This weekend was the 15th annual Carnival del Sol. The city’s largest Latin celebration hosted by non-profit organization, Latincouver. Their goal has always been to create community and bring people together, and this event was definitely a show of that.
We were given early access into the grounds with a guided tour by event organizers. To take in the scene before it got busy, and to get the lay of the land.
For those looking to visit this weekend know that the first 300 guests get in for free Saturday and Sunday. And that dogs are welcomed on leashes. For those who are single and looking to mingle, event organizers have created special red bands for you. You dawn one of these to signify your legibility and the desire to meet new people.
The venue is divided into plazas, which is similar to a two square, a place for cultural exchange. There were dedicated plaza for family fun, kids activities, and leisure senior life.
A plaza for food, a market plaza for shopping, and an entertainment plaza with a grand stage for live performances. I won’t be going into too much detail on each, as it is best to explore such things in person. But here are some general photos of the occasion.
For those with VIP tickets you get your own private lounge at the VIP plaza. An oasis of white hidden away with a picturesque view of the festival below and the bay beyond.
It is hard to find and you may not even know it is there. You have to access it through the beer garden and after climbing a flight of stairs, end up at a clearing. Here is the tequila garden equipped with plenty of white plastic tables and chairs, and even more inflatable sofas and loungers with pillows for resting.
Here you have a private bar where you can purchase cocktails from one the event sponsors, Gran Centenario. Their brand of tequila mixed with either grapefruit or orange juice.
As for the food there are 22 food vendors mostly from Latin America, with one from Korea and one from Spain. They were serving out of food trucks and dedicated tables. Plenty of street food to grab and go and even more chilled treats to keep you cool.
This included giant seafood paella from the Paella Guys, grilled meat to order in Portuguese buns, and Brazilian street food the likes of cheese crisps and breads.
We would enviably enjoy tacos made by La Taqueria in the beer garden so that we could have it with a drink. Here you can choose from a collection of coolers or beers.
I advise the limited edition, collaboration release of Carnival de Sol’s very own citrusy lager made by Granville Island Brewing. Fully adorned with the festival’s yellow motif and signature logo for their quinceanera year.
As for food we had yellow and blue corn mixed tortillas grilled and topped with your choice between chicken, beef, pork, tongue, cactus and corn, and/or beans.
We also had the classic treat of mango on a stick topped with either spicy tajin or a sour sop sort of drizzle. I went bold and got both.
Then we washed it down with coconut and condense milk freezies that were not only tasty, but also helped to beat the heat.
And if walking around is too, much and you want to just sit and relax be sure to park yourself in front of centre stage. The entire venue’s capacity is 7,000 people and they anticipated it to reach capacity with those planning to exclusively see Proyecto Uno on Saturday. For those unfamiliar, this was described as the “Latin American MC Hammer”.
In short there is lots to see and do at this year’s Carnival de Sol, a great way to spend the afternoon well into the evening with amazing food and music and plenty to see and do, while embarrassing Latin culture.
Carnaval del Sol 2023
Saturday, 8 July 2023 at 12:00 PM – Sunday, 9 July 2023 at 11:00 PM (PDT)
David Lam Park
1300 Pacific Boulevard, Vancouver, BC V6Z 2Y1 Canada
