Sandown Carnival, Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is carnival crazy! With over 20 different public events each summer and several more throughout the year, thousands of locals and occasionally groups from further afield gather to entertain tens of thousands of residents and visitors alike.
Sandown Carnival is one of the oldest Carnivals, with the first recorded activities taking place in 1889. With 5 significant public events of our own, each year we aim to make our events bigger, brighter and better than those that have gone before!
To this end our main summer carnivals have now developed into "all-day" affairs with pre-carnival entertainments and events taking place around the town well into the evenings when our fantastic processions bring the events to a memorable conclusion.
All Sandown Carnival events are FREE to attend, staffed by a dedicated team of volunteers who endlessly fund raise to ensure that future events can continue to take place.
Carnival Queens Selection 2012
This year's Carnival Queens selection took place on Wednesday 11th April at Colonel Bogeys nightclub.
Our congratulations go to our 2012 Carnival Queens Chloe Lomax, Ellie Chiltern, Blaize Walsh, Daisy Barker, Megan Goddard and Bethany Goudie!
We'll be holding a photoshoot shortly and posting these in the gallery. In the meantime, CLICK HERE for a couple of snaps taken on the night!
Carnival Development Fund 2012
Applications are now invited for our Carnival Development Fund grants scheme.
Do you have a great idea for a carnival entry but don't have the funds to pull it off? We may be able to help! Grants of up to £250 are available to community projects to improve the content of Sandown's carnival processions.
For more details and an application form, CLICK HERE. Closing date for application 27th April.
Sandown Children's Carnival
The first Carnival event of the season is a day of fun activities and a short afternoon parade around the town dedicated to our younger participants.
Prizes are awarded in several categories for costumes and concepts, and the parade is led by the Sandown Carnival Queens. Full Details...
Sandown Main Carnival
The day after the Children's Carnival, this early evening event is attended by many thousands of visitors lining the streets of Sandown for a fabulous parade consisting of a mix of vehicle-based and pedestrian entries.
An absolute riot of colour and pumping music, you'll be amazed at the quality of the entries for this very popular event featuring floats from all over the island! Full Details...
Sandown Illuminated Carnival
As the nights begin to draw in, this evening event features dozens of brightly-lit floats and hundreds of costumes and is the perfect end to the summer season.
Taking place at the end of August, Sandown Illuminated Carnival really shouldn't be missed! Fun for all ages. Full Details...
Sandown Carnival 2012
Due to the enormous success of our Saturday carnival last year and the wonderful feedback we've received from local families, we have decided to run the main carnival on Saturday again in 2012, despite conflicts with Steps performing at Osborne House. Oh, and the London Olympics of course!
The following are the dates for the main summer carnival activities - other events will be added to the timetable in due course...
- Children's Day - Friday 27th July 2012
- Main Carnival - Saturday 28th July 2012
- Illuminated Carnival - Wednesday 29th August 2012
- November 5th Celebrations - Monday 5th November 2012
For more details about all of Sandown Carnival's events, CLICK HERE