Puerto Vallarta Festival de las Ánimas sets parade

Puerto Vallarta is preparing to honor the dead during All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day on November 1 and 2. The City Council organized this week’s third annual Festival de las Ánimas, whose theme is Recuérdame, or “Remember Me.”

Official festivities begin Friday, October 30, at 6:00 p.m. with an opening ceremony and a guided tour of the altars at the Municipal Palace. The Municipal Palace in El Centro has 25 distinct altars and ofrendas set up by local groups. Civil and governmental organizations, along with higher educational institutions, began crafting their displays early Tuesday morning.

Families and organizations display photographs of deceased people on the altars. The ofrendas are intended to provide a space for spirits to return and share a moment with their families. Their altars include cempasúchiles, pan de muerto, sugar skulls, papel picado, candles, copal incense, salt and water. The altars have between two and seven levels representing the soul’s journey toward peaceful rest.

After the opening ceremony, a jazz trio will perform at the Plaza de Armas. A video mapping projection designed for Día de Muertos will follow the jazz trio’s performance. Families and organizations serve liquor as part of the tributes. They also serve the deceased’s favorite meals, such as mole, tamales or candied pumpkin.

Gathering for the parade begins at 5:30 p.m. outside the 5 de Diciembre Municipal Cemetery. La Marea de las Ánimas is the Grand Day of the Dead Parade. The parade includes Catrinas, dance troupes, live musicians and traditional cultural displays. The procession begins at 6:00 p.m., winds toward the Los Muertos Beach Pier and concludes around 8:00 p.m.

The Municipal Band will play in the Plaza de Armas on Sunday, November 1, at 6:00 p.m.