Festivals in Nicaragua by Month: Dates, Towns and What to Expect

Festivals in Nicaragua follow the Catholic calendar and each town's patron saint: El Güegüense in Diriamba from January 17 to 27, Palo de Mayo in Bluefields all of May, the Virgen del Carmen at sea in San Juan del Sur in July, Santo Domingo in Managua from August 1 to 10, San Jerónimo in Masaya from September to December and La Purísima from November 28 to December 8.

The calendar at a glance

Month	Festival	Where	Dates
January	San Sebastián and El Güegüense	Diriamba, Carazo	January 17 to 27
March or April	Jesús del Rescate pilgrimage, then Semana Santa	Popoyuapa, Rivas; whole country	Lent, moves with Easter
May	Palo de Mayo	Bluefields, Caribbean coast	All month, main parade on the last weekend
July	Virgen del Carmen at sea	San Juan del Sur	Around July 16
August	Santo Domingo de Guzmán	Managua	August 1 to 10
August	Gritería Chiquita	León	August 14
September to December	San Jerónimo, Agüizotes, Torovenado	Masaya	Late September to December
November and December	La Purísima and La Gritería	Whole country, León as origin	November 28 to December 8

Dates are the traditional ones. The format of each event can change from year to year, as explained below, so confirm close to your trip.

January: El Güegüense in Diriamba

El Güegüense is a satirical drama performed during the feast of San Sebastián, patron saint of Diriamba, in the department of Carazo. UNESCO proclaimed it in 2005 and inscribed it in 2008 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. It is played by eight main characters supported by dancers, in costumes, wooden masks and hats, to violins, guitars and drums, and the scenes are interspersed in the street processions. UNESCO describes it as a forceful protest against colonial rule.

The performances run from January 17 to 27, per Wikipedia, which dates the play to the 16th century, by an anonymous author, first written in Nahuat and Spanish.

March or April: Lent in Rivas and Semana Santa

Our own department has a pilgrimage before Holy Week. The Jesús del Rescate sanctuary is in Popoyuapa, next to the city of Rivas, and devotees travel to it in oxcarts; the Spanish-language Wikipedia page on Rivas says the Church recognized it as a national sanctuary in 2013. The format has changed in recent years: in 2023 an agency report said the parish canceled its procession and held the veneration of the image inside the sanctuary, while an oxcart parade sponsored by municipal governments went ahead.

Semana Santa itself, the peak of domestic travel, is covered in our guide to the best time to visit Nicaragua.

May: Palo de Mayo in Bluefields

The Palo de Mayo is the main festival of Bluefields, on the southern Caribbean coast. Voz de América reported in 2023 that it now runs the whole month of May, opens with a tree decorated with fruit and colored ribbons, and ends with the parade of neighborhood comparsas and floats on the last weekend of May. Historians link it to the English colonial period; there is no agreement on its exact origin. It is a long way from Rivas: the Corn Islands page explains the flights to that coast.

July: the Virgen del Carmen at sea in San Juan del Sur

This is the festival closest to us. On the feast of the Virgen del Carmen, patron of fishermen and sailors, the image goes around the bay of San Juan del Sur on a boat. AP reported in 2013 that more than 30 boats escorted it in a one-hour floating procession, with over 400 pilgrims singing from their boats, and quoted the vice mayor saying the celebration was the town's top economic activity, ahead of fishing.

If you are in town in mid-July, our San Juan del Sur full day runs 8 hours, from US$45 per person (groups of 4 to 6), US$38 in groups of 7 to 10; US$75 solo. The town and the bay are on the San Juan del Sur page.

August: Santo Domingo in Managua and the Gritería Chiquita in León

Managua's best-known festival honors Santo Domingo de Guzmán, "Minguito", a small image of about 18 centimeters kept in a glass case. EFE reported that the image comes down on August 1 and returns on August 10 to Las Sierritas, south of Managua, in a procession of about 10 kilometers and some twelve hours, with "diablitos" and promise keepers. The agency added that in 2025 the festivity was authorized by the authorities and guarded by the Policía Nacional.

On August 14, León holds the Gritería Chiquita, a smaller version of the December Gritería. ViaNica traces it to August 14, 1947, when residents took the end of the ash fall from Cerro Negro as a miracle and Bishop Isidro Oviedo Reyes proposed a penitential act of thanks. Cerro Negro had erupted on July 9, 1947, per Wikipedia.

September to December: San Jerónimo in Masaya

Masaya has the longest patron festivities in Nicaragua, from September to December, according to EFE. Two dates stand out, both in October and both reported by Voz de América: the Agüizotes, a night procession of masked mythical figures on the last Friday of October, a tradition dated to around 1796, and the Torovenado, a satirical dance on the last Sunday of October, from noon to dusk, in which taking part is a promise to San Jerónimo.

Masaya is also worth a visit outside the festival. The craft market holds a "Noche de Verbena" with folkloric dances every Thursday night, per Wikipedia. Our Masaya artisan market and folklore tour lasts 3 to 4 hours, from US$30 per person (groups of 4 to 6); US$55 solo, and the Granada + Masaya Volcano tour covers the market in a 9-hour day.

November and December: La Purísima

La Purísima is the celebration of the Immaculate Conception. Activities run from November 28 to December 8, with altars in homes and businesses, and the Gritería, the main night, on December 7, according to Delfino.cr, which quoted Tica Bus reporting a 50 percent increase in land trips to Nicaragua for the season. December 8 is a national holiday, per AFP.

In Rivas the day after has its own form: the Policía Nacional report on the 2025 Purísima lists "Purísimas acuáticas" on December 8 in several departments, Rivas among them. The full story, from the shout to the origin in León, is in our guide to La Gritería and La Purísima.

Processions in recent years: what has changed

Visitors should know that the street format of religious festivals has changed since 2022. We report what news agencies published, without adding opinion.

• September 2022, Masaya: police told the brotherhoods of San Miguel and San Jerónimo that processions would not be allowed "por razones de seguridad pública" (EFE). Worshippers held mass, dances and songs inside the church (AFP).
• February 2023: priests told Voz de América that police did not authorize street processions for Lent and Holy Week; the police issued no public statement.
• December 2023: AFP reported that most Catholic celebrations that year were restricted to the inside of churches.
• April 2026: EWTN News reported Holy Week activities held inside churches, patios and atriums.
• August 2025: EFE reported the Santo Domingo festivities in Managua as authorized and guarded by police.

For a visitor this means the date is reliable and the format is not, so ask us by WhatsApp in the days before what is planned.

Festivals mean crowds and, often, late nights. The US State Department rates Nicaragua Level 3, "Reconsider Travel" (advisory of May 14, 2026, on travel.state.gov), and Canada asks travelers to "exercise a high degree of caution" (updated November 2, 2026, on travel.gc.ca); Canada also advises avoiding large gatherings during demonstrations and avoiding road travel at night. Our guide to Nicaragua travel advisories and what Monkeys does summarizes both.

What Monkeys does

Monkeys Travels & Tours is a private tour operator based in Rivas, founded in 2018 by Everth Palma, who was born and raised in Rivas.

• Private tours only. Your group is never combined with other travelers.
• Bilingual bilingual guides born in Rivas, in a private vehicle.
• Price and inclusions confirmed in writing. Free cancellation up to 48 hours before departure.
• WhatsApp +505 8506 1173, every day from 7:00 to 20:00, with answers in under an hour. Send the festival you want to see, your dates, the number of people and your hotel.