The Swiss carnival combines, old traditions with fun and partying. The whole town is on its feet, and no one hides at home. The carnival in Switzerland may not be quite the spectacle of its counterpart in Rio, but anybody who thinks that the Swiss are conservative and staid may be surprised at the lively festivities. During the carnival season, partygoers let their hair down and enjoy life to the full. And unlike the carnival in Rio which is held at the peak of summer, the Swiss have to dress up a lot more warmly due to the chilly times of the year it takes place. But masks and costumes help people to jump into a new identity while they parade through the streets, often playing music instruments in a wild manor.

Basel Carnival

The Carnival of Basel (Basler Fasnacht) is the biggest carnival in Switzerland and also differs from the rest of the carnival festival. It takes place once a year between February and March, starts on Monday after Ash Wednesday at precisely 4:00 am in the morning with the so-called Morgestraich Most unique is that the Carnival of Basel starts a week later than the surrounding cities. It is not completely understood why it start later but usually it is thought to be related to the Reformation in 1520, when Basel as a protestant fellow town, still kept celebrating its Fasnacht whilst the other regions officially stopped it. It is said, that to differ from the Catholic tradition, Fasnacht was scheduled one week later starting in 1529. There are no documents from this era supporting this theory. Only 200 years later were the resolutions of 1529 quoted. Today the Carnival of Basel is said to be "the only Protestant carnival in the world".

The carnival lasts for exactly 72 hours and then ends on Thursday morning at 4:00 am. In this time span the old town of Basel is in an exceptional state and ruled by the Fasnächtler (the participants). Each of the approximately 18,000 active Fasnächtlers wears a costume including a Larve (a mask). Wearing a costume means not being known by the crowd and it is not appropriate to identify yourself. You will find a broad variety of different costume designs, representing famous persons (politicians or the like) or sometimes even comic characters or animals. There are also traditional and historical masks that are reminiscent of the French army of Napoleon and are called Harlequin or the famous Waggis.
However, the Baler Fasnacht is a big party where partygoers and visitors rally in the streets and restaurants. And often the Basler Fasnacht is called "die drey scheenschte Dääg" (the three most beautiful days) and not without reason it has recently been listed in the Top 50 of Europe’s best local festivities.