What's On in Mérida This Winter: November to March

Mérida has the fullest winter programme on the peninsula, and most of it is free. The season runs from the Day of the Dead at the end of October through to carnival in February, with a three week arts festival in the middle of it. This is what is on, with dates where they are confirmed.

November: Festival de las Ánimas and the state fair

The Festival de las Ánimas runs 24 October to 2 November and is rooted in the Maya Hanal Pixan tradition rather than imported from elsewhere. The centrepiece is the Paseo de las Ánimas, a procession from the Cementerio General to the Ermita de Santa Isabel. Off site, Caminos Misteriosos de Xcunya and Ánimas en Dzibilchaltún run alongside it.

The dates that matter within it are Hanal Palal on 31 October, for children, Hanal Nucuch Wiiniko’ob on 1 November, for adults, and Misa Pixan on 2 November. Most activities are free.

The Feria Yucatán Xmatkuil follows, 6 to 29 November, on the fairground south of the city. It is the state fair in full: livestock, regional food, rides and concerts, and one of the most anticipated events in southeastern Mexico.

December: Mérida Brilla on the Paseo

Mérida Brilla is the city’s Christmas programme and it takes over the Paseo de Montejo: a twenty metre Christmas tree, an ice rink, and a Christmas village open nightly into early January. The 2025 edition ran from late November through to 7 January. Official 2026 dates have not been announced, but the window has been consistent year to year.

January: Mérida Fest, the marathon, jazz and art week

Mérida Fest runs 5 to 24 January: more than 500 events across 30 venues, covering dance, visual arts, gallery exhibitions, concerts and theatre. The festival marks the city’s founding anniversary, the 485th in 2027, and opens with a torchlit procession from Parque de Santa Lucía to the Plaza Grande. Most events are free.

Two things run as part of it. The Mérida City Marathon is on 10 January, and the Festival de Jazz de Mérida runs 14 to 18 January at Parque de Santa Lucía.

WAY, the Week of Art Yucatán, follows from 26 to 31 January, with contemporary art installations placed across the city.

February: carnival at Xmatkuil

Carnaval Mérida is held at Plaza Carnaval in Xmatkuil and is known as one of Mexico’s most distinctive. The 2027 royal court has already been announced. The 2026 edition ran 11 to 18 February; with Ash Wednesday falling on 10 February 2027, expect the 2027 dates to land slightly earlier.

Planning a trip around it

If one of these has you booking flights, it is worth seeing the place properly while you are here. We sell across Mérida and the Yucatán coast, and a viewing slots easily into a trip built around a festival weekend. The season between November and March is also simply the best time to look: the weather is clear, the town is awake, and you see it at its busiest rather than at its quietest.

Sources: Yucatán Today (Festival de las Ánimas, Feria Xmatkuil, Christmas in Mérida, Mérida Fest), Heraldo de México (Festival de las Ánimas 2026), Riviera Maya News (Carnaval Mérida 2027, Mérida Brilla). Dates marked as confirmed come from official or organiser announcements. Where a 2027 programme has not been published, the previous year’s dates are given as a guide and labelled as such.