Cat Island Rake & Scrape Festival 2026
Cat Island celebrates rake-and-scrape — the Bahamas' roots music of accordion, goatskin drum and a saw played with a screwdriver.
- 5 June 2026 → 7 June 2026
- Arthur's Town, Bahamas
- When5 June 2026 → 7 June 2026 · Held annually over the Bahamian Labour Day weekend in early June at Arthur's Town, Cat Island — the home of rake-and-scrape music. Exact 2026 dates should be confirmed locally.
- WhereArthur's Town, Cat Island
- CategoryCultural & Traditions · cultural
Cat Island celebrates rake-and-scrape — the Bahamas' roots music of accordion, goatskin drum and a saw played with a screwdriver.
<p>Rake-and-scrape is the traditional folk music of the Bahamas, built around an accordion, a goatskin drum and — the defining sound — a carpenter's saw 'scraped' with a screwdriver or knife. Cat Island is its spiritual home, and each June, over the Labour Day weekend, Arthur's Town hosts the Rake & Scrape Festival: three days of the country's best rake-and-scrape bands, quadrille and heel-and-toe dancing, Bahamian food and a strong sense of a community festival rather than a tourist show.</p><p>It pairs naturally with a climb up Mount Alvernia to the Hermitage, and with Cat Island's empty pink-and-white beaches. Confirm exact 2026 dates locally, as they shift with the Labour Day holiday.</p>
Where it happens
How to get there
Cat Island has two airstrips — New Bight (TBI) and Arthur's Town (ATC) — served mainly by Bahamasair from Nassau. Arthur's Town, at the north end, is where the festival is held; hire a car, as the island is long and services are sparse.
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Getting to the event
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