Grand parade
Our Grand Parade boasts a 60–contingent (comparsa) lineup, with over 3,000 artists representing the cultural heritages of Brazil, Mexico, Panama, Bolivia, Cuba, Peru, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua, Colombia, Trinidad & Tobago, Guatemala, El Salvador, and more to participate, televised by CBS. The Grand Parade covers 20 blocks in San Francisco’s historic Latino Cultural District in the Mission.
Parade Lineup
- San Francisco Lowrider Council
- Viva, Amor y la Lucha con Samba Ritmo
- Xiuhcoatl Danza Azteca
- American Indian Cultural Center of San Francisco
- San Francisco Public Library
- The Frontline Essential Workers of Laborers Union Local 261
- ABADA CAPOEIRA SAN FRANCISCO
- Community Music Center and SFUSD Mariachi in Partnership with SF City Surf Project Sponsored by SunBum
- UNIDOS DA CAPITAL
- Buena Vista Horace Mann School
- Grand Marshals Dandha Da Hora and John Santos
- Bloco Ginga Brasil
- BART (SF Bay Area Rapid Transit District)
- Feline Finesse Dance Company
- Kantuta Ballet Folklorico de Bolivia
- Zumba of the 209
- Sepia Lux Art Car
- La Cumbiamba Colombiana
- 2025 King German Tike and Queen Zoel Esperanza sponsored by the SF Latino & Black Builders Association
- SambaFunk!
- Oya Nike
- Comunidad Maya Yucateca
- Chavalos Danzas por Nicaragua
- Ballet Folklorico Pueblo Nuevo
- Telemundo 48
- Beautiful Beginnings Arts Collective
- CultuCuba & Arenas Dance Company
- Karimba Afrikans
- SALT Association/Pacific Islander Cultural District
- Hot Pink Feathers
- ASIYA SHRINERS OF SAN MATEO
- Everett Middle School – “Caribra”
- Recology
- Cuicacalli
- Esforço!
- Tradicion Peruana Cultural Center
- Aquarela Samba Dancers
- Morenada San Francisco-Bolivia para el Mundo
- Nicaragua Danza – Hijos del Maiz
- Grupo Samba Rio
- Latin Dance Grooves
- Esplendor Azteca Xipe Totec
- Caravana de la Bahia
- Loco Bloco
- Caporales San Simon Universitarios
- Asociacion Mayab
- Salseros Parceros
- Negritud Yanga USA
- Club Puertorriqueño de San Francisco
- Oaxaca en San Francisco
- Rueda Con Ritmo
- Jaguars of Fire
- Los Bomberos De San Francisco
- Batala San Francisco
- Cable Car Operators & Families
- Sambaxé
- Native Fairy Gardens
- Fogo Na Roupa Grupo Carnavalesco
- Mi Tierra Colombiana
- Bolivia Corazon de America
- Sou Samba Studios
- Xplosion Mas
- Raio de Luz Samba Performers
- The San Francisco Belles
- Carnaval Putleco
- Miss Panama SF California
- Karibbean Vibrationz
- Tradiciones Michoacanas: El Torito de Petate
- Samba Conmigo
- Flavaz of D’ Caribbean
get the best seats
See the 2025 Carnaval San Francisco Grand Parade in the best seats of the event, the Grand Stand/Judging Area!
Parade starts on 24th & Bryant Street travels west on to Mission Street then on Mission Street travels north to 15th Street.
The Grand Stand seating area will be located outside, in front of the Gray Area Theatre. Tickets are for general admission–no reserve seating available. Wheelchair accessibility available.
PARADE MAP
Grand Marshals
PARADE JUDGES
Laurie Fleurentin
Judge Laurie Fleurentin was born in Haiti and began dancing at the age of five at the Academy of Ballet and Arts. She studied traditional Haitian dance with Armande J. Piard and Vivianne Gauthier, and received a Graduate diploma in Dance at L’ ENARTS - National School of the Arts in Haiti. Laurie teaches at San Francisco State University, Dimensions Dance Theaters in Oakland, and The Beat in Berkeley, and has performed at the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival, at the Haitian Festival at San Francisco and with Cubacaribe in San Francisco. She is leader, Artistic Director and choreographer for her own dance company, F.A.L. (Folklo Ayisyen Lakay) which translates in creole to “House of Haitian Folklore”. Laurie is dedicated to the research, development and promotion of traditional Haitian dance, song and storytelling.
Deborah Vaughan
Judge Deborah Vaughan is the Artistic Director, Principal Choreographer, and co-founder of Dimensions Dance Theater, a contemporary dance company that was founded in Oakland, California in 1972 to promote public awareness of the central role that African Americans have played in defining American art, culture, and social change. Throughout her career, Deborah has been committed to producing, creating, performing, and teaching dance that reflects the historical experience, struggles, and contemporary lives of African Americans. Under her artistic leadership, Dimensions Dance Theater presents traditional African dances, as well as original contemporary choreography drawn from African, Jazz, and Modern dance idioms.
Vanessa Sanchez
Judge Vanessa Sanchez is a Chicana dancer, choreographer, and educator whose work centers on community arts and traditional dance forms to uplift the voices of Latina, Chicana, and Indigenous womxn. Vanessa is the Founder and Executive Artistic Director of La Mezcla SF, a polyrhythmic dance company that explores historical narratives and social justice through Tap dance, Son Jarocho, and Afro-Caribbean rhythms. She is deeply committed to community engagement, bringing the histories of communities of color to stages, streets, and fields. Vanessa has performed with local companies including Arenas Dance Company, Duniya Dance and Drum, & Las Bomberas de la Bahia. Her work has been shown on national and international stages, including Lincoln Center, Teatro Maria Matos in Lisbon, Portugal and El Teatro de la Ciudad Esperanza Iris in Mexico City.
Jose Cuellar – Dr. Loco
Judge José Cuéllar or Dr. Loco is a San Antonio, Texas native and San Francisco, California resident. José Bernardo Cuéllar, Ph.D. is Professor Emeritus at San Francisco State University, as well as leader of Dr. Loco's Rockin' Jalapeño Band. His more recent awards and honors include: The Hardy Curatorial Fellowship at Harvard University’s Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology (2012), The San Francisco Mayor's Latino Heritage Arts Award (2014), the Loyal Order of Outstanding and Accomplished Texas Musicians Induction (2016), and University
