These days you're more likely to see lusty Latin styles steaming up the dance floor.

Canberra hosted the 19th annual National Capital DanceSport Championships at the AIS Arena at the weekend, billed by organisers as the capital's "glamour sporting event of the year".

Carol Kimmins, of Dancesport NSW, said the popularity of the traditional styles of ballroom dancing had waned but modern musical influences were drawing new generations into the sport.

"With shows like Dancing with the Stars growing in popularity and a lot of new music coming out with a Latin edge, a lot more young people relate to it and want to get involved," Ms Kimmins said.

Dancesport, previously known as competitive ballroom dancing, is generally broken up into standard dances (such as the modern waltz, quickstep, foxtrot, Viennese waltz and tango), Latin styles (such as the rumba, cha cha cha, samba, jive and the Paso Doble or dance of the Matador) and New Vogue (sequence-style dancing involving numerous people on the floor at once)

The two days of competition attracted hundreds of dance couples from across Australia and New Zealand.

Following on from the DanceSport championships, dancers are now looking forward to October's inaugural Canberra Latin Dance Festival.

The festival is being hosted by Salsabor Dance School's Raquel and Andrea Paez, who said they are excited to showcase what Canberra's got.

"This is a wonderful opportunity for everyone, this is the first time Canberra has held anything like this and all the local Latin dance schools are involved." Said Raquel Paez.

The director of Canberra's Subsdance Latin Dance Studio Kate Ticehurst said Latin styles are increasingly becoming the hot flavours.

"What makes Latin popular is you can dance it to any music," Ms Ticehurst said.

"It can be danced to all the latest music, unlike more traditional styles which are more restricted."

"There are salsa nights almost every night of the week at different locations around Canberra," Ms Ticehurst said.

"Not only does it keep you fit, the social benefits are huge."

The first Canberra Latin Dance Festival will be staged on the weekend of October 19-21 at the Australian National University (ANU) Sports and Recreational Centre.