Día de los Muertos | 5 Cities and How They Celebrate

Mexico City

There’s no better time to be in Mexico’s capital city than during the Day of the Dead. Like the city itself it goes big when celebrating this holiday. One of the biggest and most extravagant ways Mexico City celebrates is during its annual Day of the Dead parade, known in the city as Desfile de Día de Muertos. 

Hundreds of thousands of people come downtown to watch this carnaval-esque parade! The parade highlights the region’s vibrant ancient ancestral traditions. It  features indigenous performers showcasing their traditional dances and music, giant skeleton puppets, Alebrijes (mythical spirit creatures) huge ofrenda (altars honoring the dead) floats.

One of the most famous symbols of Day of the Dead, the Catrina, can be seen everywhere. Catrinas are elegantly dressed skeletons decked out in beautiful dresses and fancy hats with intricate face paint. This parade is actually a relatively new tradition started in 2016 inspired by the 2015 James Bond movie Spectre. The opening scene features James Bond wearing a skull mask as he walks through a sea of day of the dead parade participants and spectators. Some of the actual props used in the movie are used in the parade today.

Oaxaca, Mexico

Another one of the biggest celebrations in Mexico takes place in the eclectic city of Oaxaca, Mexico.

Oaxaca is considered the culinary and cultural city of Mexico. All it takes to experience the excitement is to simply take a step outside. On practically every street a party or a parade will be taking place. Stop by one of the hundreds of face painting stations to get yourself into the spirit. Mouthwatering treats await throughout the city and none so famous as the Pan de Muertos (bread of the dead). Stopping into a local panaderia to try this sweet bread bathed in sugar is a must and can be eaten as a breakfast or as a dessert.

Colorful sand tapestries (known as tapetes de arena) with Día de Los Muertos imagery can be found everywhere. It is truly magical in this city during this time. One of the ways this city loves to celebrate is to show off its artistic talent in an annual ofrenda contest. As you walk around the city there will be home-made ofrendas on display everywhere. Schools, market places and social organizations hold contests for the most intricate and beautifully designed ofrendas. The ofrenda is one of the most endearing symbols of the holiday. It is a type of altar created to honor the memory of a deceased family member. On the altar you will see photographs of the deceased and marigold flowers representing the fragility of life. Candles, decorative skulls, and various items that the person loved throughout their life such as musical instruments, a favorite drink, or certain foods that they loved are on display. The belief is that the deceased family member will be drawn to the ofrenda and be closer with their loved ones.