Carnival Monday in St. Vincent & Grenadines

Public holiday and timing

The Office of the Prime Minister lists Carnival Monday among the country’s public holidays, and the government’s festival calendar marks it as a public holiday. It is observed on a Monday in July as part of Vincy Mas; the government’s festival listing places Carnival Monday and Carnival Tuesday in the July programme.[2][3]

A Department of Labour brochure says industrial workers who work on a public holiday are entitled to double time. That guidance applies to the worker category described in the brochure.[4]

From pre-Lenten Carnival to Vincy Mas

The Ministry of Tourism’s Carnival history says that before the 1890s, Carnival was a one-day celebration on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. It describes the occasion as a farewell to sin before Lent, a period traditionally observed with fasting and prayer.[1]

The history records a change of date in 1977, when Carnival entered its summer-festival era. The government’s festival calendar describes Vincy Mas as an anniversary of post-Lenten Carnival, while the Ministry’s account notes the shift to a summer celebration period.[1][2]

Music, masquerade and street celebrations

Vincy Mas brings together steel pan, calypso, masquerade and street parades. The government’s account of Carnival also describes soca, calypso, steel pan orchestras and masqueraders parading in the streets, presenting the festival as an expression of Vincentian heritage and national life.[2][5]

The Ministry’s history traces changes in Carnival’s music and costume traditions: it describes calypso performances and painted-body costumes in the early twentieth century, followed by steel bands and costumes drawing on historical and literary themes in later periods. It also names traditional mas characters including jab jabs, pierrots, jumbies, robbers and bats.[1][5]

Practical planning

Carnival Monday is a public holiday. Check opening hours with government offices and banks before you go.[2][3]