Customs Over 40,000 people at the carnival parade in Bellinzona
The Sunday carnival parade in Bellinzona attracted record numbers of visitors this year.
Image: Keystone
The Bellinzona carnival is called "Rabadan" and is considered one of the largest and most important in Ticino.
Image: Keystone
The Re - the carnival king - at the big parade in Bellinzona on Sunday.
Image: Keystone
With over 40,000 visitors, the 162nd "Rabadan" clearly outstripped the previous year's edition.
Image: Keystone
Perfect carnival weather for the big parade on Sunday in the Ticino capital of Bellinzona.
Image: Keystone
The Sunday carnival parade in Bellinzona attracted record numbers of visitors this year.
Image: Keystone
The Bellinzona carnival is called "Rabadan" and is considered one of the largest and most important in Ticino.
Image: Keystone
The Re - the carnival king - at the big parade in Bellinzona on Sunday.
Image: Keystone
With over 40,000 visitors, the 162nd "Rabadan" clearly outstripped the previous year's edition.
Image: Keystone
Perfect carnival weather for the big parade on Sunday in the Ticino capital of Bellinzona.
Image: Keystone
More than 40,000 people attended the big carnival parade with 53 groups and floats in Bellinzona on Sunday. The subjects of the so-called Rabadan included Nemo and the election fraud in Arbedo-Castione last spring.
02.03.2025, 19:16
SDA
On the occasion of the 162nd Rabadan, 53 groups and Guggen took part in this year's parade on Sunday - the Corteo. Many of the formations were from German-speaking Switzerland.
When asked by the Keystone-SDA news agency, the media spokesperson for the organizing committee said that a "record number of visitors" had been achieved - at least in terms of recent years. Last year, significantly fewer people attended the big carnival parade due to less than ideal weather conditions.
Under a bright blue sky and pleasant temperatures, colorful and noisy carnival groups paraded through the main streets of Bellinzona on Sunday afternoon. The red and white airplanes of the "Crèpe de la Crèpe" group from Bellinzona, which addressed the possible end of the Swiss Army's Patrouille Suisse aerobatic team, were particularly eye-catching.
Nemo was also in Bellinzona
The "Combricola di Formighin" from Biasca made fun of the election fraud in Arbedo-Castione last spring and carried oversized Tip-Ex bottles in front of them. A large "Eurovision" float featured a Nemo dressed entirely in light pink, who bowed repeatedly to the audience.
The carnival celebrations in the Ticino capital kicked off on Thursday. Around 30,000 visitors were counted on both the first and second carnival evenings, said the Rabadan media spokesperson. There have been no unusual incidents so far.
The Rabadan is considered the largest and most important carnival in Ticino. Rabadan means noise in the Piedmontese dialect. The carnival is led by the Re - the king. He receives the (symbolic) key to the city gates from the mayor on Dirty Thursday. After that, the jesters call the shots for five days. The highlight of the Rabadan is the big parade on Sunday.
