During the 43rd edition of Tianguis Turístico in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, the Undersecretary of Innovation and Tourism Development of Mexico’s Secretariat of Tourism, Rubén Corona, announced that the 2018 National Fair of Pueblos Mágicoswill take place in the Michoacán city of Morelia from October 11-14.
“Now we give the state of Michoacán the opportunity […] Congratulations for this decision and for having taken the responsibility to manage this Fair of Pueblos Mágicos (Magic Towns), which is the perfect setting to show the wonders of this state full of tradition, magic and folklore in Mexico”, he said.
The Pueblos Mágicos programme was launched in 2001 by Mexico’s Secretariat of Tourism and seeks to recognise the inhabitants and activities of a series of towns to protect, promote and strengthen the country’s cultural wealth.
They are towns spread throughout the Mexican Republic where a strong indigenous and artisan influence still prevails, alongside legacies from the ancient Spanish empire and places of significant historical events in Mexico.
Huasca de Ocampo in the state of Hidalgo was the first denominated Pueblo Mágico, and the list of towns has been growing and updated ever since. Today, there are 111 pueblos mágicos, with México and Puebla being the states with the largest numbers of denominations, followed by Michoacán, Jalisco, Coahuila and Veracruz.
It’s important to point out that towns must have at least 20,000 inhabitants, be no more than 200km away from a tourist location and pass an economic, tourist and cultural assessment by the Mexican Tourism Ministry to be part of the programme.
The annual celebration of the National Fair of Pueblos Mágicos started out in 2014 and was created so that participating municipalities could promote and present their culture, traditions and culinary variety to domestic and foreign tourists. This year, it’s expected that the fair will set a new record and more than 115,000 people will attend.
The central theme this year will be technology applied to the tourism sector, especially to the Pueblos Mágicos, as there are some that are revolutionising the way of travelling and learning through innovative applications.
Traditionally, there will also be a large area where the representatives of each town can exhibit their wealth of crafts, traditional food, and typical Mexican and gourmet dishes.
Representatives of each town will surprise the audience with typical and folkloric dances from their states, artistic and cultural shows, educational workshops and reasonable rates to promote tourism in these locations.
