St Martin Carnaval brings visitors to this Caribbean island every year to enjoy the most exotic festival of its kind in the Caribbean. Both St Martin and St Maarten participate in this two-week long carnival offering not only a wonderful way to join in the fun with the locals but also a wonderful way to experience a carnival atmosphere.

The St Maarten Carnival along with the similar St Martin festival offer magical sounds of drums, calypso beats, glitter, unique feathered costumes, delectable foods, drinks, and the fun of watching all those around having a blast.

You may think that you will not be able to attend both the St Martin Carnaval and the St Maarten Carnival, but you are mistaken. Even though both sides of this Caribbean island celebrate the festival, they do so at different times. This way you can make plans for a month-long vacation to enjoy both carnivals and take home the wonderful memories from both the French side as well as the Dutch.

The French side celebrates the carnival during Lent while the Dutch side celebrates for a full seventeen days in April. Large elaborate parades with a large variety of local and international bands are called jump ups since anyone that wishes to join can simply jump up and do so. You can expect some of the same festivities at both festivals.

The locals prepare many months in advance for the Carnival in St Maarten and the St Martin festival by creating the beautiful costumes and writing songs and music specifically for the occasion.

The calypso performers have a contest each year for the title of Calypso King or Queen. Of course, this is an awesome time to listen and see some of the best calypso music in the area and from around the world. Carnival Village may be your cup of tea, which is built just in time for St Maartin Carnaval right outside Philipsburg.

At the beginning of the carnival in St Maarten, you can experience the start of the festival, which of course begins at Carnival Village. While you are getting ready for all the fun or when you feel too weak to keep up the pace, you will be able to enjoy the treats found at over 100 booths offering a delectable array of local cuisine, such as Johnny Cakes and a delightful drink known as sea moss.

The parades may be one of the most colorful things you will see with floats, unique colorful costumes, and of course calypso music to keep you moving to the beat. There are large varieties of parades throughout the entire St Martin festival to keep you in awe. In between the parades, you can join the locals by dancing in the street. At the end of the St Martin Carnaval, you will experience the burning of King Momo, which is a straw figure that presides over the carnival. This marks the end of the long carnival in St Maarten.

The best news of all is that the carnivals occur during what is known as the low season, so you can find affordable airfare and cheap accommodations.