- Let's take a look at the map
- How New Year is celebrated in Mexico
- Metropolitan things
- Useful information for travelers
Mexico, ideal for beach and sightseeing holidays, is increasingly attracting Russian tourists who decided to warm up in the midst of the European slushy winter. Killing several birds with one stone, so that not just for the sake of the beach, fly overseas is a reasonable approach when planning a tour. And compatriots quite logically consider the celebration of the New Year to be one of these hares. In Mexico they love him no less than in Russia, especially since the descendants of the Aztecs, Mayans and even the Spanish conquistadors are very cheerful and hospitable people.
Let's take a look at the map
Compatriots who decide to celebrate the New Year in Mexico usually see the Yucatan Peninsula with the resorts of Cancun, Isla Mujeres, Tulum, Playa del Carmen and Cozumel. The hot and humid climate of this part of the country is due to both the geographical latitude and the proximity of the ocean. Ocean currents also play a significant role in the formation of the weather.
Winter is the most pleasant and comfortable time to relax on the beaches of Mexico, located on the shores of the Caribbean Sea. The rainy season ends in November, and in the early days of the calendar winter in the Mexican resorts it is time for sunny weather with air temperatures up to + 27 ° C during the day and about + 20 ° C at night. The water in the sea remains warm even on New Year's Eve, and the thermometers in the coastal waves are confidently kept at around + 26 ° С.
How New Year is celebrated in Mexico
Preparations for meeting everyone's favorite holiday begin in December. The patroness of the country is considered the Holy Virgin of Guadalupe, who is usually honored on December 12. Celebrations smoothly flow into Christmas, and on December 25, Mexicans gather at family tables. The time to say goodbye to the old year comes imperceptibly. He is seen off magnificently, noisily and cheerfully. All the most delicious dishes appear on the tables on New Year's Eve. Each housewife tries to prepare stuffed turkey, beans and stews, homemade cakes, sweet cream and fruit desserts, biscuits. As New Year's drinks, the cocktail "Margarita" and tequila rule the ball.
With the first strikes of the chimes, the Mexicans begin to eat grapes. A dozen berries and the same number of wishes made during the striking of the clock - this is the minimum program for everyone who is at the festive table. The tradition came with the Spanish colonialists and took root on the other side of the ocean.
Other customs include red underwear for those who dream of meeting love, yellow underwear for those trying to get rich, and travel lovers even celebrate the New Year with a suitcase in their hands. There are many people in Mexico with a sense of humor.
City dwellers with the approach of midnight enjoy fireworks in the central streets and squares. If you managed to ask for a New Year's celebration in the hinterland, get ready to drink a lot, eat hearty and break pinatas. This good old tradition dates back centuries and is a competition in which everyone can participate. Pinatas is a star-shaped ceramic vessel filled with sweets. Participants are blindfolded and have to break the pinatas blindly. For devout Mexicans, this tradition symbolizes boundless faith. The winner gets the glory and the promise of good luck in the coming year, and the children get sweets from the pot that broke for luck.
Metropolitan things
New Years can also be celebrated in the capital of Mexico. Mexico City is confidently one of the three most populous cities in the world, and in terms of the number of residents, it is even in the lead in the statistical ratings.
If you decide to start exploring the country from its capital, bring warm clothes with you. In Mexico City, located at an altitude of more than two kilometers above sea level, it is very cool on winter nights and the thermometers can drop to + 7 ° C and even lower. In the afternoon in December-January, the sun usually shines and the air heats up to + 20 ° C.
The main festive events dedicated to the next year's meeting in the capital of the country are held on Zocalo Square. It is the second largest in the world in terms of size and is surrounded by famous buildings of the colonial era. The Zocalo is beautifully decorated and illuminated on the occasion of the holidays, and it is here that the grandiose New Year's fireworks start at midnight.
When planning to run through the famous museums in Mexico City, check their opening hours on the official websites. For example, the largest in the capital, the National Museum of Anthropology and the most popular with tourists, the house of Frida Kahlo is closed on Mondays.
Useful information for travelers
The huge distance between the continents and our countries is the cheapest way to travel on charters. It is easier to buy such a flight in a travel package together with hotel reservation and airport transfer. If you nevertheless decide to organize your own vacation on your own, get ready to spend a lot of money on air tickets and almost a day - on the road to your dream vacation spot:
- The cheapest way to get to Cancun is with Delta. For a flight with a stopover in New York or Atlanta, you will have to pay about $ 1000, but in this case you will need a valid US visa in the tourist's passport. There are no transit zones at US airports, and you cannot even just transfer from plane to plane without a visa.
- With two transfers for the same $ 1000, you will fly to Cancun on New Year's Eve aboard the Dutch KLM. The connections will be in Amsterdam and Mexico City, and you will have to stay in the sky for about 18 hours.
Sometimes tickets for regular flights of Lufthansa and Air France from Moscow to Mexico City are sold at great discounts. You can take advantage of these offers and get from the capital of Mexico to Cancun using domestic flights. You can find out about discounts and special prices by subscribing to the airlines' newsletter, which is easy to register on their websites.
Mexico is very popular during the New Year holidays and among shopping lovers. The discount period following November's Thanksgiving seamlessly spills over into Christmas sales across North America, and the winter break is a great time to take a look at shopping malls in Cancun, Mexico City and other cities in the country. With huge discounts, you can buy locally made clothes and great shoes, natural stone jewelry and tequila first-hand.
