Events & Festivals in Sucre

A miniature fair based on the larger one in La Paz. Artisans sell tiny replicas of houses, cars, money, diplomas, and more. People buy them and have them blessed by Ekeko (the god of abundance) for good luck in attaining the real thing.

The city's active pre-Lenten Carnival. Features massive parades with comparsas (dance troupes), elaborate costumes, traditional music like Morenada and Caporales, water fights, and street parties. The main day honors the Virgen de la Candelaria with a solemn procession.

UNESCO-recognized indigenous festival of the Yampara culture. Pujllay (meaning 'to play') is a colorful, energetic celebration of fertility with music, dance, and elaborate monteros (hats). Often coincides with Carnival.

A solemn and significant religious observance. Features elaborate processions like the Via Crucis (Stations of the Cross) on Good Friday, with statues borne through silent streets. Churches hold special masses and rituals.

One of Bolivia's most important cultural festivals. A week-long celebration of arts featuring international and national theater, dance, music, film, literature, and visual arts. Workshops, street performances, and exhibitions fill the city.

A specialized music festival held in conjunction with the FIC. Features concerts of Baroque and Renaissance music from the Americas and Europe, often performed on period instruments in historic churches.

A celebration of Sucre's famous sausages. Local producers and restaurants set up stalls offering grilled chorizo and longaniza sandwiches, along with sides like mote (hominy) and llajwa (spicy sauce). Live folk music sets the mood.

A major Catholic feast day. The cathedral's monstrance is paraded through streets carpeted with intricate, colorful floral and sawdust alfombras (carpets) created by local families and communities.

An Andean winter solstice celebration. Bonfires are lit in neighborhoods and plazas at midnight to 'warm' the sun and ensure a good harvest. People jump over the fires for luck, and there's music, drinking, and anticuchos (grilled skewers).

A regional trade fair showcasing livestock, agricultural technology, local industries, and commerce. Includes competitions for best cattle, food stalls, rodeo events, and live music concerts in the evenings.

Celebrates chicha, the traditional fermented corn beverage. Local producers offer tastings of different chicha varieties. Accompanied by live performances of autochthonous music from the valleys and highlands.

A festival focused on independent, avant-garde, and radical cinema from Bolivia and Latin America. Screens documentaries, short films, and features often with post-screening discussions with directors.

Celebrates the founding of Sucre in 1538. A civic holiday with a large military and civic parade down the main avenues, school performances, cultural fairs, concerts in the plaza, and a festive atmosphere throughout the city.

A lively, student-organized carnival held during 'Primavera' (spring). Features a massive parade of university faculties with floats, costumes, dancing, and water/foam fights. Celebrates youth and the arrival of spring.

A premier national cycling competition that attracts Bolivia's top riders. Features challenging routes through the city's steep hills and surrounding valleys. Part of the national cycling calendar.

A major literary event with presentations by national and international authors, book signings, publisher stands, children's activities, poetry readings, and academic discussions. A hub for the city's intellectual life.

In the week leading to Todos Santos, institutions, museums, and families create public displays of traditional altars (apxatas) honoring the dead. These intricate displays feature photos, food, flowers, and symbolic offerings.

A unique Andean-Catholic tradition honoring the deceased. Families build elaborate altars (apxatas) at home and in cemeteries with offerings of food, drinks, and t'antawawas (bread babies). Cemeteries become lively gathering places.

A prestigious annual concert by the city's professional symphony orchestra, often featuring guest soloists. The program typically includes classical masterworks and sometimes pieces by Bolivian composers.

Seasonal market selling Christmas decorations, nativity scene figures (pesebres), traditional sweets like buñuelos and panetón, gifts, and crafts. A festive atmosphere with lights and music in the plazas.

Families gather for midnight dinner (Nochebuena) on the 24th. At midnight on the 31st, people eat 12 grapes for luck, burn effigies (muñecos) to symbolize leaving behind the old year, and celebrate with fireworks.