Feria Huamantla 2010

The annual feria in the town of Huamantla takes place during the two weeks leading up to the Feast of the Assumption which is celebrated on August 15th. Religious in nature, the festival includes processions and prayer services as well as more traditional festival attractions such as rides, cockfights, concerts, art and cattle exhibitions. There is a large handicraft market featuring local products and countless food stands serving delicious regional specialties and snacks.

Sawdust and flower alfombra at the feria in Huamantla

The second weekend of the month sees the largest two days of celebration. On August 14th the streets throughout the town are blanketed with beautiful alfombras, or carpets, made of colored sawdust and flowers. Local artists stay up all night working on their creations, many of which take several hours to complete.

The decorative carpets cover the streets leading toward the local church and form the path for the solemn religious procession that takes place the following day. The procession begins late Saturday and lasts into Sunday morning, winding through the streets of town before finally entering the church around 7am.

One of the festival’s featured events is the Huamantlada, a local running of the bulls similar to that which is held annually in Pamplona, Spain. The Huamantlada is held on the Saturday following the celebration of the Feast of the Assumption and attracts young matadors, or bullfighters, from across Mexico. The Huamantlada begins at noon and lasts for approximately two hours.

If you’re going to be heading to the festival in Huamantla this coming weekend be aware that during the feria and especially during this main weekend of celebration many of the local hotels raise their nightly rates and visitors may find it difficult to secure a room without advance reservations. But don’t let this keep you from visiting as many of the nearby towns and cities run frequent buses to Huamantla and offer plenty of lodging options for those unable to find a suitable place to stay in town during the festival.

Huamantla (map) is located in the state of Tlaxcala 160km east of Mexico City and roughly 45km from the cities of Puebla and Tlaxcala. Frequent daily buses run between Mexico’s TAPO bus terminal (map) and Puebla or Tlaxcala. Once in Puebla or Tlaxcala there are frequent and inexpensive connections to Huamantla. The total trip takes around two hours each way.

Photo Credit: Mataparda (via Flickr CC)