The Notting Hill Carnival. Image courtesy of SPakhrin on Flickr

The Notting Hill Carnival is fast approaching and is one of the most eye-catching festivals the planet has to offer.

Held every August Bank Holiday since 1966, and taking place on August 26 and 27 this year, the Notting Hill Carnival attracts over 1 million revellers from around the world.

The carnival originates from 1964 when West Indian’s in West London decided to put on a local festival to celebrate the heritage of their Afro-Caribbean community and abolition of the slave trade. Now it has grown to become a global phenomenon, officially holding the title as Europe’s largest street festival.

This year the carnival is set to draw another million people from around the globe. People from cultures such as Trinidad, Brazil, West Indies and several African nations descend upon West London in vibrant costumes, aboard custom-made floats.

With the sounds of steel drums and cultured music from around the world filling people ears, combined with the smell of the best foods from the Caribbean being sold along the festival area; it has all the ingredients of a memorable celebration.

Getting underway on the Sunday, otherwise known as ‘children’s day’, the carnival kicks off with the floats cruising from Great Western Road into Chepstow Road ending up at Ladbroke Grove.

The costume prizes and steel band competition will take place before the floats leave the streets and people party through the night set for the Bank Holiday Monday.

Monday is adult’s day when the main parade begins. The attendees travel twenty miles in their astonishing costumes surrounded by over forty static sound systems and hundreds of Caribbean food stalls.

If you are planning on making a trip to London this summer for the Olympics and want to experience the biggest street festival in Europe, then the Notting Hill Carnival is a must-see.

Home From Home offer a variety of apartments based in and around Notting Hill, allowing you to experience the carnival atmosphere come August. For more information about our properties available during the summer, visit www.homefromhome.co.uk