Preparing for Christmas and New Year in Mexico
Topics: Festivals and Events
Published: Sunday, December 14, 2014
December is one of the busiest travel months of the year in Mexico, with no less than three major events taking place nationally, and dozens of regional events also taking place throughout the country. December 12 is Dia de Guadalupe: coupled with Easter, this date marks the most important religious event on Mexico’s calendar.
Posadas Navideñas lead up to Christmas, and the New Year festivities. For visitors to Mexico and service providers focused on delivering leisure experiences, the period between December 20th and January 6th is unquestionably the busiest time of year.
If you plan to take a leisure break in Mexico over Christmas and/or New Year, you’ll need to book early to get the best choice of hotels. As of December 15th, flight prices increase and flight seat availability becomes ever-scarce. Internal domestic flights also become sold-out on the run-up to Christmas, as do international flights out of Mexico—as Mexicans and foreign expatriates living here leave to holiday or visit their families abroad. Build-in some extra time for your journey to and through the airport, as the seasonal swell in passenger numbers slows everything down.
Buses and bus stations also fill-up as Mexican families travel to be with their loved ones over the festive period. Although you can usually show up and buy a bus ticket on the day you are traveling—and be assured of a seat on the next bus out—if you plan to travel over the Christmas period, we recommend you go to the bus station and buy your tickets in advance.
Mexico City tends to empty-out during the week between Christmas and New Year, as Mexicans leave the metropolis to holiday abroad, visit family in the provinces, or take a well-earned break at one of Mexico’s many beach resorts. If you want to see the capital without the rush of crowds and traffic, mark Christmas Week on your travel calendar (along with Easter Week, when the same is true).
If you’re planning to drive in Mexico over the Christmas period, be aware that roads out of Mexico City (to Cuernavaca, Puebla, Toluca and Queretaro) get jam-packed in the week leading up the Christmas, and roads leading back in to Mexico City can get jammed on any days between December 30th and January 6th as holiday makers return to work and school.
See Also: The Mexican Christmas Experience
