Carnival in Arguineguín and the south of Gran Canaria

By Terje Moy, editor · Published 25 October 2026

Arguineguín's own carnival, Carnaval Costa Mogán, is a free week of galas and a family parade in late March (24–29 March in 2026). The island's big street parties are in Maspalomas and Las Palmas.

Arguineguín's carnival is Carnaval Costa Mogán, a free week of galas, family events and a closing parade held in the town centre in late March. In 2026 it ran from 24 to 29 March. Dates for 2027 had not been announced as of October 2026, so treat any date you see for next year as provisional until Mogán council publishes its programme. It is a local, family-sized carnival. If you want the full spectacle, the big parades are a bus ride or a drive away: Maspalomas (the Gran Cabalgata, a Saturday evening in March) and Las Palmas (about five weeks of events from late January).

This page sorts out which carnival is which, what the Arguineguín one looks like day by day, and how to get to the two big ones without a car. For the rest of the year's calendar, see festivals and events month by month.

Four carnivals, four scales

Carnival dates in Spain move with Easter. Easter Sunday 2027 is 28 March, which puts Carnival Tuesday (Martes de Carnaval) on 9 February 2027, and that is the peak of the Las Palmas season. In Mogán and Maspalomas the main events come later, in March, after the village and neighbourhood programmes.

Carnaval Costa Mogán in Arguineguín: the 2026 programme

The Arguineguín carnival is the closing act of Mogán's season. A festival listing for the 2026 edition places it at the Plaza del Mercadillo, with the stage set up in the middle of town, and says every event is free. The theme that year was "El Cabaret". Mogán council's tourism site does not publish the programme itself, so this is the schedule as listed for 2026 (the listing is a third-party festival guide, so confirm times with the council's culture department or its social media before you plan an evening around one):

• Wednesday 25 March: Gala Senior, 20:00, a new event for older carnival-goers, with comedy and dancing.
• Thursday 26 March: Gala del Pueblo, 20:00, performances by local schools and dance academies.
• Friday 27 March: Gala Drag, 21:00, followed by a late dance with DJs and orchestras.
• Saturday 28 March: the daytime family carnival (17:30–19:30), a charity mile and a late-night dance.
• Sunday 29 March: family parade at 12:30, daytime performances, and the Velatorio and Quema de la Sardina (the "wake" and burning of the sardine) at 19:30, finishing with fireworks.

The sardine is the traditional end of carnival: a mock funeral procession, a great deal of theatrical weeping, then the burning. Fireworks over the harbour town are a good reason to stay for the last evening.

Plan on the Sunday if you can only come once: the family parade and the sardine are both on the final day.

The village carnivals before it

From early February the municipality of Mogán holds a small carnival in each of its neighbourhoods. The 2026 calendar, as listed, opened in Veneguera on 7 February, went to El Horno on 14 February and Playa de Mogán on 20–21 February, then through Las Filipinas, Barranquillo Andrés and Motor Grande, and closed in Mogán village on 6–7 March with a procession starting at the CEO Mogán school. They are aimed at families: fancy-dress contests, children's workshops, hot chocolate, masked dances and local bands. Veneguera and Barranquillo Andrés are inland and in practice need a car. Playa de Mogán is on the coast; see Puerto de Mogán and the buses below.

Maspalomas: the big parade in the south

The Carnaval Internacional de Maspalomas is the biggest event of the year in the south of the island. Its Gran Cabalgata in 2026 was held on Saturday 28 March (postponed from an earlier date because of a storm). It set off at 17:00 from Avenida de Italia, by the Parque Tropical, with 108 floats on the theme of the circus, and the organisers expected about 350,000 spectators. The 2025 edition drew about 370,000 people according to the town hall. Regional broadcaster RTVC describes it as a festival of tourist interest in the Canaries. The parade route follows Avenida de Italia and Avenida de Gran Canaria through Playa del Inglés.

There was also a family day with a children's parade, and a sardine burial that closes the carnival. There are no official 2027 dates yet; the parade has recently fallen on a Saturday in March, but wait for the San Bartolomé de Tirajana town hall to announce it. A hotel blog circulates dates in March 2027, but no official source confirms them, so they are not repeated here.

Las Palmas: the capital's carnival

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria has announced its 2027 carnival for 22 January to 28 February, with the theme "La música". The council says the Queen's Gala moves to the eve of Carnival Tuesday, the Gran Dama gala will be on a Friday, there will be two consecutive Drag Fridays, and the big parade and the burial of the sardine are separated in the calendar. The first weekend is for children's events. The parade route is the usual one, through Santa Catalina near the beach of Las Canteras.

Las Palmas is the most serious carnival of the three, and it is a late-night one. The bus from Las Palmas to Arguineguín is line 91; on a school-term weekday Global lists the last departure from Las Palmas towards Puerto de Mogán at 21:00, and weekend and holiday timetables differ. That is no good for a night out. Either go for the daytime events, stay in the city, or budget for a taxi back (about 63 km by road). The day in Las Palmas page covers the city itself. The sister site Canary Guide has a broader look at carnivals and village festivals across the Canary Islands.

Getting to Maspalomas from Arguineguín by bus

Two Global lines connect Arguineguín with Playa del Inglés: line 33 (via Patalavaca and Puerto Rico to Puerto de Mogán in the other direction) and line 39 (weekdays, hourly). Line 90 runs towards the Faro de Maspalomas. Details, stops and payment are on buses in and from Arguineguín. For a daytime carnival event, line 33 or the 90 is fine; for an evening parade, the return journey is the problem, not the outward one. By road, Faro de Maspalomas is about 13 km (roughly 16 minutes without traffic), but the roads around the parade will be closed or jammed. The dunes and Meloneras are covered in Maspalomas and Meloneras from Arguineguín and the Maspalomas dunes.

Practical tips for carnival days

• Dress up if you like. Fancy dress is normal at the family events and the Maspalomas and Las Palmas street parties; nobody in the crowd is in a costume designer's league, so a wig and a hat counts.
• Carry little. Crowds at the big parades are where petty theft happens. Leave passports at the apartment and take one card and some cash. Emergencies are 112.
• Book early if you want to stay. Beds near Playa del Inglés and in Las Palmas fill up for the parade weekends. Arguineguín is a quieter base for either; see hotels in Arguineguín and Patalavaca.
• Weather. The nearest official climate station, at the airport on the east coast, averages 22 °C by day in March (1981–2010 normals), and the south-west is usually sunnier and calmer. Take a jumper for the evening: see the month-by-month weather guide.
• Combine it. Pair a carnival visit with the Tuesday market; the town's other big party is the sea procession of the Fiesta del Carmen in July. For winter events see Christmas and New Year in Arguineguín.