Guelaguetza, Oaxaca’s world renowned ethnic festival, gets underway

A packed location of much than 11,000 radical was connected manus Monday for the opening of the 94th variation of Oaxaca’s celebrated Guelaguetza festival.

The archetypal Monday connected the Hill kicked disconnected what is wide considered Latin America’s largest taste celebration, with 13 delegations from crossed the authorities presenting dances, euphony and determination customs.

The opening Monday connected the Hill amusement took spot successful the specially built outdoor amphitheater inaugurated successful the 1970s and renovated 2008-2010. There volition beryllium different Monday connected the Hill connected July 27. (gob.mx)

The festivities took spot successful the Guelaguetza Auditorium, an open-air amphitheater built successful the 1970s connected the slope of Cerro del Fortín supra Oaxaca’s historical center. 

Modernized and renovated from 2008 to 2010, the installation volition besides big a 2nd Lunes del Cerro (Monday connected the Hill) connected July 27 — portion of the closing agelong of the festival, adjacent arsenic broadside fairs and events continue.

As successful 2025 and years past, the opening amusement focused connected the traditions and euphony of Oaxaca’s 16 Indigenous peoples and Afro-Mexican communities.

Enid Azucena Torres Agustiniano — a nursing student, cyclist and activistic for Afro-Mexican rights — was chosen by the state’s Ministry of Culture and Arts arsenic the festival’s authoritative ambassador, Goddess Centéotl.

The archetypal Afro-Mexican pistillate to service successful that role, Torres is primitively from Santiago Pinotepa Nacional successful the Costa Chica area, a corridor connected the seashore of Oaxaca and Guerrero with immoderate of Mexico’s highest concentrations of Afro-Mexican communities.

“Being Afro-Mexican is not thing to hide,” Torres told the audience. “It is thing to grant and unrecorded with dignity.”

Opening time featured performances from communities including Ciudad Ixtepec, San Juan Bautista Tuxtepec and Santiago Pinotepa Nacional. Signature moments included a sing-along of “Dios Nunca Muere” and closing dances that drew lasting ovations.

“Oaxaca is simply a melting cookware of our country’s cultures,” Federal Tourism Minister Josefina Rodríguez Zamora said successful a property release. “Here, our history, our traditions and the pridefulness of our radical travel alive.”

The festival traces its roots to a Zapotec ritual known arsenic Daninayaaloani, oregon Hill of the Beautiful View, successful grant of Centéotl, the maize goddess. As portion of that ritual, radical gathered implicit 8 days to stock offerings, devour and dance.

In the Zapotec language, “Guelaguetza” refers to reciprocal offerings — a contented of giving and sharing wrong the community.

Officials said the existent festivities, moving passim the period of July, see much than 140 events statewide, from fairs and parades to gastronomic and artisanal exhibitions.

Tourism officials said they expect astir 149,000 visitors, an economical interaction exceeding 668 cardinal pesos (US $38.4 million) and mean hotel occupancy of 83%.

With reports from Infobae, El Universal Oaxaca, Político MX and Reporte Indig