The Museo del Carnaval near the port documents Montevideo's extraordinary carnival tradition, which runs for 40 days each year and is the longest carnival anywhere in the world. The collection includes costumes, masks, murga instruments, drums, and film footage of past performances.
The museum is particularly strong on the Afro-Uruguayan candombe tradition — the rhythm, the drums, the distinctive figures of Mama Vieja, Papa Montero, and El Gramillero that appear in every procession. If you visit during Carnival (January–February), performances of murgas (satirical musical groups) and candombe happen throughout the city every night. The museum provides the cultural context that makes these performances fully comprehensible.