August Bank Holiday means it’s carnival time as people will be flocking to London and Leeds for the biggest parties in the UK.
In the capital, of course, it’s time for the world-famous Notting Hill Carnival, whilst the country’s longest-running West Indian Carnival 2025 is set to brighten the streets of West Yorkshire alive, as Potternewton Park, in Leeds, gets ready for one of the UK’s equally-biggest and longest-running Caribbean carnivals. From spectacular costume parades to vibrant music, food and community spirit, these free, family-friendly events are promising to be full-on cultural celebrations with something for everyone.
With London’s biggest and boldest street party almost here, the Notting Hill Carnival kicks off this weekend, marking its 57th year celebrating Caribbean culture, heritage and music. You can catch the rhythms of live calypso bands, sound systems, and steel orchestras in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, as they set pulses beating through the streets of west London, throughout the Bank Holiday weekend, as you blow your whistles or horns and show your love for Carnival, as you follow the infectious rhythms.
“The Notting Hill Carnival is a cultural institution, which is central to London’s identity and the nation’s creative and economic life,” said Notting Hill Carnival Ltd. chair, Ian Comfort.
“It’s one of the UK’s most significant cultural celebrations, attracting up to two million attendees annually, whilst honouring Caribbean heritage through music, costume, performance, and design.” Meanwhile, some 150,000 dedicated carnival-lovers will also be pounding the street – this time in Hayhills.
Similar to in the capital, there will be vibrant music, dancing, food and celebrations, before climaxing in a carnival procession on Bank Holiday Monday, which starts and finishes in Potternewton Park in Chapeltown. Organisers there said: We are now an amazing collective community of 5000+, so feel free to get involved and not miss out on the wild celebrations of culture and unity.”
To give spectators more opportunities to see the vibrant displays, the carnival troupes now complete two laps of the new route, as it brings ‘an explosion of colour’ to the streets, with dazzling costumes featuring feathers, sequins, and beads.
