Carnival activities have been called off this year because of the pandemic and social media posts claiming otherwise are fake, carnival artistic director Jason Busuttil has confirmed.

Carnival this year will be celebrated virtually and instead of the traditional floats streaming down Valletta’s Republic Street, carnival activities will be broadcast on television and social media, while static floats will be set up as installations on central roundabouts and other spots.

Static floats to be set up in roundabouts

Busuttil warned that a fake Facebook post was making the rounds, misinforming people that festivities were set to take place in a month as usual in Valletta.

“This carnival page, which even allows you to book tickets for the event, is fake. Carnival this year is not going to take the same form,” he warned.

Traditional carnival activities in Nadur had also been cancelled and any spontaneous gatherings of large groups in the streets would be reported to the police, mayor Edward Said told Times of Malta.

Details would be issued in the coming days, he said.

Last year, an estimated 48,000 people and 15,000 cars had crossed over to Gozo to take part in the carnival festivities.