Festival

With such a diverse cultural tapestry, the people of St. Lucia always have something wonderful to celebrate. Parades, festivals, and events are a big part of local life, and visitors are welcome to join in the fun and festivities. Saint Lucian cultural festivals include La Rose on 30 August and La Marguerite on 17 October, the first representing a native Saint Lucian fraternal society known as the Order of the Rose, which is fashioned after Rosicrucianism, and the second representing its traditional rival, the native Saint Lucian equivalent of Freemasonry known as the Order of the Marguerite.

The Saint Lucia Jazz Festival is the year's largest festival. It is held in early May at various venues throughout the island and attracts visitors and musicians from all over the world. Pigeon Island, located to the north of the island, hosts the grand finale or main stage.

Saint Lucia, like other Caribbean countries, traditionally holds a carnival before Lent. To avoid competing with the much larger Trinidad and Tobago carnival and to attract more overseas visitors, the government moved Carnival to mid-July in 1999. Saint Lucians celebrated the 150th anniversary of West Indian heritage on the island in May 2009.