Houston Hosting Dia De Los Muertos Parade & Festival Saturday

HOUSTON, TX — Houston will celebrate Mexican heritage and tradition with a Dia de los Muertos festival and parade Saturday at Sam Houston Park in the downtown area.

The festival will take place from 2-10 p.m. with the parade beginning on Bagby Street at 7 p.m.

Dia de los Muertos — Day of the Dead — is a two-day celebration held Nov. 1-2 to remember loved ones and ancestors who have died. The festival is primarily a Mexican tradition but also is celebrated throughout Latin America.

Live in Houston? Click here to subscribe to our free breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox and mobile devices. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter, and download our free mobile app on Android or iPhone.

"No matter who you are, no matter where you are from, we want you to attend the parade and festival," the festival's EventBrite page said. If there is something we all share is the love and grief for our family and friends who left us, and in this Dia de los Muertos, we are all one."

Event organizer Mauricio Navarro started the festival and parade in Dallas last year and is bringing the event to Houston. The festival will have food and entertainment for the whole family, Navarro said at a news conference Thursday.

Houston METRO is providing free round trip travel to the event, according to event organizers.

"As a Latino, I'm excited to share and showcase our rich history right here in downtown Houston in the heart of our city," Navarro said.

Houston Mayor's Office Director of Special Events Susan Christian announced Mayor Sylvester Turner will attend the festival. Christian thanked the organizers for bringing the celebration to Houston and added that the city had never had a large-scale Dia de los Muertos festival and parade before this year.

"What a grand celebration that ... no matter where you were born or what culture you represent, the beauty of this event honors those heroes in our families and mentors and all of our loved ones," Christian said. "The beauty of life, the beauty of death, I think for that we can all relate."