The parade was a big fail i dont know but it was missing something espacially when they tell yout hat you have to pay 15 or 50 dollars...and at the end their was gunshots...sorry but never again i think that scotiabank invested their money in the wrong way in the parade...

  • tanya said on Jul. 31, 2011:

    gonna save my 120.00 next year wasted time could not take pictures without the 7 foot plus bars up forget it Scotia Bank save u moey next year waste of time and money did not enjoy myself stayed 3 hrs

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