Rio Carnival 2027 runs 5 to 10 February

When is Rio Carnival 2027?

From Friday 5 February to Ash Wednesday, 10 February 2027. The Champions' Parade on Saturday 13 February closes the season at the Sambódromo.

The dates follow the church calendar: Carnival ends on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, and Easter 2027 falls late in March. That puts Carnival right in the middle of the Brazilian summer, with hot nights and the beaches full by day.

Think of it as a run of five parade nights with a weekend of street parties around them. The Sambódromo nights are the ones you need a ticket for. The rest of the city is free, loud and everywhere.

Which nights are the Sambódromo parades in 2027?

Five, plus the Champions' Parade. The Série Ouro opens on Friday and Saturday, the Grupo Especial follows on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, and the winners come back the next Saturday.

The Grupo Especial is the top league and the one most visitors mean when they say Rio Carnival. It is now spread over three nights, four schools a night, instead of six schools on each of two nights. Each school has a little over an hour to cross the avenue with its samba-enredo, its bateria, its floats and thousands of members.

Liesa opens the gates at 7 PM. The parades run late into the night and end around dawn, so plan to stay up. The Série Ouro nights are a looser way to feel the Sapucaí, and the Champions' Parade is a best-of night with no judges and a party mood.

What is the Rio Carnival 2027 parade order?

Sunday: União de Maricá, Beija-Flor, Paraíso do Tuiuti, Vila Isabel. Monday: Mocidade, Unidos da Tijuca, Salgueiro, Imperatriz. Tuesday: Portela, Viradouro, Grande Rio, Mangueira.

The order was drawn at Samba City in April and Liesa lists it on its home page. Sunday opens with União de Maricá, the newcomer that won the Série Ouro in 2026, and closes with Vila Isabel, third last year. Monday carries Salgueiro and Imperatriz Leopoldinense. Tuesday is stacked: Portela, the champion Viradouro, Grande Rio and Mangueira.

Grande Rio will have a famous face out front: Band reports that Anitta is the school's drum queen for 2027. For what each school brings, read the 2027 parade order guide.

Are Sambódromo tickets for 2027 on sale?

Yes. Ticketmaster has sold the official grandstand seats since 10 August 2026, at R$250 a night full price, and the frisa sale phase opened on 28 October.

The open grandstands (arquibancadas) in sectors 2 to 11, except sector 9, cost R$250 per night, or R$125 for the half-price meia-entrada, which in practice needs Brazilian documents. Frisas are open boxes of six seats at the track edge, from about R$1,835 to R$10,200 per box per night. Camarotes are covered boxes sold by sector. Sector 9 is the tourist sector, with numbered seats sold through travel agencies.

Two rules catch visitors. Liesa does not let children under 5 in at all, and under-16s need an adult. For the full picture by sector, read our Sambódromo tickets guide.

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What happens in Rio before Carnival 2027?

Plenty. The official album of the 2027 sambas comes out on 29 October, the schools rehearse at their halls on weekend nights, and the free technical rehearsals at the Sapucaí run on 23, 24, 30 and 31 January.

Liesa set the album release for 29 October 2026, with guests including Anitta, Maria Bethânia, Daniela Mercury and Zeca Pagodinho. Learn a chorus or two before you go. Singing along with a school on the avenue is half the fun.

From July or August the schools rehearse at their own halls, the quadras. The Salgueiro rehearsal tour goes every Saturday night with hotel pickup, from $80, rated 5.0 from 17 reviews. In January the schools take turns on the Sambódromo avenue for free, and the Lavagem da Sapucaí, the ritual washing of the avenue, falls on Sunday 31 January. Our post on the 2027 technical rehearsals has the full calendar.

Which Carnival 2027 night should you book?

Tuesday if you want the champion and the deepest line-up, Sunday for Beija-Flor and the newcomer, and the Champions' Parade if you want the best six in one night.

We would pick Tuesday 9 February. Portela and Mangueira are two of the oldest names in samba, Viradouro defends its title, and Grande Rio brings Anitta. Sunday is close behind, with Beija-Flor, second by a tenth of a point last time, and Vila Isabel closing the night. Monday has Salgueiro, the red and white school many visitors already know from its rehearsals.

Book the night first and the rest of the trip around it. If you want to march yourself, the parade in costume includes the costume, make-up, photos and transport, for adults who can walk the whole avenue. It has only 6 reviews so far, and costumes are limited, so book it early.

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