National Holidays January 1: Año Nuevo (New Year's Day), is an official Mexican holiday. January 6: Día de Los Santos Reyes is the day when Mexicans exchange Christmas presents in accordance with the arrival of the three gift-bearing wisemen to Jesus Christ. This day culminates the Christmastime festivities. January 17: Feast Day of de San Antonio de Abad is a religious holiday during which the Catholic Church allows animals to enter the church for blessing. February 2: Día de la Candelaria or Candlemas, is a religious holiday that is celebrated with processions, dancing, bullfights in certain cities, and the blessing of the seeds and candles. The festivities are best seen in: San Juan de los Lagos, Jalapa; Talpa de Allende, Jalisco; and Santa Maria del Tuxla, Oaxaca. January 31- February 5 (2008): Carnaval is an official Mexican holiday that kicks off a five-day celebration of the libido before the Catholic lent. Beginning the weekend before Lent, Carnaval is celebrated exhubrantly with parades, floats and dancing in the streets. Port towns such as Ensenada, La Paz, Mazatlán and Veracruz are excellent places to watch Carnaval festivities. Dates change slightly as follows: 2008: Jan 31 - Feb 5; 2009: Feb 19-24; 2010: Feb 11-16. February 5: Día de la Constitución an official holiday that commemorates Mexico's Constitution. February 24: Flag Day, This Mexican national holiday honors the Mexican flag.

Local Festivals & Events Tlaxcala, Tlaxcala Dec. 30 to Jan. 6. - The Walking Cane Fair. Called the Feria del Bastón, this fair has a market that showcases and has for sale the colorful walking canes that are made in nearby Tizatlán. San Juan Chamula, Chiapas Jan. 1 - This New Year's celebration also includes the change in tribal governors and Chamula Indian traditional dances. Tizimín, Yucatan Jan. 2 to 6 - The Fair of the Three Kings, celebrating the three wise men who brought gifts to Christ's birth. This event also includes a cattle fair and Jaranas, a dance of the Yucatan. Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas Jan. 15 to 23 - The Fiesta of Saint Sebastian the Martyr, which displays regional costumes, also a reenactment of a naval battle on the river. San Blas, Nayarit Feb. 1 to 3. - The Blessing of the Sea Festival, includes regional dancing and horse racing events.