QUICK TAKES

"Carnavales", Panama´s Iconic Party

By Juan Carlos Martinez

If you have heard or read about Panama you must have read about "Carnivals". In Panama people start preparing for Carnivals about six months before as lodging reservations must be made otherwise a park bench, at best, will be all that is available. Carnivals historically always fall in February or early March, the best tourist months in Panama with very little rain and lots of sun. This is the most important holiday for Panamanians. It is a celebration similar to a Mardi Gras in New Orleans.

In Panama it is four days where anything goes. It is an ongoing party which starts Friday evening with the official inauguration and ends on Tuesday at midnight, right before Ash Wednesday. The end of Carnival just before Ash Wednesday signifies the beginning of Lent in preparation for Holy Week. It is a celebration traditionally held by Roman Catholic populations. For 2010 Carnivals in Panama will be from February 13 to February 16 so book tickets and lodgings now as this is a party you will not want to miss.

Carnivals are held all over the country in various little towns in the interior. Each of these towns holds it own celebration to which thousands of Panamanians flock. The best and most famous celebrations are held in the Central Provinces. Some of the names you will hear are Las Tablas, Penonome, Chitre, Los Santos, Ocu, among others. All of these are towns in Panama that are full of history, natural beauty and, during Carnivals, loads of people and fun.

A significant number of Panamanians migrate from Panama City to some of these towns in the interior for the four days of Carnivals. Public offices, banks, and many service providers close for these holidays from Saturday noon until Wednesday at noon. It is worthwhile to check schedules if you plan to travel to Panama on those dates, although restaurants, entertainment centers and malls do remain open.

During the day the festivity is called "culecos" and consists of music, lots of water sprayed on you from hoses in trucks circling the plaza and tons of booze. The queen, chosen months before, also circles the plaza on an elaborate and ornate, mobile stage with a spectacular costume. The "culecos" end in the early afternoon and people leave the plaza to rest and get dressed for the evening festivities. In the evening the queen circles again amidst bands, music, dancing and a huge amount of firecrackers. She displays another spectacular, even more elaborate costume. This same scenario is repeated all four days of Carnivals non-stop.

It is a commonly held belief that Carnivals have a significant impact on the tourism industry. This holds through for the interior but for Panama City the Carnivals hold actually signify a decrease in hotel occupancy rates of 10% to 15%, whereas the occupancy rate of hotels in the interior goes up to 100% and room prices sky rocket. This is one of the arguments that current Martinelli administration has used to support its decision of not assigning government funds for the Carnivals in Panama City.

Previous administrations of the Panama government assigned a 4 million dollar budget to the Carnivals in Panama City. This year the Martinelli administration has said that no government funding will be available for this celebration. Three months until Carnivals the jury is still out on whether Panama City will have Carnivals or not, however Carnivals in the interior are already organized and promise to be as usual, an awesome four day party.