Sagrado Corazón de Jesús
Patron-saint festival · Puerto Pinasco
What it is
The date coincides with Friendship Day, which the press says began in this town: a thanksgiving Mass at the parish and a student parade.
Wikipedia lists the main festival on 30 July and a 2024 Última Hora report records a thanksgiving Mass that day at the Sacred Heart parish. Since the Sacred Heart is a movable feast in June, check with the parish.
The fiesta patronal (patron saint's festival) is the biggest day of the year in every Paraguayan town. It honors the local patron saint or Virgin with a novena (nine days of prayer), a serenade on the eve, a main Mass and a procession with a brass band, firecrackers and flags. Then comes the secular side: a kermesse (village fair) on the plaza, karu guasu (a big communal feast), chipa (cheesy cassava bread) and sopa paraguaya (savory cornbread) at the food stalls, dancing, torín or Paraguayan-style bullfighting (the bull is never killed), jineteadas (rodeo-style bronc riding) and carreras de sortija (a horseback ring-lancing race). As a visitor, arrive early for the procession, be respectful during Mass, try the food cooked by the parish committees and ask for the program at the church: dates often shift to the nearest weekend.
Dates may shift to the nearest weekend.
What to see
Puerto Pinasco · Presidente Hayes
Puerto Pinasco
A former tannin port on the Paraguay River, where the idea for Friendship Day on July 30 was born.
Puerto Pinasco (zona La Lota) · Presidente Hayes
Centro geográfico del Paraguay
The point of the country furthest from its extremes, deep in the Chaco: no marker or monument and hard to reach.
Researched and reviewed in September 2026 with — sources. A second reviewer checked dates, coordinates and lodging. Hours and prices may change.