Miami Gets Ready To Rumba With Calle Ocho Festival

MIAMI, FL — The streets of Miami come alive Sunday with the annual Calle Ocho Festival or “El Festival de la Calle Ocho.” This year's event starts at 11 a.m. and ends at 7 p.m. along SW 8 Street from SW 27th Avenue to SW 12th Avenue.

Billed as the largest Hispanic festival in the United States, event organizers say this year's event will span 20 blocks of "musical stages, international food, sampling sites, folkloric dances and entertainment for all holistic demographics: families, couples and friends."

Over the years, Calle Ocho has featured some of the biggest names in Latin music, including Pitbull, Niki Jam and Maluma.

"This year's event features a Cuban sandwich 'smackdown' while festival goers can also join street dancers in a conga line as they enjoy hundreds of international food kiosks simmering with Latin flavors," according to the Kiwanis Club of Little Havana, which puts on the festival.

Miami police have released the following street closures and transit changes ahead of the event:

• Eastbound traffic on SW 8th Street from SW 27th Avenue to SW 12th Avenue will be closed beginning on Saturday at 11:30 p.m. Traffic traveling eastbound on SW 8th Street will be detoured northbound or southbound at SW 27 Avenue. Also, SW 22nd Avenue between SW 7 to 8 Street will be closed as of 6 p.m.
• Miami- Dade Transit buses that travel along SW 8th Street will be detoured. Check with the Miami-Dade Transit Agency for more information.
• SW 7th Street will remain open westbound until SW 12 Avenue, then detoured north.
• Residents that live in the area will be allowed access on a“local traffic only” basis to SW 7th Street on the north and south sides of SW 9th Street.
• Motorists are encouraged to take alternate routes should they need to travel in the vicinity.
• City of Miami Police officers will be placed along the street closures to provide assistance.
• SW 8th Street will reopen to traffic by 5 a.m. Monday.