San Antonio's Pearl district announces dazzling Día De Los Muertos programming for the whole family

One of San Antonio's favorite shopping and dining districts is set to honor the traditional Mexican holiday of Día de los Muertos on Wednesday, November 2. With free, family-friendly festivities from 5 to 9 pm, the Pearl will be aglow and abuzz with community ofrendas, children's activities, live music, and more.

“As one of the largest Hispanic majority cities in the country, San Antonio’s Día de los Muertos celebrations stand out from the rest,” says Pearl CEO Mesha Millsap in a release. “At Pearl, we contribute to these celebrations with our own altars, music and activities, providing a space where our community can celebrate and remember their loved ones in a culturally significant way.”

The event is free and open to the public, kicking off at 5 pm with face painting, stilt walkers from the dance company at the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center, drummers, puppets, Los Olvidados and Las Monas, and live music from Mexican-American folk singer and San Antonio native, Tish Hinojosa.

To help kids celebrate the holiday, the Mexican Consulate will present El Rincon del Alebrije, featuring wooden guitars and calavera banks for kids to paint and take home.

The Pearl will also display several art installations and altars created by local artists and institutions to honor a variety of figures, including a community altar by artist Hector Garza and students from Incarnate Word High School. Dedicated to all women who have lived incredible lives of struggle and resilience, the altar will feature blank LED candles for the community to write names.

According to the release, other altars and installations will include:

Mexican Cultural Institute Altar: This year the Mexican Cultural Institute will display an altar that honors Mexican singer, songwriter, actor, and film producer Vicente Fernández.
Catrina Garden & Altar by artist Regina Moy: Moya will showcase four paper mache catrinas, elegantly dressed skeletons that are often associated with the holiday, to display alongside an altar dedicated to San Antonio community activist Emma Tenayuca.
Tzompantli Wall by MM Creative and Larry Servi: Martha Martinez of MM Creative and Larry Sevin will create a modern interpretation of a tzompantli (skull) wall that was often displayed in several Mesoamerican civilizations.
Marigold Passage by artists Manola and Maria Ramire: Sisters and artists Manola and Maria Ramirez, part of the all-female collective Lavaca Studios, will create an immersive and interactive experience that is inspired by the belief that marigolds connect this world with the afterlife during Día de los Muertos.
Spiritlandia Skull: Two monumental skulls painted by local artists from chef Johnny Hernandez’s Spiritlandia Calavera Collection will be on display.

While the official Día de los Muertos celebration will take place on November 2, the altars will be available for viewing from November 1-6, and the skull wall, catrinas, and Spiritlandia skulls will be up through the first week of November.

Photo by Matt Buikema

The Pearl will celebrate Día de los Muertos with family-friendly activities.

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Texas ranks 3rd in new list of states most excited for Halloween

Pumpkin Nights/Facebook

Let's get spooky, Texas.

Is Halloween the new Christmas? Sure seems like it in Texas, which just earned top-5 status in a new study of the U.S. states that are the most into the Halloween spirit.

When it comes to doing up the spookiest holiday of the year, the Lone Star State comes in as the third-most Halloween-obsessed state in America.

The report by outdoor furniture retailer Backyard Oasis ranked all 50 states based on an analysis of search results for Halloween costumes, decor, candy, haunted houses, upcoming Halloween events, and more. State populations were also factored into the rankings to ensure the scores were "accurately comparable."

Texas ranked No. 3 with a composite score of 48.16 points, beat only by California, which ruled the list at No. 1, and New York, which came in at No. 2. The top two earned gilded costume crowns as the most Halloween-enthusiastic states.

According to the study's data, Texas is home to 47 haunted houses. The state has more than 75 Spirit Halloween stores in 2024, including nearly 30 in DFW, a dozen in Houston, half a dozen in Austin, and four in San Antonio.

Looking outside of San Antonio, there are approximately 3,000 Halloween-related events happening all around the state in October.

Many trick-or-treaters dream of getting full size candy bars for Halloween, but in a surprising twist, the study found that the most popular Halloween candy in Texas is actually Sour Patch Kids. The sour-then-sweet candy is also highly popular in New York and Illinois, the report says.

Here's how Backyard Oasis broke down the rest of Texas' score:

9,314,440 – Halloween costume searches in October 2023
1,168,320 – Halloween decoration searches
445,670 – Halloween candy searches

Backyard Oasis CEO Andy Wu said in the report that the spirit of Halloween isn't just about giving out candy or dressing up in fun costumes, it's about sharing in a "tradition that sparks creativity and joy across the U.S."

"Halloween is one of the most exciting times of the year, bringing people together through creativity and celebration," said Wu. "It's amazing to see how different states embrace the holiday in their own unique ways, from massive costume searches to thrilling haunted houses."

The top 10 most Halloween-obsessed states are:

No. 1 – California
No. 2 – New York
No. 3 – Texas
No. 4 – Florida
No. 5 – Illinois
No. 6 – Ohio
No. 7 – Pennsylvania
No. 8 – Indiana
No. 9 – Michigan
No. 10 – Massachusetts

The least spooky state in the U.S. is Wyoming, which came in at No. 50, joined by nearby states Montana and South Dakota. New Mexico (No. 46) and Vermont (No. 47) were the other two states on the list's bottom five.

The full report can be found on backyardoas.com.

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