(Part 7/Final) Telling the Story of Oaxaca Through Dance | Guelaguetza Grand Parade "Desfile de Delegaciones" - The Whole City is a Party!

Hello. I am a monkey living in Oaxaca.

In this series, I have been writing with the theme of deciphering the culture of the Guelaguetza, Oaxaca's biggest festival, through dance. *This series is a serial. If you want to know from the beginning, starting with "What even is the Guelaguetza?", please

▶ check out the series magazine. You will be able to understand the content of this article in a more three-dimensional way.

This time, for those who want to see the gorgeous Guelaguetza dances but find it tough to sit in the venue for over three hours, or find it a hassle to travel far away.

But, since you're here, you still want to enjoy the beautiful traditional costumes, dancing, and music!
This is for you.

And for those who aren't, even the hardcore Guelaguetza fans
must absolutely not miss this.

Desfile de Delegaciones
This is like a "preview parade" of the Guelaguetza participating groups, held on the Saturday evening before the Monday Guelaguetza event.

It starts at 6:00 PM! It is a large-scale parade.

The 2026 dates are Saturday, July 18th and Saturday, July 25th.

Here is this year's parade route. It is a little different from last year.

It is the day when the villages officially participating in the Oaxaca State Guelaguetza come to greet the city, saying,
"We've come again this year,"
"This is our culture,"
"We'll be dancing at the Guelaguetza venue on Monday, so come and watch!"

It is a parade where you can feel much closer to the dancers than on stage.

It is a very Oaxacan event.

They also perform dances at key points along the road, accompanied by live bands.

They serve mezcal to the people along the route and throw in local specialties from their villages.

If it's mezcal, you can just shout "Mezcal!!"

If it's local specialties, if you appeal by saying "Dame uno!!! (Give me one!)", you might actually get some, so don't be shy—go for it!

Also, be bold and

try shouting "Una foto!! Por favor!"
(One photo!! Please!!)

You can get a photo taken with the dancers with a smile.

Some people in Oaxaca even start dancing along with them.

Besides, there is no need to just watch politely anymore.

When the dancers shout "¡Viva Oaxaca! ¡Viva la Guelaguetza!", shout back "¡Viva!" to join in and enjoy the sense of unity with the locals.

It is a day where everyone can dance, drink, shout, and have a blast together.

You can watch this parade for free, but those who want to secure a spot along the route start waiting as early as two hours before.

Let's go with enthusiasm!

A friend who came from Japan before saw this grand parade and was impressed, saying, "It's amazing that you can watch this for free!"
"Wouldn't it be fine to set up seats and charge for it like the Rio Carnival?"

By the way, regarding which is better, the starting point or the city center?

At the starting point, the representative groups from each village are waiting.
If the timing is right, you can ask them to take pictures.

But the peak excitement and the real thrill of the parade is definitely in the city center.

Flower baskets and firecrackers are lit. I feel like there are more local specialties and mezcal thrown along the route during the parade in the city center.

They do distribute them at the starting point too, but they seem to be pacing themselves and holding back? Haha.

Also, in the city center, there are spots where you can avoid the problem of photos being lackluster due to the darkness, as it is lit up for the Oaxacan TV station's filming.

For those who want to capture the excitement of the parade with lighting, the city center is recommended.
If you can secure a spot here, I think you can take some pretty great photos.

I think this year, too,bleachers will likely be set up along LLANO Park, so if you want to sit back and watch, head over there.

Last year, the area around the Oaxaca Cathedral and the Zocalo was the final destination.

Fireworks went off in the sky, and it was the most exciting part.
I'm looking forward to seeing what it's like this year.

A few things to keep in mind:
Once the parade starts, it's hard to move around the city due to the crowds.

Even if you just want to cross the street, the people waiting along the route
won't let you through at this time. Haha.

It's not really something you can watch while moving around, so please be careful.

Decide on a specific spot to watch from
and enjoy the parade.

The Guelaguetza is something to be watched at the venue, but also something to be felt throughout the city.

The dances, music, and culture that the people of Oaxaca have inherited with pride.
The Desfile de Delegaciones is where all of that charm overflows into the streets.

If you ever have the chance to visit Oaxaca, please
try shouting "¡Viva Oaxaca!"
and "¡Viva la Guelaguetza!"

Thank you for staying with me until the end of this seven-part "Oaxaca Told Through Dance" series.

I will continue to introduce more Guelaguetza-related articles in the future.

※ This article is based on the author's own experiences living in Oaxaca and documenting the Guelaguetza for many years, as well as local materials.
When quoting or introducing the content, please be sure to cite the source (author's name and article URL).

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