Mission District Memorial Day Parade & Festival

Carnaval San Francisco will return to the Mission District on Saturday, May 23, and Sunday, May 24, with a two-day street festival and a Sunday Grand Parade that organizers say will again draw large crowds into the neighborhood. SF.gov describes Carnaval as the largest and longest-running multicultural celebration in California, with more than 400,000 attendees each year. The free festival is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on both days along Harrison Street between 16th and 24th streets. The Grand Parade is set to begin at 10 a.m. Sunday at 24th and Bryant streets. ### Where exactly is the festival, and what streets does it use? Harrison Street between 16th and 24th streets is the main festival footprint, according to SF.gov and San Francisco Travel. The event stretches across 17 blocks and includes five main stages, food, dance, arts and crafts, and vendor booths, the city says. Mission Street becomes the center of the parade on Sunday. San Francisco Travel says the procession starts at 24th and Bryant, heads west to Mission Street, then turns north to 15th Street before turning east to South Van Ness Avenue. ### How big is the event this year? Carnaval San Francisco is in its 48th year, according to the organization’s website and KQED. SF.gov says the festival includes 300 vendors, while the official Carnaval site says the event spans 17 blocks and features five music stages and five DJ block parties. KQED reported that the Sunday parade is expected to include more than 70 contingents, while SF.gov says the Grand Parade is typically a 20-block procession with more than 60 contingents and over 2,000 dancers each year. KQED also reported that more than 3,000 dancers, musicians and artists take part across the weekend. ### What will people see at the parade? San Francisco Travel says the parade features floats with multicultural themes and performances from Brazilian samba schools, Caribbean contingents, Mexican Aztec performers, African drummers, Polynesian dancers, Japanese drummers and folkloric groups representing countries including Guatemala, Honduras and Bolivia. SF.gov says Carnaval has, over the years, featured artists including Celia Cruz, Santana, the Neville Brothers, Oscar D’León and Los Tigres del Norte. The event’s current programming remains centered on neighborhood culture, music and dance in the Mission District. ### What is this year’s theme? “La Copa del Pueblo,” or “The People’s Cup,” is the 2026 theme, according to the official Carnaval website and San Francisco Travel. Organizers say the concept ties this year’s celebration to soccer and to community play in neighborhood streets and parks. Rodrigo Durán, the event’s executive director, told KQED that soccer is “deeply ingrained in Latin American culture.” The official Carnaval site says a soccer-themed activation called La Plaza del Fútbol will be set up at 20th and Harrison streets during the weekend. ### Who is performing, and is there an admission charge? Su Majestad Mi Banda El Mexicano de Casimiro is this year’s headliner, according to the official Carnaval website and KQED. The event itself is free, though the official site says paid grandstand seating will be available along part of the parade route near Mission Street. The festival is billed as family-friendly. San Francisco Travel says no pets are allowed in the festival area. ### How should visitors get there? BART stations at 16th Street Mission and 24th Street Mission are the closest rail stops, according to San Francisco Travel. The tourism agency says driving and parking are discouraged because of street closures and heavy attendance. Saturday, May 23, is the first festival day, with programming scheduled from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, May 24, begins with the 10 a.m. Grand Parade and continues with festival programming through 6 p.m., with route maps, seating information and transit details posted by Carnaval San Francisco and San Francisco Travel.