| Trinidad & Tobago is rich in culture and diversity in terms of the many festivals and holidays that occur thoughout the year, below is a list of the more common festivals/holidays in T&T with a brief description. | |
| Festivals | Brief Description |
| Boxing Day | Boxing Day was a holiday on which servants, apprentices and the poor were presented with gifts. |
| Carnival | One of the best known worldwide street festival. It is a street party that happens over a 2 day course before the Christian period of Lent. Carnival is a celebration of calypso/soca music performed by brass bands, calypsonians and djs, along with colorful mas costumes, and the sweet sound of pan. (steelband music). |
| Christmas | Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ that is observed on December 25. |
| Corpus Christi | The Feast of the Body of Christ celebrated mainly by the Roman Catholics. Corpus Christi is a special Feast Day that is celebrated on the Thursday after Trinity Sunday, in commemoration of the institution of the Holy Eucharist. |
| Divali (Deepawali, Deepavali or Diwali) | Festival of Light celebrated by Hindus. The Festival signifies the triumph of light over darkness, good over evil, justice over injustice and intelligence over ignorance. The goddess worshipped at Divali is Mother Lakshmi or Lakshmi Mata. Lakshmi Mata is the goddess of light, wealth and beauty and is also associated with prosperity, luck, riches, abundance, financial well being, and generosity. for more information on Divali check the links below Divali site #1 Divali site #2 Divali site #3 |
| Emancipation Day | Emanciaption Day celebrates the abolition of slavery with a public holiday annually on August 1st. The emancipation of African slaves took place in 1834. for more infromation on T&T Emancipation Day, check out the link below: T&T Emancipation Day |
| Easter | Easter is a spring festival that celebrates the central event of the Christian faith: the resurrection of Christ three days after his death by crucifixion. |
| Eid-ul-Fitr | Eid is the holiday that follows the holy fasting month of Ramadan, celebrated by Muslims. The Islamic year is based upon a 13-month lunar calendar. Ramadan starts on the first day of the tenth month, Shawwal, heralded by the sighting of the New Moon. Prayers are said five times a day, and it is a strict period of fasting where dedicated Muslims do not allow themselves food or water during this sacred time, which lasts for about 28 to 30 days or until the new Moon is once again seen. Eid is marked by visits to local mosques, offerings of charity to the less fortunate and of course the gathering of friends and family. for more infomation on Eid-ul-Fitr, check out the link below: Eid-ul-Fitr |
| Hosay Festival | Hosay is an Islamic festival observed by Shi'a Muslims Hosay is the commemoration of the martyrdom of the Prophet Mohammed's grandsons Hassan and Hussein at the Battle of Kerbala in Persia. Hosay runs for four days either in April, May or June in accordance with the Islamic lunar calendar. for more infomation on Hosay Festival, check out the link below: Hosay Festival |
| Independence Day | Celebrating anniversary of Trinidad & Tobago's independence from Great Britain. for more infomation on T&T Independence, check out the link below: T&T Independence |
| Indian Arrival Day | Indian Arrival Day, celebrated on 30th May, commemorates the arrival of the first Indian Indentured labourers from India to Trinidad, in May 1845. for more infromation on T&T Indian Arrival Day, check out the link below: T&T Indian Arrival Day |
| Phagwa or Holi Festival | Phagwa is Hindu a festival celebrated on the day of Vasant Panchami, which marks the first day of spring. The first day of spring is also Saraswati Jayanti, the birth of the Hindu goddess, Mother Saraswati-the bestower of knowledge and the divine patron of the creative arts. |
| Republic Day | Parade and festivities celebrating the anniversary of Trinidad & Tobago's declaration of republic status. for more infromation on T&T Republic Day, check out the link below: T&T Republic Day |
| St Peter’s Day | A fishermen’s festival celebrated on beaches from coast to coast throughout Trinidad & Tobago. |
| Santa Rosa Festival | Santa Rosa Festival celebrates the cross-cultural relationship between the Amerindians and the Roman Catholic Church. The festival is held in honour of the remaining Caribs on the islands. |
| Spiritual Baptist/Shouter Liberation Day | The holiday commemorates the repeal on March 30, 1951 of the 1917 Shouter Prohibition Ordinance that prohibited the activities of the Shouter or Spiritual Baptist faith. for more infromation on Spiritual Baptist/Shouter Liberation Day, check out the link below: Spiritual Baptist/Shouter Liberation Day |
| Tobago Heritage Festival | Villagers from different Tobago communities dress up in traditional costumes that depict village life from the early 1900's in which they comes out in their glory to perform folk singing, dancing and feasting. for more infromation on Tobago Heritage Festival, check out the link below: Tobago Heritage Festival |
| We Beat Festival | WeBeat is a festival which celebrated the rich diversity of cultures (music, dance, skits etc..) and at the same time commemorates the incorporation of the St. James into the City of Port of Spain. |