Calabash Returns to Treasure Beach May 21–23, 2027
There are places that recover after a storm, and there are places that emerge stronger because of it.
Treasure Beach knows the difference.
The Calabash International Literary Festival is pleased to announce its return to Treasure Beach, Jamaica, from May 21–23, 2027, bringing together writers, readers, thinkers, dreamers, and friends from around the world for another unforgettable celebration of stories, music, and community. Founded in 2001, Calabash has grown into one of the Caribbean’s most beloved literary gatherings and continues to draw thousands to the shores of St. Elizabeth every two years.
The announcement comes at a meaningful moment for Treasure Beach.
Just a few months after the last Calabash Festival in May 2025, Hurricane Melissa struck Jamaica’s south coast in October, leaving significant damage throughout the community. Homes, businesses, schools, sports facilities, and community spaces were affected. Yet in the months that followed, the spirit that has always defined Treasure Beach became impossible to ignore. Neighbors helping neighbors. Families rebuilt together. Local businesses reopened even though they may not have been up to 100%. And the community moved forward with the quiet determination for which Treasure Beach has long been known.
That resilience is part of the reason Calabash belongs here.
For more than two decades, the festival has been shaped by the character outcropping this fishing and farming village and the people who call it home. The conversations that take place on stage are important, but so are the ones that happen on verandas, under almond trees, along the shoreline, and around dinner tables. Calabash has always been about more than books or the spoken word. It is about connection.
When festival-goers return in May 2027, they will find a community that has worked hard, persevered, and continued to welcome the world with the warmth and authenticity that make Treasure Beach unlike anywhere else in Jamaica.
The 2025 festival reminded everyone why Calabash matters. Thousands gathered at Calabash Bay for three days of readings, discussions, performances, and celebration, reaffirming the festival’s place as one of the most important literary events in the Caribbean and a cultural landmark for Jamaica.
Now, attention turns to 2027.
Mark your calendars. Save the dates. Make your plans.
From May 21–23, 2027, the stories will return to the seaside stage, the conversations will continue, and Treasure Beach will once again welcome the world to Calabash.
Because great stories endure as do great communities.
