The Newbie’s Guide to Playing Mas in Caribana
The Peeks Toronto Caribbean Carnival, also called Caribana, is one of North America’s largest celebrations of Caribbean heritage. For the past few years, I passively enjoyed Caribana by scrolling through Instagram and screaming “Yass Girl” to all the beautiful, colorful carnival costumes lighting up my feed. This year, I finally made the trip happen and became one of the girls in the parade, living their best life whining in a carnival costume.
Here’s a newbie’s guide to playing mas in Caribana:
1) But First…
You should know you do not need to be Caribbean to participate in the carnival. Everyone is welcome! While I used this as an opportunity to represent my 1/8 Jamaican and Nevisian heritage, plenty of non-Caribbean people were celebrating. Also, if soca and reggae aren’t a part of your daily playlist, I recommend priming your ears before you attend the carnival. It will get your energy right where it needs to be, and you will hear it for the entire weekend!
2) Know the Caribana Parade Date
Caribana is always the first weekend of August, starting on Thursday. The Parade is always on Saturday.
3) Getting There and Around
We flew into the Toronto Pearson International Airport (XYZ). Toronto has an extensive public transportation system. You can take the shuttle train to Union Station to connect to the metro or take a taxi to your accommodation. We primarily used Uber and Lyft to get around during the weekend.
4) Learn the Must-Know Caribana Terms
One key way to navigate Caribana with finesse is to familiarize yourself with the lingo. Here are the most common words you’ll hear:
Mas-
Short for masquerade, a.k.a. the big parade that happens on Saturday.
Mas Band-
Bands are organized groups of parade-goers who pay for a costume created by a designer.
Mas Players-
Parade participants in costume. You will commonly hear people in the parade say they are “playing mas.”
The Road-
The parade route is known as the road. Many people say, “Meet me on the road”.
Fete-
Fete is French for festival. These are an array of parties that include performing artists that occur days before and after the parade.
J’ouvert-
A massive paint party that happens the night before the carnival. If you plan on participating, it’s best to wear all white and something you don’t mind getting ruined. You’ll leave drenched in colorful paint, baby powder, and mud!
Terms Specific to Caribbean Costumes:
Front Line-
These are the more extravagant costumes. They come with the largest feathers and tons of jewels.
Mid Line-
Mid-line costumes usually have more gems, bigger feathers, and larger attachment pieces.
Back Line-
Backline costumes tend to have fewer attachments, feathers, and jewels. The best thing about these costumes is that you can move around more easily than the front-line costumes. Also, you can buy additional attachments to add more to your costume.
Hot Shorts-
Hot shorts are the boy short option for costume bottoms. Costumes typically come with regular bikini-cut swim bottoms.
Boa-
These feather pieces connect to the back of your bikini bottoms.
5) Book Accommodations ASAP
I strongly advise booking your hotel or Airbnb accommodation near the ‘entertainment district’. This is the downtown area, and everything nearby is within walking distance or a short taxi ride away. If you stay in an Airbnb, you may not want to disclose to your host that you are coming for Caribana. We’ve had a host cancel us after we said we were coming for Caribana. Some hosts have a preconceived idea that all carnival goers are rowdy and irresponsible guests. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise because we ended up staying at a beautiful condo and had a gracious host, Jay, who was excited we were coming for the carnival.
6) Decide Whether or Not You Want to Play Mas
I wouldn’t go to Caribana and not play mas because I felt it was an obligatory part of the experience. Our backline costume was USD 233. Costumes can go upwards of USD 1,000. I wouldn’t normally spend that amount on something I only wear once. But after my friend Jordan and I thought about other potential dress-up options for our costume (unicorn, ice angel, fairy, mermaid, etc.), I felt much better about the purchase.
5) Mas 101
Order your costume sooner rather than later
Several bands participate in Carnival, and each tends to split into sections. It’s hard to choose because the majority of the costumes are stunning! We went with Saldenah because they win Band of the Year practically every year (including this year)! It’s always nice to be a part of the winning team.
If you want to look at all the bands’ costume offerings, visit the Caribana Official Website to see what bands are participating, and then visit the bands’ website/ IG to see their different sections. All costumes are hand-made. If you have any costume-related questions, you can email the section leader. A lot of the popular costumes sell out fast. We purchased ours on June 20th, and the available options were limited.
Costume Pick-up
Costumes are not shipped to you. Once you purchase your costume, close to the parade date, your section leader will provide you with details on where to pick up your costumes. Pick-up is typically at a warehouse a day or two before the event. It’s a quick process (no more than 20 minutes). The costumes come packaged and ready to be handed away. We were also provided a goodie bag with hair gel and a phone pouch, which was a pleasant surprise. You will be instructed on how to assemble the costume correctly. Unfortunately, switching sizes is often not allowed since everything is made to order. Sometimes you may luck out and they will have extra or you can swap with another person, however I wouldn’t count on it. If you have any questions about sizing, contact the section leader before submitting your payment.
Shoes
You will walk and dance for miles, so I recommend wearing comfortable shoes. Wearing sandals or cheap shoes is just inviting blisters and sore feet. People commonly wear tennis sneakers or boots. It’s best to wear sneakers that have already been broken in.
Stockings
A lot of women wear fishnet stockings with their costumes. I intended to wear them, but the ones I ordered didn’t mesh well with my costume, so I went without them. If you do end up wearing stockings, keep clear nail polish with you on the road in case your stockings start to run.
Make-up & Accessories
Women tend to wear bright-colored eyeshadow and a lot of glitter and gemstones on their faces. Hairspray and Vaseline help the glitter stay on, and eyelash glue is excellent for added security for the gemstones (otherwise, they are guaranteed to fall off your face at some point). Also, don’t forget your flag to wave on the road!
There is no place to store your belongings. I recommend buying a fanny pack, small backpack, or phone pouch to store your phone, money, and small items. Only bring your most essential items.
Weather
Monitor the weather as you get closer to the day of the parade. The weather was extremely hot and sunny the weekend I participated, but I heard it was rainy for a few Caribanas before that.
Food & Drinks*
Each masquerader receives a wristband, which allows you to get free food. They provide breakfast at the beginning before the parade starts and a meal after the parade. Both meals were rice and stew chicken. Be prepared for crazy long and unorganized lines. There are other vendors you can buy food from as well.
Make sure you have your tumbler ready for the road with your drink of choice because Toronto doesn’t supply alcohol to masqueraders. You can buy mini bottles from the liquor store to easily store in your pouch. You are provided with an ample supply of water and coconut water along the parade route. There was even pizza going around during lunchtime.
Parade Logistics
Parade arrival: We arrived by 9 am, and the parade started at 10:30 am. It’s better to arrive early so you aren’t scrambling to find your band. Every band has a space number, which helps you find your way to it. Arriving at 9 am was perfect because we had plenty of time to eat, touch up make-up, and take pictures.
The Fence: In recent years, fences have been placed on the road to keep non-masqueraders off it. However, the parade fences are about 4 feet tall, so many non-masqueraders are known to jump the fence to join the festival.
During the parade: It can get a little confusing where you’re supposed to stand. Ideally, you want to be with your section, but all the section costumes get mixed. The section leaders tried to control this, but everyone inevitably mixed.
End of Parade: The band competition happens at the parade’s end. Each band section crosses the stage to show off their costumes to the judges. After the competition, masqueraders and general attendees join a giant block party. The winner is announced a few days later.
Health
Don’t forget sunscreen! I was rushing in the morning to get ready and forgot to put sunscreen on my face before I placed my gems. My face was a little splotchy when I took them off. Gem tan lines aren’t cute. Thankfully, they quickly went away!
Stay hydrated! Drink a lot of water to help you get through the 7+ hours of dancing in the hot sun.
Body Positivity
What I loved most about the parade was the displayed body positivity. People of all sizes were in their costumes, dancing and celebrating without judgment from others. It was a very empowering vibe.
Safety
Although I was super excited to dress up for the carnival, I was slightly worried about being half-naked in a big crowd as I got closer to the event. But those worries disappeared as soon as I was on the parade road. Everyone is scantily-clad, but also everyone is respectful.
Money
Make sure you have Canadian cash handy. Even if you pay in USD, you will be given a change in CAD, which means you will lose money.
If you enjoy being surrounded by beautiful people, positive energy, and Caribbean culture, Caribana is a move to make at least once in your life!
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