Port-de-Paix Culture Festival

Port-de-Paix, founded by the Spanish in 1644 and refounded by the French in 1665, once briefly served as capital of Saint-Domingue and was the site of the colony's first documented slave revolt in 1679. Today it marks its patronal feast with La Huitaine, an eight-day program launched each December 1 by the region's chamber of commerce, combining cultural exhibitions, sporting events and public roundtables on the northwest's development needs.

Port-de-Paix, the main city of Haiti's northwest department, was first founded by Spanish colonists in 1644 under the name Valparaiso, then refounded in 1665 by French filibusters driven off Tortuga by the English, who gave the town its present name; Bertrand d'Ogeron reportedly planted the first cacao tree on the island there.