Fuerteventura Events: the Festival and Carnival Calendar

The Fuerteventura events calendar at a glance

This Fuerteventura events calendar rounds up the most regular, best-documented fixtures, with their usual timing and main locations.

Fuerteventura Carnival (February)

Every town runs its own parade, with dates that vary from one place to the next. Carnival is celebrated notably in Puerto del Rosario, the island's capital, as well as in Corralejo, Morro Jable and Pájara, each with its own carnival queen elections, costumed parades and street festivities.

Exact dates are set each year town by town, usually announced a few months ahead by the local councils. Visitors keen to catch several parades can string together carnivals in different towns across a few weekends.

Virgen del Carmen: the maritime procession (16 July)

On 16 July, Fuerteventura celebrates the Virgen del Carmen, patron saint of sailors and fishermen. The festival stands out for its maritime procession, where the Virgin's effigy is carried out to sea aboard decorated boats. Corralejo, Morro Jable and the small village of Giniginamar are among the places where this tradition is most alive.

The procession is usually accompanied by celebrations on land: traditional music, food stalls and fireworks in the evening in the coastal villages hosting it.

Virgen de la Peña: the island's patron saint festival (September)

The Virgen de la Peña patron saint festival remains the island's biggest religious and popular gathering. Held on the third Saturday of September, it takes the form of a romería (popular pilgrimage) to the hermitage at Vega de Río Palmas, inland.

The evening before the romería brings a torchlit night procession, hugely popular across the island, as people converge on the hermitage from every town in carts decorated with local produce.

Corralejo's International Kite Festival

On the beaches of Corralejo, this festival brings together giant and acrobatic kites from around the world, in a particularly photogenic setting between the dunes and the ocean. The event, hugely popular with German visitors (Drachenfest), makes the most of the exceptional wind conditions that give the island its year-round sporting reputation.

The windsurfing and kitesurfing world championship at Sotavento

Every year, a leg of the windsurfing and kitesurfing world championship (PWA World Tour) is held on Sotavento beach, a globally recognised spot since 1986. An international sporting fixture that draws professional riders and spectators, and one that reflects Fuerteventura's reputation as a watersports destination.

Fuerteventura's music festivals

Fuerteventura en Música (FEM) is the island's main music festival, held on La Concha beach in El Cotillo. Its line-up blends indie, fusion and international sounds in a particularly sought-after seafront setting; it usually runs around the first weekend of July, but exact dates for each edition are announced gradually on the official FEM website — worth checking before booking your trip.

Other events worth knowing about

Beyond the big traditional festivals, several towns run craft and agricultural fairs throughout the year, often centred on local produce like majorero cheese or aloe vera. These smaller events, often announced only a few weeks ahead, are worth checking for once you're on the island, at the local tourist office or town hall.

Planning your trip around an event

Checking the Fuerteventura events calendar before booking your trip helps you avoid unwelcome surprises, or deliberately time your visit around a particular festival. The island's biggest festivals, particularly carnival and Virgen de la Peña, bring large local crowds: book accommodation earlier than usual, expect altered traffic in the town centres involved, and trickier parking near the festivities.

For sporting events like the PWA World Tour at Sotavento, it's also worth booking accommodation in the south of the island ahead of time. Conversely, travellers who'd rather avoid the crowds can shift their trip by a few weeks either side of these big dates.

To plan the rest of your trip, head to our Canary Islands guide.