QUINTANA ROO, MEXICO (September 12, 2024) – Mayakoba, Mexico’s 595-acre legacy enclave and luxury resort destination on the Riviera Maya, announces today a new, four-day celebration of Day of the Dead featuring distinctive guest programming and experiences to be held this fall. From Thursday, October 31 – Sunday, November 3, Mayakoba’s celebration will offer a unique opportunity for guests to immerse themselves in local Mexican culture and this widely celebrated holiday. Marking the inaugural year of this event at Mayakoba, guests will enjoy access to the programming when booking accommodations via the Mayakoba website. Renowned for its connection to nature, culinary excellence, acclaimed spas, culturally-inspired programming and recreational pursuits, Mayakoba is home to four meaningfully placed luxury resorts — Andaz, Banyan Tree, Fairmont, and Rosewood– each of which will complement the destination-wide celebration with resort specific guest experiences to round out the festivities.
Day of the Dead dates back thousands of years to the era of the Aztecs in Mexico, who saw death as an integral, ever-present part of life. On this holiday, it’s believed the souls of the deceased briefly return to the living world to reunite with their loved ones. They are treated as honored and celebrated guests, and living relatives leave out their favorite foods and other offerings on candlelit altars in their homes, and celebrate at their gravesites, cleaning and decorating the graves and sharing stories, music, and food.
“An appreciation of local history and culture is a key pillar of the destination and continues to inspire every aspect of the Mayakoba experience,” says Kappner Clark, executive vice president of sales and marketing at RLH Properties, the ownership group behind Mayakoba. “Our Day of the Dead events are designed to bring this holiday to life for our guests in a community-driven and authentic way.”
Each evening, Mayakoba will offer sunset boat tours through the destination’s canals and waterways, complete with performances, stories, and entertainment throughout the ride, before stopping at an immersive altar experience. The traditional altars, decorated with candles and flowers, offer an immersive and uplifting experience for guests, inclusive of passed bites and drinks, entertainment, and a special opportunity to honor and connect with passed loved ones, in line with the traditional holiday experience. Throughout the celebration, Mayakoba will also host altar decorating contests, wrapping with a lively themed celebration on Friday, November 1 at El Pueblito, the destination’s traditional town square, for guests to come together and enjoy live music, dancing, performances, and local cuisine and drinks from the four resorts.
Each resort will also offer its own unique programming in addition to Mayakoba’s destination-wide initiatives, such as creative workshops, beachfront celebrations, a parade and Chef’s Dinner with special guest chef Erick Bautista at Rosewood Mayakoba, and a Hanal Pixan celebration dinner at Fairmont on November 1.
While on property, guests can also immerse themselves in the local culture through interactive cooking classes La Cocina Cooking School at El Pueblito; traditional spa experiences, such as guided Mayan meditations with Andaz Mayakoba’s Resident Shaman and Rosewood’s Lost Remedies, paying homage to the herbal medicine rituals long revered by the Mayans as means to heal and protect the body; and standout regional tours to explore the ancient ruins at Chichén Itzá and Aktun Cenote.
Mayakoba’s Day of the Dead celebrations are available to resort guests only. For more information on the destination, please visit Mayakoba.com or @mayakoba.
