Every November, Cartagena, Colombia celebrates its independence day in the city’s largest annual celebration and one of Colombia’s most fun festivals and carnivals.

The city declared itself an independent city state during the early portions of Colombia’s independence movement. It went on to play a leading role in fighting for independence, earning it the nickname of La Heroica, or the Heroic City.

That legacy has long been celebrated during the annual Cartagena Carnival, better known as the Cartagena November Festival or Cartagena Independence Festival (the Fiestas de independencia or Fiestas de noviembre in Spanish).

The festival is a rocking and rowdy good time, and I loved participating for the decade plus I lived in Cartagena. I have many a fun and funny memory enjoying it!

Read on to learn about the schedule for the 2023 Cartagena Independence Festival so you can enjoy it yourself!

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Cartagena Independence Day Festival 2023 – Contents

• When is the Carnival in Cartagena, Colombia?
• What Does the Cartagena Independence Festival Commemorate?
• What to Expect during the Independence of Cartagena Festival 2023?
• Overview of the Most Important Events during the Cartagena Carnival of 2023
• Independence of Cartagena Festival 2023 Day by Day Schedule

When is the Carnival in Cartagena, Colombia?

The Carnival in Cartagena, Colombia takes place during the time leading up to November 11, the anniversary of Cartagena’s Independence Day.

There are usually a series of smaller celebrations in the weeks leading up to it, then much larger events during the week of November 11 itself, highlighted by a large parade.

The Cartagena Carnival culminates in the naming of Miss Colombia and Miss Independence of Cartagena.

Although often called the Cartagena, Colombia Carnival, it’s not exactly a carnival since it does not take place during the February or March period before Lent. However, under a wider view of a carnival having parades, public entertainment, and chances to cut loose and party in the street, it certainly fits.

You’ll more often hear it referred to as the November Festivities (Fiestas de noviembre) or Cartagena Independence Festival (Fiestas de independencia) by locals and Colombians.

By the way, if you are planning to visit during the Independence Festival of Cartagena 2023, you might want to check out my picks for some places to stay near the main parades. All of my picks for the best Cartagena boutique hotels, the best Cartagena luxury hotels, and the best Cartagena hostels are good options for where to stay during the Cartagena November Carnival too.

What Does the Independence of Cartagena Festival Commemorate?

The Cartagena Independence Festival commemorates Cartagena’s Declaration of Independence on November 11, 1811, and its leading role in the larger independence movement.

Colombia’s independence movement began as a series of local declarations of temporary autonomy from the Spanish government, which had been taken over by Napoleon. Over time, these experiments in self-government led to a desire for a complete and permanent break with Spain.

Cartagena was the first area in present day Colombia to set up a fully independent and functioning state, declaring itself the Free State of Cartagena.

This went a step further than the declaration of Bogotá in 1810 celebrated as Colombian Independence Day, which still pledged loyalty to the deposed Spanish King Fernando VII.

You can read more about the causes of independence here and Cartagena’s Declaration of Independence here.

Cartagena would go on to play a leading role in the wars against royalist and Spanish forces. However, in 1815 it suffered a 105 day siege in which many of its residents starved to death. It would remain in Spanish hands until its liberation in 1821 as part of a fully independent Colombia.

If you’d like to learn more about this era, I highly recommend the book No Limits to the Sway about Cartagena’s Independence era privateers. You can read my review of it here or check it out for yourself here.

What to Expect During the Cartagena Carnival

A rowdy good time of partying in the street to put it short!

You can read more about how to prepare to enjoy the Independence of Cartagena Festival 2023 in my full guide on what to expect during the Cartagena Independence Festival, but I’ll give a few quick tips and pointers here.

First, while I always had a blast during the Cartagena November Festivities, they are also not for everyone.

Much like other big celebrations in Colombia, like the Barranquilla Carnival or the Festival de Blancos y Negros in Pasto, people spray each other with foam, or espuma, throw corn starch (maizena), water, and even throw or rub paint on each other.

During independence carnival in Cartagena, people also throw little firecrackers called buscapies, literally “feet finders” in Spanish.

By the way, if you want to get a sneak peak of a song you’ll likely hear constantly during the month of November in Cartagena, you can if you listen to the song “Buscapie.” There’s some good photos of what to expect in that video too.

Now, most of this spraying, splashing, rubbing, and throwing is good natured, and I’ve always loved getting into espuma fights with people.

Honestly, my best advice is to make sure you get a bottle or two of espuma for yourself to get in on the action if you are going to enjoy the Independence of Cartagena festival. I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thrown a few buscapies in my day too. Just, do throw them at the ground not in the air, please!

Unfortunately, there are some unscrupulous folks who use these things to target people though.

I’ve heard more than one story of people getting sprayed in the eyes and discovering their phone is missing afterwards. A good friend of mine who visited one year actually also had her iPhone pickpocketed in a crowd downtown during this week one year.

My suggestions are to leave valuables at your hotel. Take only the cash you think you’ll need, preferably in a front pocket with some extra stashed in a sock or maybe even in something like a waist pouch, a neck pouch, or a bra pouch.

And of course, stick to following general travel safety advice. You can see my tips in my guide to Cartagena safety.

Beyond that, take it in stride. If you feel like you’re being picked on for being a tourist, get some espuma and buscapies for yourself and give it right back. Also, be sure wear clothes you don’t mind being ruined.

Oh, and do wear proper shoes.

My first year in Cartagena, I got a nasty burn from a buscapie. I can’t remember if that was before or after my flip flop fell apart.

But yea, definitely wear shoes!

Sunglasses also come in handy to prevent getting espuma in your eyes. Get a cheap pair form a vendor on the street or some generic ones.

If all of this is making you extremely uncomfortable, then to be honest, just avoid being in Cartagena during the Cartagena Independence Day 2023 week is my best advice. Check out the Other Destinations section for ideas for where to go, maybe up the coast to Tayrona Park, Minca, or Palomino.

If you do come, just come prepared for those things, and be aware there will most likely be big crowds at the main events I’ll discuss below, and expect lots of loud music and people out and about in the Walled City and Getsemaní.

Oh, and expect extra traffic and congestion this week. Especially on the day of the main parade, getting to and from the Cartagena airport will be a lot tougher than usual since the parade goes right down the road connecting the historic city to the airport. So I’d say, try as hard as possible to avoid flying in or out that afternoon.

The Big Events During the November Cartagena Carnival 2023

Besides commemorating Cartagena Independence, the Cartagena November Festival has several parades. Two beauty pageants also normally take place during the week of Cartagena Independence Day in Colombia.

Beauty pageants are definitely a big deal in Colombia, and the pageants are a big part of the week.

First there is the national beauty pageant that names Miss Colombia. Candidates from the different departments, or states, participate. Events for it are usually private and lots of the Cartagena and Colombia elite attend. They tried doing this another time of year a few years back, but it looks like it has been moved back to the week of the November Carnival in Cartagena permanetely.

Meanwhile, there is also always a local pageant with candidates from the different barrios, or neighborhoods in the city, that compete to be crowned Miss Independence. This is called the Reinado de independencia and is often also called the Reinado popular.

Usually the local beauty queens participate in most or all of the big free events like concerts. There’s even a free talent show you can attend if you manage to get a seat.

Both the national and local beauty queens usually participate in the big parade, known as the bando. This is the main event and highlight of the Cartagena Independence Festival.

Other good events are the aforementioned talent show, and the free music performances and concerts. There is usually a salsa night, and there are usually concerts that coincide with a swimsuit catwalk of the local beauty queens one night and them wearing dresses that pay homage to Cartagena history and culture another.

Usually these are held in the big open plaza near the iconic Cartagena clocktower. They are free, but you do usually have to wait in lines for limited capacity behind barriers, and in some years you have had to download a ticket.

There are some smaller parades and events throughout the week too.

Also, there is almost always a big “Beer Festival” set up in front of the Cartagena Convention Center. It is usually open several nights and always draws a big crowd with live music the night of the parade. Usually you have to pay an entrance fee that includes some tickets you can use for 4-6 beers.

Of course, it all culminates in the coronation of Miss Independence and Miss Colombia in separate events. Miss Independence is usually crowned in a public event held far away from the main tourist area where I don’t recommend most people go unless you know your way around the city. Miss Colombia is crowned in a private event.

Both are usually televised.

If you want to come and participate in the Cartagena Independence Day 2023 festival, I’d mark the day of the main parade and any of the concerts in and around the Walled City to participate in.

In the next section, I’ll give you rundown of the complete schedule for the Independence Festival in Cartagena 2023 as well as what to expect during each event and if I recommend it for most travelers or not.

Full Independence of Cartagena Festival 2023 Schedule

So, I’m publishing this article a bit early this year before the full schedule for the Cartagena November festivities has been released, so I don’t have much in the way of specifics here yet.

However, I will update once the schedule is released.

Last year that came in late September, so hopefully it will be released soon. They have announced the official image, which you can see in this press release, and the candidates for the Miss Independence pageant.

You can also check the IPCC Cartagena website, the committee that organizes it. In past years, they have generally been better about publishing the schedule and any changes made during the week due to weather other other issues on their Facebook and Instagram page, so be sure to check those too. They are currently publishing the candidates for Miss Independence on their Instagram, for example.

In the meantime, we can look at the calendar and get an idea of what to expect for the 2023 schedule for the Cartagena Independence Cay festival.

There will be a series of smaller events, or preludes, in the weeks leading up to November 11th. These are usually out in the barrios on the Friday and/or Saturday nights. I’d discourage going to these unless you are going with a trusted local that lives in that area.

There should be one in Centro and Getsemaní though, and you should feel plenty safe going to that one if you happen to be in Cartagena the week or so before the actual festival.

November 11 falls on a Saturday in 2023, so the main week of festivities will be the week immediately preceding it.

During my years living in Cartagena, the day of the parades varied.

My first few years in Cartagena, the biggest parade was always on Thursday, and then there was a smaller parade usually on November 11th itself.

Since the 11th is on a Saturday, I think they will most likely opt to do just one big parade on that day and not do one on Thursday, something they’ve done in more recent years when the day fell around the weekend.

But then again, they might do a Thursday parade and then do a smaller one on Saturday.

The coronations of Miss Independence and Miss Colombia usually take place on Sunday and/or Monday evening as the Monday after November 11th is a national holiday.

The concerts, performances, and smaller parades usually take place Tuesday through Saturday. There is usually a parade in Getsemaní on the 11th, but they may do that differently if the main parade is that day this year.

So, stay tuned or consider bookmarking this page and coming back closer to November when we should have a firm schedule. You could also check out the 2022 schedule if you want an idea of what some of the events are and what to expect.

And of course, do check out all the other content on the site to plan your trip to Cartagena, whether it be during the week of the Cartagena festival in November or not!

Cheers and Happy Fiestas!

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If you like partying in the street, then you might also like partying on a boat at Cholón Island out in Cartagena’s gorgeous Rosario Islands. Of if you need a break and want something more relaxed, check out my picks for the best Rosario Islands resorts and best Rosario Islands day trips. You can also check out my tips for enjoying the nightlife in Cartagena.