Tenerife Carnival 2027 by campervan: dates
The 2027 Santa Cruz de Tenerife Carnival starts two weeks later than planned: the opening gala moves from 8 to 22 January, and the street Carnival runs from 19 to 28 February. The city council pushed it back because the Recinto Ferial is still taken up by the Parque Infantil y Juvenil de Tenerife (PIT) until 6 January, leaving no time to build the stage.
From El Sauzal, where you pick up your campervan, central Santa Cruz is about 25 km away — 20 to 25 minutes without traffic, quite a bit more on parade days. Here are the dates from the official programme and how to plan the day so you can enjoy it without fighting the traffic.
Carnival 2027 dates from the official programme
These are the main events in the official programme of the Santa Cruz city council (the full calendar, with times and venues, is on carnavaldetenerife.com):
- Friday 22 January: Carnival opening at Plaza de España (21:30).
- 23 January to 6 February: contests for musical and choreographic groups and for murgas; the adult murga final is on Saturday 6 February (20:00, Recinto Ferial).
- Wednesday 17 February: Carnival Queen election gala (21:30, Recinto Ferial).
- Friday 19 February: Cabalgata Anunciadora, the opening parade (19:30), when the Carnival takes to the streets.
- Sunday 21 and Saturday 27 February: first and second daytime Carnival.
- Tuesday 23 February: Coso Apoteósico, the grand parade (16:00), a local public holiday in Santa Cruz.
- Friday 26 February: Children's Coso (18:00) and Piñata Friday.
- Sunday 28 February: Senior Carnival (17:00 to 20:00) and the closing party with fireworks (20:00), both at Plaza de La Candelaria.
Paid galas, free street parties
According to the official Carnival website, tickets for the galas and contests — such as the Queen election gala — must be bought in advance and, per the programme, they are mostly held at the Recinto Ferial; the parades, concerts and street parties are free and open to everyone, and they are concentrated mainly around Avenida de Anaga and the city centre.
Coso day is felt on public transport too: in 2026, around 10,000 people travelled by bus (guagua) from the north and south of the island to the capital on that day alone.
Getting there from El Sauzal without the Santa Cruz gridlock
On parade days there are traffic cuts and parking bans in central Santa Cruz from the morning: at the 2026 opening parade (which set off at 19:30), the first parking bans came into force at 07:00 and the first road closures at 08:00, and by 18:00 the main streets along the route were due to be closed. That is why the city council repeats the same advice every year: go to the street Carnival by public transport.
In 2026 public transport was beefed up considerably. TITSA ran around 4,200 extra trips (over 300,000 seats) on about twenty lines between 13 and 21 February, with an all-night service between Santa Cruz and La Laguna (lines 014 and 015) and more night trips towards the north. During the Carnival, the tram (Santa Cruz–La Laguna) carried almost 460,000 passengers, 13% more than the year before.
The 2027 plan has not been published yet — in 2026 it was announced only a few days beforehand — so check lines, timetables and closed stops on titsa.com and metrotenerife.com as the date approaches. Our advice: plan your day so you reach the centre by bus or tram rather than driving the camper into the parade area.
Book your campervan for February
February is already part of the winter high season in Tenerife and, with a small fleet like ours, booking early is the only way to be sure of getting the van you want. Choose your camper and dates in our fleet finder.
For sleeping, we stick to the same rule as always: check Park4Night before choosing where to spend the night. And confirm dates and times on the official Carnival website before finalising your trip: the programme can change.