Day of the Dead in San Gabriel Etla: Fiesta + Parade

WHAT YOU’LL DO

“As long as we live in the hearts of those we leave on earth, we are immortal.”

Join us for a Día de los Muertos experience that connects you with a local family from an indigenous community, where you can live the ancestral traditions of Oaxaca. Far from the glamour of Día de los Muertos festivities in the city center, each community celebrates their deceased ancestors through distinct traditions. However, the general vision and spirit of this unique celebration remain the same. We await the return of the souls of our departed loved ones as they embark on their journey to the land of the living to spend time with their families and loved ones. Our ancestors return to enjoy all their favorite food and drinks, which are placed on family altars in their honor.

Join us in San Gabriel Etla, a small community of about 500 inhabitants located in the municipality of San Juan Bautista Guelache. Here, the local family will welcome us into their home to experience their unique cultural customs and Día de los Muertos rituals. On November 1st, the spirits of our ancestors are among us. They have crossed the portal from the underworld to the world of the living to honor us with their presence. In San Gabriel Etla, the community prepares a grand celebration.

During Día de los Muertos, the Zapotecs venerate the god Pitao Bezelao, an important deity in their religious pantheon, often associated with the underworld. They honored him during times of illness and death, offering chickens and copal, and symbolizing him with the skull, bat, and owl. Additionally, these sacred days are when the Aztec people worship the god Mictlantehcutli, a prominent deity revered as the ruler of Mictlán, the underworld in Aztec cosmology. He is often depicted as a skeletal figure adorned with bones and wearing a skull mask. Mictlantehcutli symbolizes death, darkness, and the passage to the afterlife. As the guardian of the dead, rituals and offerings were made to appease Mictlantehcutli and ensure the safe passage of the departed souls through the treacherous underworld. Your guide will encourage meaningful reflections on these deities to help you understand Mesoamerican cosmology more deeply.

Our day begins at the home of this local family in this majestic town, rarely visited by tourists. Here, we will begin our Día de los Muertos experience with a small welcome circle. We will introduce ourselves and perform a small ritual in memory of our departed loved ones. We will also create our own altar with all the seasonal ingredients necessary, such as papel picado, flowers, candles, fruits, copal, and much more!

We will visit the “campo santo,” a sacred field of marigold flowers in the community, where we will create our own bouquet to honor our ancestors as the sun sets over the Oaxaca Valley. We will take our flower bouquet to the San Gabriel cemetery, where we will leave a small offering for our loved ones.

The festive atmosphere of the community will start to become evident as we leave the cemetery. As mezcal begins to flow through the streets and fireworks light up the sky, we will walk to the home of our local host family, where we will share a traditional dinner. At this moment, the souls of our departed ancestors will also enjoy the food, drinks, and offerings we have left for them on the altar.

After these intimate experiences with our local host family, we will travel to the community church to await the arrival of the departed and celebrate together. In the church, in the blink of an eye, neighbors, children, and grandparents excitedly await the arrival of the souls of their ancestors (tonallí). The local village band will play traditional brass band music, and the central square will quickly fill with dancing, costumes, and drinks. Día de los Muertos celebrations do not mean that Mexicans fear death, but rather it is the joy that our departed ones return annually to the land of the living to spend time with us. Among Mexicans, we commonly say, “someone only dies when they are forgotten by their loved ones.” We never forget to honor our ancestors.

During this celebration in the community, feel free to dance, make friends, and get to know the people around you because together we will go to another home where mezcal, dancing, and sharing will continue. At this house, we will be joined by a small local theater group. Their performances often include local gossip about certain politicians along with vibrant songs and dances.

To end our night, join us for the exuberant Día de los Muertos parade. Local brass bands travel from far and wide for the opportunity to participate in this grand procession! Exquisite food stalls, elaborate costumes, dances, and much more await you as we honor the spirits among us until dawn!

ACTIVITY ADVISORY

Outdoor activities carry risks, and you may be exposed to dangerous situations as part of this experience. Make sure you can participate safely given your abilities and the conditions (such as location, weather, and equipment).

NOTES:

– Make it private just for your party with the private charter
– Don’t see your desired date available? Please contact us! We will do our best to make special arrangements for you!

– Please, check the weather. 

[weather.com](https://weather.com/weather/today/l/911a6d9d14fee1c35b9430aaab0c375af74d780bd379aff6e677cf7ab9817218)