22/02/2022
Celebration of a City: Art Walk and the Traditional Fiestas of San Jose del Cabo
The Covid pandemic has not produced any lasting damage to tourism in Los Cabos. In fact, as we’ve detailed in our “Los Cabos by the Numbers” series in recent months, thanks to increased flights and strong U.S. visitation the region has not just regained but surpassed 2019 pre-pandemic tourism levels.
It’s a rather remarkable story, really. But despite the strong recovery of the tourism sector at large, there is one area that has continued to lag behind: events. The reasons are obvious, of course. Cape cities Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo have never wavered in their commitment to the health and safety of tourists and residents alike, remaining at the forefront of all Mexican destinations in terms of pandemic-related protocols, testing, and vaccination programs.
Social distancing has been an important component of these protocols, naturally, and as a consequence the principles of social distancing have affected every business and every public space in the region, from bars and restaurants to boats and beaches. Depending on the existing “system alert level” put in place each week by local authorities in response to the ongoing Covid crisis, businesses or public areas can accommodate only so many people relative to their available space to ensure the safety of guests.
For events, then, the health and safety protocols have been difficult in the extreme to navigate. Events by their very nature are “public gatherings”, and thus pose a challenge to social distancing protocols. Some prominent local events, like fishing and golf tournaments, have scarcely skipped a beat since they have a natural, built-in social distancing component. But other types of events, from food festivals to music concerts, have struggled to return. The ability to bounce back, thus far – despite the very positive signs that point toward a complete pandemic recovery in the future – have been contingent upon the ability of events to work within the existing, often variable, health and safety framework.
Golf and fishing tournaments, as mentioned, have been able to thrive within these parameters. So too have some cultural events, so long as they’ve conformed to health and safety standards established for businesses and public spaces. For instance, the return in 2021 of popular, ongoing, regularly-scheduled cultural festivals like Art Walk in San Jose del Cabo and Viva La Plaza in Cabo San Lucas. These events have, since their return a year ago, consistently offered lively, fun-filled showcases for local art and culture, and have been gratefully welcomed back by residents and visitors alike.
Downtown San Jose del Cabo, after all, is rarely livelier or more beautiful than during Art Walk. Perhaps this is because Art Walk is, at heart, a celebration of San Jose del Cabo itself. The city comes alive in a different way on Thursday evenings during Art Walk season (November through June).
The Gallery District, home to dozens of art galleries and studios, is the center of Art Walk, and remains the primary focus, as gallery owners and artists stay open late to interact with visitors. But the entire downtown area of the city glows with lights and pulses with energy. The town square, Plaza Mijares, becomes an outdoor gallery for street artists and craftspeople, with their wares laid out for all to see. The old Catholic church, Parroquia San Jose, is open for those who want to visit a more traditional site for art and culture than local galleries. City Hall, with its colorful courtyard murals depicting great moments in local and national history, also beckons those on an informal walking tour of the heart of the city.
Indeed, it’s not too extravagant to say that not only is Art Walk a tradition in San Jose del Cabo, it’s a profoundly important cultural and historical institution.
But it isn’t the only local event of such cultural importance. In fact, there’s an annual event, or series of events actually, that are even more of a showcase for the city’s heritage and history. That would be the fiestas tradicionales, which after a two-year Covid related absence are making (health situation permitting) their much awaited return on March 17 - 20, 2022.
For tourists, and particularly U.S. born visitors, here’s the necessary background to know: During the Spanish colonial period, many towns in Baja California and elsewhere in Mexico and Latin America were named according to the Catholic calendar. San Jose del Cabo’s first Spanish name, for instance, was San Bernabe, so named by Sebastian Vizcaino when he landed there on June 11, 1602, during the traditional Catholic feast day for Saint Barnabas. San Bernabe replaced Añuití, the name given to the place by the indigenous Pericues, and was itself later replaced by San Jose del Cabo, the name of the Jesuit mission that opened in 1730.
The city’s fiestas tradicionales, or fiestas patronales (as the patron saint festivals are typically known in Spanish), have in past years encompassed a week or more of celebrations, including parades, live music, regional food and drinks (the ceviche preparation contest was an annual highlight), plus the coronation of an event king and queen. These festivities invariably culminated on March 19, the official feast day of Saint Joseph.
This year, the festivities will actually conclude on the 20th, the day following the feast day of Saint Joseph. And instead of a week of parties, there will be four days. And instead of abundant music and food, it’s expected that these elements of the celebration will be more moderately represented, with enhanced focus on literary contests like the Juegos Florales, which rewards compositions about the founding of the mission, and the importance of Saint Joseph in the foundation of the city.
The most important thing to note, of course, is that these events dedicated to the cultural history and identity of San Jose del Cabo are back, and their return marks another important step forward in the recovery of Los Cabos. It’s yet another indicator that Los Cabos as a destination, and the world at large, are slowly and gradually regaining a much needed sense of normalcy.
That’s the big picture. For visitors and local residents, it just means more fiestas to enjoy during 2022! So continue to mark Thursdays on your event calendar for Art Walk in San Jose del Cabo, Fridays for Viva La Plaza in Cabo San Lucas, and circle March 17 - 20 for the triumphant return of the Fiestas Tradicionales in San Jose del Cabo.
For more information about events, activities and villa rentals in Los Cabos, call us TOLL FREE at 1-888-655-4548, visit www.LosCabosVillas.com, or email us at [email protected].
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The Covid pandemic has not produced any lasting damage to tourism in Los Cabos. In fact, as we’ve detailed in our “Los Cabos by the Numbers” series in recent months, thanks to increased flights and…
