Guanajuato Brings Its Kitchens, Crafts and Music to Xcaret’s Day of the Dead Festival

Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo — Guanajuato brought its kitchens, workshops and stages to the Mexican Caribbean as the guest state at the 20th edition of Xcaret’s Festival of Traditions of Life and Death, held from October 30 to November 2.

Traditional cooks, artisans and artists from the central Mexican state shared a sample of their gastronomy, handicrafts and cultural expressions with visitors at the park south of Playa del Carmen. The 2026 edition marked two decades of the festival, which is dedicated to Mexico’s Day of the Dead traditions.

Recipes That Keep Family Memory Alive

The food exhibition drew some of the steadiest crowds, with cooks recounting the stories and techniques passed down through generations. Among the details that surprised visitors were tortillas stamped with designs pressed from traditional wooden seals, heirlooms handed between families that preserve both the craft and the memory of their makers.

Gloria Vázquez, from Dolores Hidalgo, served preparations including pipián, mole, amaranth cakes, vitualla and a salsa made from garambullo, the fruit of a regional cactus known for its distinctive flavor. Vitualla is a typical Guanajuato stew of vegetables and legumes that varies from town to town and from family to family.

María del Carmen Hernández, from San Luis de la Paz, brought nopales in red salsa, maguey flower shoots cooked a la mexicana and huitlacoche with onions. Sara Nieto, from Yuriria, offered her Laguna and Campo tostadas along with a fried pozole made with red corn.

Regional products also drew interest. Celaya’s traditional cajeta appeared in coffee, vanilla, wine and burnt varieties, alongside strawberries with cream from Irapuato and honey mixed with walnuts, chile and fruit.

Handicrafts That Tell Stories

Guanajuato’s identity was also on display through its crafts, shaped by Otomí, Purépecha and Chichimeca traditions. Visitors found ceramic and majolica pieces — plates, tiles and cups painted by hand using techniques more than 400 years old.

The display included cartonería figures and traditional toys from Celaya and Santa Cruz de Juventino Rosas, leather goods from León, and brass and tinwork made by artisans in San Miguel de Allende.

Music, Theater and a Catrina

The artistic program mixed local acts with international proposals. The traditional Estudiantina of the University of Guanajuato filled the festival grounds with music, and Las Palomitas Serranas performed their own repertoire rooted in the state’s highlands.

One of the most talked-about shows was The Opera Locos, by the Spanish company Yllana, which blends humor, music and physical theater.

Also drawing attention was Erick de Luna’s Catrina, who used humor and historical detail to guide visitors through different regions of Guanajuato, introducing characters, customs and anecdotes along the way.

The musical highlight came with a concert by Pandora and Flans, which drew a large crowd for a nostalgic night of the two groups’ hits.

Two Decades of the Festival

Created in 2006, the Festival of Traditions of Life and Death has established itself as a platform for sharing Mexico’s cultural expressions. According to Grupo Xcaret, its 19 completed editions have drawn more than 800,000 visitors and featured more than 6,400 performances, rituals and representations, with participation from over 15,000 artists, traditional cooks, artisans and tradition bearers from more than 700 communities.