The story
Carnaval de Limon in Puerto Limon
Founded by Alfred King and dated locally to 1949, Puerto Limon's carnival runs around 12 October, shifting over decades from an original Columbus-arrival commemoration toward a celebration of the Afro-Caribbean culture built by Jamaican and other Caribbean labour migrants who settled Limon province. Parades combine elaborate costumes with calypso and reggae-influenced music and dance troupes distinct from Costa Rica's Central Valley folk traditions.
The Carnaval de Limon began in the 1940s under the direction of Alfred King, with the modern festival dated locally to 1949, staged in the Caribbean port city of Puerto Limon around 12 October, the date long associated in Latin America with Columbus's arrival and known in Costa Rica as the Dia de las Culturas.