Día de Muertos in Oaxaca: Where Tradition Comes Alive

I've always said this, "There are so many beautiful places we've been blessed to have visited, but Oaxaca...I would return to time and time again!"

There are places you visit, and then there are places you feel. Oaxaca is one of those places. Especially during Dia De Muertos. 

The streets are filled with marigolds. The smell of copal drifts through the air. Altars glow with candles, photographs, flowers, fruit, and the favorite foods of loved ones who are no longer here. Music spills into the streets, families gather, and the line between remembering and celebrating seems to disappear.

For us at Kilik, Día de Muertos is about much more than the beautiful papel picado, painted skulls, and colorful decorations we often see outside of Mexico.

It is about connection.

Connection to family. To community. To the land. To artisans and their craft. And to the generations of people who have kept these traditions alive.

Día de Muertos Isn't Celebrated the Same Way Everywhere in Mexico

You might assume that Día de Muertos is celebrated throughout Mexico in the same way.

But that isn't really the case.

Mexico is an incredibly diverse country, and traditions can vary dramatically from one state, region, town, and even family to another.

I was born in Zacatecas and in my family, Día de Muertos was never celebrated in the way I have experienced it in Oaxaca.

We remembered our loved ones in a different way.

We would have a misa in their honor, visit their gravesites, bring flowers, and, of course, pray for them. Remembering those who had passed was deeply connected to faith, family, and visiting the places where they were laid to rest.

There wasn't the same elaborate celebration of Día de Muertos that you see throughout Oaxaca.

So, in many ways, Día de Muertos as I have come to know it through Oaxaca is a relatively new experience in our own life. 

Over the past few years, we have had the privilege of visiting Oaxaca during Día de Muertos, and each time, I feel incredibly grateful to experience something so different from the traditions I grew up with.

We personally don't see these celebrations as something that belongs to all of Mexico.

We see them as an opportunity to learn from and appreciate a beautiful tradition that is deeply rooted in the communities and people that practice it.

We talk about these traditions and share our personal experience with the utmost respect and appreciation. 

A New Way of Looking at Those We Have Lost

Experiencing Día de Muertos in Oaxaca has also changed the way I personally think about death.

I lost my grandmother early last year and we took a trip out to Oaxaca for Dia De Muertos with friends and family. I wanted my family to have this experience and to see a different way of remembering our loved ones who have passed. For me, it was therapeutic to say the least. It's remembering our loved ones in a loving way by continuing to remember them, talk about them and celebrate them without making anyone feel bad, awkward or have it be tabu. Before experiencing this tradition, remembering someone who had passed was primarily connected to prayer, visiting their grave, attending mass, and honoring their memory in a quieter way.

Oaxaca opened my eyes to another perspective.

Here, remembering someone can also be joyful. Their favorite foods can be prepared. Their photographs can be surrounded by flowers. Their stories can be told. Music can be played. Families can gather. And for a moment, the memory of someone who is no longer physically here can feel incredibly present. There is something beautiful about that.

It doesn't take away from the sadness of losing someone. Instead, it creates another way to hold that loss.

A way to say, you are still part of our family, you are still part of our story and we still have so much to celebrate about the life you lived.

That perspective has stayed with me.

And perhaps that is one of the most meaningful gifts Oaxaca has given me.

Oaxaca During Día de Muertos

Oaxaca is one of the most incredible places to experience Día de Muertos in Mexico.

From the streets of Oaxaca City to the surrounding villages, the days leading up to November 1st and 2nd are filled with preparation.

Families clean and decorate graves. Markets overflow with flowers, candles, pan de muerto, fruit, and traditional foods. Homes become filled with memories.

And everywhere you look, there are artisans creating.

Potters shape clay by hand. Artists paint intricate designs. Families make papel picado. Florists arrange enormous bundles of cempasúchil, the bright orange marigold that has become one of the most recognizable symbols of Día de Muertos.

The result is beautiful, but there is something deeper happening beneath all that color.

People are preparing to welcome their loved ones home.

The Ofrenda: A Place for Memory

One of the most meaningful parts of Día de Muertos is the ofrenda, or altar.

An ofrenda is not simply decoration. It is a deeply personal space created to remember someone who has passed away.

Photographs are often placed at the center, surrounded by things that person loved; favorite foods, drinks, personal belongings, candles, flowers, and objects that bring their memory back to life.

Every family does it a little differently and that is part of what makes the tradition so special. There isn't one perfect way to create an altar. It is about remembering someone in a way that feels personal to you.

The bright colors and elaborate decorations can sometimes make Día de Muertos look like a celebration of death. But spend time with the people who celebrate it, and you begin to understand something different. It is a celebration of life, memory, and love.

Following the Marigold Petals

In Oaxaca, cempasúchil flowers are everywhere during Día de Muertos.

Their vibrant orange color is impossible to miss.

Traditionally, the flowers are believed to help guide the spirits of loved ones back home. Families may use the petals to create paths leading toward an altar or cemetery.

There is something incredibly beautiful about that idea. A path made from flowers. A way home. A simple gesture that says, we remember you, and we are waiting for you.

And Then There Is Copal

If there is one scent that immediately transports you to Oaxaca during Día de Muertos, it may be copal.

Copal is a natural tree resin that has been used in Mesoamerican traditions for centuries. When burned, it creates a fragrant smoke that fills the air.

During Día de Muertos, copal is often burned as part of the rituals surrounding altars and celebrations.

For us, this is one of the reasons handmade copaleros are so meaningful. A copalero isn't simply a beautiful piece of pottery. It becomes part of a ritual. It holds the copal, carries its smoke, and becomes part of a moment of remembrance. And when that piece is made by hand, you are also bringing the hands, traditions, and story of an artisan into your home.

The Artisans Behind the Tradition

One of the things we love most about Oaxaca is that tradition isn't sitting behind glass in a museum.

It is alive.

You can see it in the hands of the people making pottery, weaving textiles, carving wood, painting, shaping clay, and creating objects using techniques passed down through generations.

For Kilik, this is where the story becomes especially important. When we travel through Mexico and Latin America, we don't simply look for beautiful products. We look for the people behind them.

We want to know how something was made, what materials were used, where the technique comes from, and what the piece means to the person who created it. Because every handmade piece carries something with it. A technique. A tradition. A place. A person. A story.

Oaxaca's Celebrations Continue Into the Streets

Día de Muertos isn't confined to someone's home altar.

In Oaxaca City, the streets come alive.

There are processions, music, dancing, elaborate costumes, decorated storefronts, markets, and gatherings throughout the city.

One of the most recognizable traditions is the comparsas, a lively community processions featuring music, dancing, elaborate costumes, and painted faces.

And then there are the cemeteries. Rather than being quiet, forgotten places, cemeteries during Día de Muertos become places of gathering. Families bring flowers, candles, food, music, and memories. They clean and decorate the graves of their loved ones and spend time together. There can be laughter. There can be tears. There can be food, music, stories, and children running around. Because remembering someone doesn't always have to be sad. Sometimes remembering is joyful.

Food Is Part of the Memory

What would a Mexican celebration be without food?

During Día de Muertos, traditional foods become part of the ofrenda and the gathering.

Pan de muerto is one of the most recognizable. Its soft, slightly sweet bread is often decorated with pieces representing bones. Mole, tamales, chocolate, fruit, mezcal, and other favorite foods may also appear.  This is another beautiful part of the tradition: food isn't simply something to eat. It can be a way of remembering someone. Maybe it is the mole your grandmother used to make. Maybe it is a favorite sweet. Maybe it is the drink someone always asked for. For my grandmother, she loved her cokes and chocolates. The food tells a story.

Why Día de Muertos Matters to Us

At Kilik, we believe handmade objects can connect us to places and people we may never have met.

That's why we love bringing pieces from Mexico and Latin America into homes far beyond where they were created. A handmade pottery piece isn't just pottery. A woven textile isn't just a textile. A copalero isn't just something you place on a shelf. These objects can carry culture with them. They can start conversations. They can remind us that there are traditions, techniques, and stories worth preserving and perhaps most importantly, they give us an opportunity to learn.

Bringing a Little Oaxaca Home

You don't have to be in Oaxaca to create a meaningful Día de Muertos space. Maybe you create a small ofrenda for someone you miss. Maybe you light a candle. Maybe you display a handmade piece that reminds you of Mexico. Maybe you cook someone's favorite meal. Maybe you simply tell your children a story about a family member they never had the chance to meet. The tradition can be as elaborate or as simple as you want. What matters is the intention behind it.

Because at its heart, Día de Muertos reminds us of something beautifully human:

People may leave us, but their stories don't have to.

A Different Side of Mexico

This is the Mexico we love sharing through Kilik Artisanal Shop.

Not just the Mexico of beautiful destinations and colorful souvenirs, but the Mexico of artisans, family traditions, handmade objects, ancient techniques, food, music, community, and stories.

The Mexico that exists in the hands of someone shaping clay.

The Mexico that smells like copal drifting through a street at night.

The Mexico that looks like marigold petals leading the way home.

The Mexico where remembering someone can become a celebration.

I feel incredibly fortunate to have experienced this tradition firsthand, to have been welcomed into a celebration that is different from the one I grew up with, and to see another side of how Mexican communities honor those they love.

Mexico continues to teach me that there isn't just one way to be Mexican. There are countless traditions, histories, languages, crafts, celebrations, and ways of seeing the world, but most importantly that diversity is something worth honoring.

So when we share Día de Muertos through Kilik, we do it with curiosity, gratitude, and the deepest respect for the communities who have kept these traditions alive.