Mexico public holidays and festivals: dates and closures

Mexico splits its holidays into fixed dates and dates that are moved to a Monday to create a long weekend. The fixed ones are 1 January, 1 May, 16 September and 25 December. The movable ones are set on 5 February (Constitution Day), 21 March (Benito Juárez's birthday) and 20 November (Revolution Day) — the statutory date stays put, but the day off is the Monday, so the observed date shifts each year. Confirm the calendar for your travel year before booking.

In inauguration years the federal government changes hands in the autumn; the date and whether it is a day off should be checked against the official calendar for your year. Election years can add a national voting day.

Day of the Dead (1–2 November) is the one most travellers plan around. Mexico City, Oaxaca, Pátzcuaro and Mérida are the usual places to see altars, processions and cemetery visits (check local programmes for your year). It is not a statutory holiday everywhere, so shops and museums may keep normal hours, but hotels in Oaxaca and Michoacán can sell out weeks ahead.

Independence Day centres on the night of 15 September, when crowds gather in town squares for the grito and fireworks; 16 September itself is quiet, with offices and banks often shut. Holy Week (the week before Easter) is the biggest domestic travel week: beaches and colonial towns are packed, prices peak, and buses and flights sell out.

Carnival is largest in Veracruz, Mazatlán and Campeche in the days before Ash Wednesday (check dates and programmes). Guelaguetza in Oaxaca runs in July, and the Cervantino festival in Guanajuato in October draws big crowds (check dates). Smaller local fairs happen almost every week — ask at your hotel.

Banks, government offices, post offices and many schools often close on statutory holidays, and some museums and smaller shops shut too, especially on 1 January, 1 May, 16 September and 25 December. Big private museums in Mexico City often stay open, but hours vary — check the day before.

Transport usually keeps running. Long-distance buses, domestic flights, taxis and ride-hailing operate, though seats on the first and last days of a long weekend sell out. Restaurants, hotels, beaches and most tourist sites generally stay open, and in resort areas the holiday is barely noticeable except in prices. Small towns vary more than cities.

Supermarkets and convenience stores generally stay open, sometimes with shorter hours. Pharmacies in cities usually stay open; in small towns, plan ahead.

Mexican holiday travel is mostly domestic, so the pressure is on internal flights, buses and beach hotels rather than on international routes. If your trip overlaps a long weekend, book intercity transport and accommodation well ahead; for Holy Week and Day of the Dead, earlier still. Exact lead times vary by route and year (check).

Prices rise most in beach destinations (Cancún, Puerto Vallarta, Los Cabos) and in Oaxaca and Guanajuato during their festivals; the size of the rise varies by year and property (check). City hotels in Mexico City are less affected. If you are flexible, travel the week after a long weekend: rates usually drop and sites are quieter.

Some sights close on Mondays year-round, so a Monday holiday can mean two quiet days in a row. Build a buffer day into any tight itinerary that lands on a holiday.

Fireworks, parades and pilgrimages mean crowds and closed streets. In Mexico City, the Zócalo and Reforma can be closed to traffic around 15–16 September and 12 December (check local notices). Allow extra time for airport transfers on those days.

Alcohol sales are restricted in some states on election days and occasionally during major events; check locally if that matters to you. Driving on holiday weekends means heavier traffic on toll roads and more police checkpoints — see our notes on driving in Mexico before you set out.

If you are travelling with children, holiday weeks mean bigger crowds and later nights; family hotels fill fast. Travel insurance is worth checking for cancellation cover if you are booking around a specific festival date.