A Guide to Planning SXM Carnival 2025
Self-proclaimed as ‘The biggest and best Carnival in the North Eastern Caribbean,’ SXM Carnival is a three-week celebration of international concerts, calypso competitions, steel pan, reggae bands, colorful costumes, pageantry, cultural festivals, and more in the center of the Jocelyn Arndell festival village aka the “Carnival Village”.
The cultural event ends with two days of colorful parades as Carnival troupes fill the streets of the capital, Philipsburg, jumping and dancing to various music across the Caribbean region.
If you want to visit The Friendly Island of the Caribbean, here’s a complete guide to planning a trip for SXM Carnival, including where to stay, Carnival Troupes, and things to do during SXM Carnival.
About Sint Maarten Carnival Day
The island of Sint Maarten – Saint Martin is shared by the Kingdom of the Netherlands and France, and every year, it celebrates two Carnivals. The first is on the French side in February/March before Lent, and the second is on the Dutch side in April.
The Sint Maarten Carnival experience has become the island’s biggest event of the year as it showcases the vibrant culture, delicious food, calypso music, and creativity of the people of Sint Maarten.
St. Maarten’s first celebration of carnival was held in 1969 on November 11th for St. Maarten’s Day as an initiative by the Oranje Committee to celebrate various holidays on the island. This was modeled after the popular carnival in St. Thomas, USVI.
When the French side of the island started to host its own St. Martin Day, committee members moved SXM Carnival to the end of April, a public holiday closer to the Queen’s birthday on April 30th and after St. Thomas Carnival.
This event expanded to the multi-day festival as we know it today. While Trinidad Carnival, the “The Mother of Carnivals,” is the largest Caribbean Carnival in the region, St. Maarten Carnival has the longest carnival season.
When is St Maarten Carnival 2025
St. Maarten’s Carnival season will run from April 21 to May 5, 2025, under the theme “Come, Experience Life, with pre-Carnival events beginning on March 14, 2025. The Carnival Grand Parade is scheduled for Tuesday, April 30, and the second-day parade is on Wednesday, May 1.
Traveling to Sint Maarten
If you’re flying to Sint Maarten, the airport code for Princess Juliana International Airport is SXM. As a major hub, several US, Latin American, European, and Caribbean airlines fly directly to Sint Maarten.
Visitors from the neighboring islands of St. Barthélemy (St. Barts), Saba, St. Eustatius, and St. Kitts can travel by ferry from the Dutch side of the island or Anguilla from the French side.
Where to Stay in St Maarten
The island of St. Maarten has quickly become one of my favorites, and there are a variety of hotels, resorts, bed and breakfasts, and guest houses for every budget. Traveling to SXM for Carnival is great because it takes place during what is considered shoulder season in the Caribbean region, and hotel rates are 30-50% less than rates during the high winter season. The weather is also pretty mild, with some chances of rain in between.
The best areas to stay are in the capital, Phillipsburg, where the Carnival Village is located, and Simpson Bay, which hosts a lot of nightlife. My recommendations for Simpson Bay are Simpson Bay Resort and Marina or Hilton Vacation Club Royal Palm St. Maarten.
@msjoannae #stmaarten #sxmcarnivalweekend #resortreview #travelvlog #roomtour #travel #caribbeantiktok #blacktravelblogger #blacktravel #joannaetravels #simpsonbay #tiktoktravel #bdaytrip ♬ love nwantinti (ah ah ah) – CKay
St Maarten Carnival 2025 Schedule
A unique thing about SXM Carnival is everything is centered around the Carnival Village on Pond Island. The Carnival Village is one of the first purposely built carnival venues in the Caribbean region and has 80 vendor shops to sell clothing, arts and crafts, food, and drinks. All these shops face the main stage where local and international artists perform.
The St. Maarten Carnival Development Foundation (SCDF) has released the official carnival schedule for SXM Carnival 2024.
Some events featured are the Causeway Jump-Up, Opening Jump-Up, Jouvert Morning Jump-Up, and the Closing Jump-Up. The Junior and Grand Carnival Parades will be combined over two days, April 30 and May 1. SCDF will also have a St. Maarten Carnival Caribbean Queen Pageant.
Here is the SXM Carnival 2025 schedule:
- Friday, March 14 – REPUBLIC BANK CARNIVAL KICK-OFF EVENT
- Saturday, March 15 – CAUSEWAY JUMP-UP
- Saturday, March 22 – NAGICO SENIOR CALYPSO ELIMINATIONS
- Saturday, March 29 – HOT WAVES RTC: FAMILY FUN DAY
- Friday, April 4 – 721 ENTERTAINMENT FLASHBACK JAM
- Saturday, April 5 – SIK ENTERTAINMENT ROAD TO CARNIVAL (RTC) BASH
- Saturday, April 5 – CALYPSY BARBARA JUNIOR CALYPSO SND ROADMARCH COMPETITION
- Sunday, April 6 – SENIOR QUEEN PAGEANT SPEECH AND CULTURAL WEAR COMPETITION
- Saturday, April 12 – DA BIG BAD XP BACKYARD SESSION III (RTC EVENT)
- Sunday, April 13 – JUNIOR & SENIOR CARNIVAL QUEEN PAGEANT
- Monday, April 21 – OPENING OF CARNIVAL/OPENING JUMP UP
- Tuesday, April 22 – NAGICO SENIOR CALYPSO FINALS / VILLAGE JUMP UP
- Wednesday, April 23 – VILLAGE CHILL NIGHT / VILLAGE COCK UP SPECIALTY DRINK COMPETITION
- Thursday, April 24 – BAND CLASH COMPETITION
- Friday, April 25 – STINK & DUTTY INTERNATIONAL CONCERT
- Saturday, April 26 (4 AM) – JOUVERT MORNING JUMP-UP
- Saturday, April 26 (8 PM) – BROTHERS INTERNATIONAL CONCERT
- Sunday, April 27 – ST. MAARTEN CARNIVAL CARIBBEAN QUEEN PAGEANT
- Monday, April 28 – KONCERT X
- Tuesday, April 29 – NOCHE LATINA INTERNATIONAL LATIN CONCERT
- Wednesday, April 30 – JUNIOR & GRAND CARNIVAL PARADE
- Thursday, May 1 – LABOR DAY SECOND DAY PARADE
- Friday, May 2 – SIK ENTERTAINMENT UV NEON GLOW FETE
- Saturday, May 3 – CARIBBEAN FLAG FEST
- Sunday, May 4 – BACCHANAL SUNDAY
- Sunday, May 5 – CLOSING CARNIVAL / BURNING OF KING MOMO
SXM Carnival Troupes
To participate in the Grand Parade, you must be part of a Carnival Troupe or band. Most Carnival troupes have band launches 4-6 months before the carnival, and potential masqueraders can view and purchase their costumes online.
For SXM Carnival, Carnival band troupes are independent organizations and do not fall under the Carnival foundation.
Most have Facebook or Instagram pages, and when their band launches, the St. Maarten Carnival Development Foundation shares it on their Facebook and Instagram pages. Here is a list of some bands to choose from:
Things to do in SXM
Outside the Carnival, there are many things to do in St. Maarten. This year I planned a group trip to St. Maarten – St. Martin for my birthday, and we did a combination of beach time, adventure tours, and carnival-centered activities and had a great time.
Here are some places to visit in SXM that you can include before or after the carnival:
- Zip lining on The Flying Dutchman – the steepest zip line in the world
- ATV Tour around the entire island
- Watch the takeoff and landing of planes from Maho Beach
- Catamaran Day Sail
- Day Trip to Pinel Island
- Enjoy live entertainment at Nowhere Special or The Red Piano
Read More Carnival planning guides and reviews:
Ritual, Revelry, Release: Tobago Carnival 2022 Review
Best Hairstyles for Playing Mas
Carnival Prep: Tips for Getting Ready for Carnival
Can you buy daily tickets at the gate? We will be in St. Maarten for a week but don’t know which day we can go? Do you know how much the tickets are? Do they accept US dollars. Thank you for the article 🙂
Hi Danyel,
Yes you can purchase tickets the day of. I’m not sure about the current price, but when we went in 2022, they were $50 each for the Night of the hitmakers concert and they accepted US dollars.
Hi Joanne am coming there for carnival which resort is closet to where the carnival going to be please let me know
Hi Orette, The closest resort to the carnival village is Divi Little Bay Beach Resort. If you’re driving, it isn’t too long of a drive from Simpson Bay which has a lot of restaurants and night life.
I will be there the last week of carnival. How can I purchase tickets for the daily events?
Hi Jessica, I purchased tickets at the carnival village. You can buy season passes by sending an email to [email protected]
Hi Joanne! Do you know what time the parade on 2 May normally is? We are visiting the Island that day only and would love the opportunity to see the parade. I appreciate your help!
Hi Amy. I’m not 100% sure since I didn’t play mas, but we went on an excursion around noon and the parade was coming down the road
Thank you for this post. I recently decided to go next year to carnival and this was very helpful for me to start.
You’re welcome!