It takes place on Friday, the day before the Queen's Election, from the balcony of the City Hall in Cartagena's Plaza del Ayuntamiento (Town Hall Square).  How to get there

Until 2022, it was held in the Wssell de Guimbarda Central Sports Pavilion in Cartagena, along with the Grand Carnival Gala and the Election of the Queen on the first Saturday of Carnival. However, in 2023, it was decided to separate the Opening Ceremony from the Grand Gala and hold it the day before, taking the events to the streets and moving them to the city center, so that all the people of Cartagena and tourists could experience it.

The opening speech marks the start of the Cartagena Carnival , a festival that is becoming increasingly established in the port city.