Cayman: Batabano Street Parade plans in high gear for May 2022

Plans for Cayman’s National Carnival – Cayman Carnival Batabano – are in high gear, with the annual parade slated for Saturday May 7^th, featuring a new route culminating with a huge stage for masqueraders to cross on Festival Green at Camana Bay. 

“We are super excited that the Cayman Islands has been welcoming back visitors to our shores again and is now in a position to be able to allow national cultural events like Batabano to resume,” said Batabano Chairperson, Donna Myrie-Stephen. “Our applications are in to the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service (RCIPS) and to the Government’s Cabinet Office for the necessary permission to host our national carnival this year, and we expect favourable responses in light of the approvals given for other parades to take place last Summer under similar Regulations, coupled with the current efforts being made by Government and the private sector to reignite the country’s tourism industry, for both land and sea”.

The Batabano Chairperson said the parade will take a different route this year due to ongoing works on Seafarer’s Way in George Town where the carnival usually culminates with a street dance. This year, the parade will start at a location on Esterly Tibbetts Highway, proceed along West Bay Road per usual, but turn towards Camana Bay where masqueraders will get to cross a huge stage for the first time in Batabano history. There will also be a festive Carnival Village, Food Festival, and Las Lap Fete into the night for both masqueraders as well as other patrons. 

Participating Mas Bands this year include:

Tribal Carnival 

Party Animals

Mas Azucar 

A Reba Dilbert Creation 

Asendn Mas Band

Estatic Mas Band

Fete For A Cause

Honduras Carnival Band 

Shilpa’s Indian Band

Coconuts 

Batabano Float 

For more information, and to request details on sponsorship opportunities, email [email protected] or call/message Donna Myrie-Stephen on 916-1740.

ABOUT CAYMAN CARNIVAL BATABANO

Established in 1983 by the Rotary Club of Grand Cayman, Cayman Carnival Batabano is the National Carnival of the Cayman Islands. A salute to Cayman’s turtling heritage, “Batabano” is the native name for tracks left in the sand when sea turtles go ashore to nest, which has always been cause for celebration in the Cayman Islands. From humble beginnings, Cayman Carnival Batabano has grown from a small parade with homemade costumes and floats, to an international tourism attraction with hundreds of masqueraders donning professional costumes by local and international designers, parading down West Bay Road just steps from Cayman’s iconic Seven Mile Beach. A unique carnival that fuses culture and the arts via creative costumes, Caribbean music, local crafts, and a Food Festival worthy of the Culinary Capital of the Caribbean, Batabano is symbolically held over the first two weekends of May (including Junior Batabano) as part of the celebration and awareness of the start of Turtle Nesting Season. Today, the non-profit Cayman Carnival Batabano Board of Directors is proud to use its platform to promote and support local turtle conservation efforts in the Cayman Islands. Part-proceeds from Batabano sponsorships will help support select turtle conservation initiatives locally, made possible only through the financial contributions of Cayman’s corporate community and the local Government. For more details, visit www.caymancarnival.com and follow www.facebook.com/batabanocayman, www.instagram.com/caymancarnivalbatabano, and www.twitter.com/batabano_cayman.