Every Puerto Rican town celebrates its own patron saint festival — here's when the ones near our destinations happen, plus San Juan's biggest street party.
Read More ↓Every municipality in Puerto Rico holds an annual "fiestas patronales" — a celebration honoring a saint or a title of the Virgin Mary, blending Spanish Catholic tradition with African and local influences. Expect live music, processions, artisan markets, carnival rides, and local food, usually centered on the town plaza.
Fajardo's fiestas patronales honor Santiago Apóstol (Saint James the Apostle) in July, with religious processions, live concerts, artisan vendors and carnival rides in the town plaza.
Culebra celebrates its patron festival on July 16, honoring Our Lady of Mount Carmel — fittingly, the patroness of fishermen and seafarers.
Vieques holds festivals honoring the Sagrada Familia in January, Virgen del Carmen (its biggest celebration) in the third week of July, and the Immaculate Conception on December 8.
Not a fiesta patronal, but Puerto Rico's best-known street festival: held the third weekend of January in Old San Juan, unofficially closing out the island's long holiday season with live music and street parties.
