Creativity, Costumes & Celebration

Excitement Brewing for Carnaval de Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain)

Tenerife in the Spanish Canary Islands is proudly home to the second largest Carnaval festival in the world, next to Rio. Expect crazy large crowds, spectacular and sometimes provocative costumes, dancing in the streets fueled by flowing sangria.

Yes indeed, out of my midlife 58-year-old regular box. Booked the plane ticket and here we are, where you can feel the excitement cooking up as stages, lights and pop-up shops selling wigs are all over the island.

While a big motivator for coming to Carnaval on Tenerife is John’s photography (will share more on that for sure), we also sparked to that simple yet powerful mantra of “why not?” As we age into this last life chapter, that feeling time fleeting alongside a craving for new experiences together prompted lots of decisions lately, including our move to Estonia with a side dish of a warmer winter weather jaunt. Carnaval fit the out-of-the-box, “why not” bill. Let the games begin.

Historically, Carnavals around the world tie to the Christian calendar and start 40 days before Easter, right before Ash Wednesday and Lent begin. But like most traditional Christian events, the traditions root back further to pagan times of a burst of needed whimsy and celebration.

A highly recommended first stop before the festivities start: Casa Del Carnaval, the free museum in the center of Santa Cruz capturing the history and spirited pulse of this long-standing event to give us background.

Thanks to Anna Niemczyk, the museum coordinator, and our super knowledgeable and friendly tour guide, Enzo Lespart, we received such a warm welcome to the Carnaval community and now feel much more prepared for what is to come over the next week.

As John and I wandered the museum rooms and gawked at the intricate (and often heavy!) Carnaval costumes of past years, Enzo gifted us with historic context that goes much deeper than the “party” image that may first come to mind.

Three key Carnaval themes popped up for me as we toured the museum that I’m like a kid on Christmas Eve excited to see unfold this next week:

1. Creativity

Original artwork for the 2025 “Secrets of Africa” Carnaval poster

Self-expression is the heartbeat of Carnaval here on Tenerife. Anything goes and, more importantly, it is encouraged.

“What is most iconic about Carnaval here is it is always changing,” explains Lespart. “Every year all of the queens and performing groups have entirely new costumes.”

This is no small feat when you see the intricate and thoughtful details on these costumes, both the official groups participating including the renowned “Murgas,” musical groups that perform satirical, humorous songs poking fun but also making a political statement about politicians and elected officials.

“Yes, the Murgas entertain, but they also intentionally get you to think and question things,” adds Lespart. Big ideas to shake up the current political climate under sunny skies with a cold rum drink while grown men are dancing in tutus? This sounds like just what this jaded American expat’s soul needs right now.

Political creativity sparked during the Francisco Franco years, the Spanish dictator who controlled Spain from 1939 through his death in 1975 when Spain transitioned to the democracy it is today. With Franco’s authoritarian rule and cultural and freedom of expression repression (I know . . . the 2025 parallels require more sangria to process), the innovative Tenerife people “reinvented” Carnaval as “Fiestas de invierno” or “winter party.” Their first poster advertising the event was created in 1962. And so, Carnaval creatively continued under dictatorship with no interruption.

An annual different Carnaval theme also sparks creativity. The 2025 theme is “Secrets of Africa” and past themes include “The Deep Sea” and “Flower Power.”

But this creativity goes beyond official costumes, everyone creates something new. “My friends would think something was wrong with me if I wore what I did last year,” adds Lespart, showing us a pic of the detailed WWII American soldier costume he DIY-ed.

2. Costumes

1987 Carnival Queen costume from 1987. Her hat (which she wore!) weighed 60 kg/130 pounds.

Cosplay for grown-ups. Wow. From vibrant colors to sequins to sparkles on steroids, the costumes for Carnaval are intense, especially the ones connected to the various queen competitions where designers create the elaborate (and heavy!) amazing feats.

There are three queens for each Carnaval that are selected based on the costume alone: a main queen along with a children’s context and elderly queen (over 65 – you go girl!). A diverse panel of judges select the winners at elaborate pageants in the weeks before Carnaval.

Then you have the Murgas costumes along with the Rondallas that perform classic songs and the Comparsas that dance.

But the magic comes with almost all attendees coming in some form of costume, with again that “anything goes have fun” mentality.

Casa Del Carnaval created a fun, interactive area to “try” on different costumes. Probably originally meant for the many school groups that come through to learn about Carnaval history, but we grown-ups couldn’t resist. And we weren’t alone.

For our own costumes, stay tuned! I re-purposed a wig from a Halloween decoration at Tamme along with some green satin I found at a Pärnu thrift store before we left to add up to something . . . butterfly?

John smartly let serendipity rule and said “Maybe I’ll find something at a thrift shop on Tenerife.”

Sure enough: We’re strolling around Candelaria where we are staying and spot this animal charity shop. One Euro (just one buck!) later, John walks out with this amazing jacket. We think it might originally be an octopus that is missing its head, hence the low price but still – the perfect find.

John’s one Euro/one dollar Carnaval costume great find.

3. Celebration

The magic of Carnaval roots in it being a true celebration for the people of Tenerife. There are Carnavals throughout the island in various communities, but the big grand centerpiece that kicks things off is the one in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. All the queens, costume designers and performing groups must be residents of Tenerife. Given the time and cost of all involved, this is a true labor of love and dedication.

“Carnaval gives everyone on the island something to look forward to all year,” sums up Lespart. “Maybe your job is drudgery or things are rough in your life, but you can always tell yourself: Carnaval is coming and have a break from it all.”

A break from it all sounds like the perfect needed elixir from recent news cycles and prediction rabbit holes. Cheers – “Salud” in Spanish – to celebrating the moment this week, in all her glitter and tutu-infused Carnaval splendor. More to come!

Carnaval costume creativity in all shapes, sizes, perspectives.

Check out more photos (and ordering options) from John D. Ivanko on Alamy