'Tis The Season To Experience Mexico City For The Holidays!

Storied Traditions, Glittery Celebrations, Haute Cuisine and Chic Accommodations Make Mexico's Capital City a Must-Visit Destination

MEXICO CITY, Dec. 16, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- From rich traditions and stunning historical sites to glittery New Year's Eve celebrations and haute cuisine, Mexico City serves up a cultural escape to make spirits bright for any traveler.  

WHERE TO STAY FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Mexico City's hotels offer packages and special events to celebrate the holiday and ring in the New Year in style.  Whether visitors are interested in a getaway with friends or family, the holidays are a great time to visit Mexico City.

• Get In The Spirit: Festively decorated for the holiday season, Four Seasons Hotel Mexico, D.F. offers a central location on the grand Paseo de la Reforma. Planned holiday events at the hotel include Brunch with Santa on Sunday, Dec. 21, as well as a six-course dinner served while carolers sing on Dec. 24 at Reforma 500, the hotel's contemporary Latin cuisine restaurant. Kids corner, the property's child-friendly venue, also offers daily holiday-themed craftmaking and activities.
• Rejuvenate After the Holidays: Rejuvenate in Mexico City before the New Year at the Live Aqua Mexico City Hotel & Spa. The spa fuses calming colors and a refined atmosphere with an array of therapeutic massages, body and facial treatments and an exclusive hydro-therapy system. Dine at the hotel's La Cantina restaurant for a six-course meal, wine-pairing and live music.
• New Year's Eve Glamour in Mexico City: Celebrate the New Year at the great Midnight Supper at the St. Regis Mexico City. A tradition at the St. Regis Mexico City, the roaring 20s-inspired Midnight Supper invites couples to don formal attire for an evening of glamour and opulence. For those who prefer a more intimate evening, take in a terrace view while enjoying a decadent menu of champagne, seafood, foie gras, filet mignon, salmon and chocolate at Diana Restaurant, which overlooks the famous Fountain of Diana the Huntress on Paseo de la Reforma. For those who stay for a week-long holiday, the Luxury Holiday package includes a complimentary night and daily breakfast.
• Fireworks at the Zocalo: Ring in the New Year in the Zocalo, the public plaza in the heart of Mexico City's historical district. Visitors and residents gather in the evening for an impressive fireworks display, live music and plenty of dancing at midnight. Celebrations typically continue through the wee hours of the morning throughout the city.

MEXICO CITY HOLIDAY SIGHTS & TRADITIONS
From traditional foods to acts of good luck in the New Year, Mexico City is full of merrymaking during the holiday season.

• Mercado Roma: Situated in the city's trendy neighborhood of Roma, Mercado Roma is a three-story gourmet market that features holiday fare at more than 50 restaurant outposts, as well as culinary-themed gifts for foodie friends and family.  Authentic Mexico City holiday foods include imported salt cod for the tomato-flavored, garlicky bacalao a la vizcaina, and thick stalks of sugar cane, guavas and tejocotes for the traditional warm Mexican seasonal punch known as ponche.  Banana leaves and dried corn husks are also plentiful for the preparation of tamales, a process that always involves several members of the family.
• Las Posadas: Starting December 16, Mexico City shines with colorful lights and poinsettias for Las Posadas.  These holiday parties celebrate the nine nights leading up to Dec. 25 and are inspired by Mary and Joseph's search for shelter in Bethlehem.  Restaurants throughout the city mirror the tradition, welcoming neighbors into their home for tamales, ponche, sheets of sugary fried dough called bunuelos and a hot chocolate-type drink made with masa harina and chocolate called champurrado.
• Dia de Los Santos Inocentes: December 28 marks the Dia de Los Santos Inocentes, rooted in the Catholic Church as a religious commemoration, and known as Mexico's version of April Fool's Day.  Visitors will experience a day of pranks and jokes, which includes newspapers printing false, exaggerated stories.
• Twelve Grapes at Midnight: Early New Year's Eve afternoon, music fills the Zocalo, Mexico City's main plaza, while dancers and floats entertain guests.  Revelers gather to watch fireworks that frighten away evil spirits before entering the New Year.  At midnight, the crowd is prompted to eat twelve grapes along with the twelve chimes of the clock to bring luck for each of the months of the New Year.  After the grapes are eaten, visitors toast with ponche.  It is also a tradition for chilangos, Mexico City's residents, to wear red underwear if you wish for love or yellow underwear if you wish for money in the New Year.  Stalls selling the colorful undergarments are common during the holiday season.
• Good Luck in Travel: Visitors may see those in Mexico City packing a suitcase and walking around outside after midnight.  This tradition is meant to bring good travels to those in the New Year.
• Three Kings Day: On the night of January 5, children traditionally leave a shoe near their doorway with a note detailing their behavior for the year and the gifts they would like if deemed worthy.  If the three wise men agree, children awake with gifts in their shoe on January 6.  To celebrate this day, restaurants and bakeries sell rosca, a round, sweet bread baked with dried fruit and tiny images of the baby Jesus inside.  Whoever is served the rosca with the images must pay for tamales on February 2, for the religious observance of Candlemas.

Mexico City is the country's premier tourism destination, welcoming more than 13 million visitors a year.  The ancient capital offers a vibrant, contemporary culture that combines pre-Hispanic, colonial and modern influences that span nearly seven centuries.  With more than 150 museums, 30 distinct archaeological and historic sites, and 100 art galleries, the city is a mecca of fine art and treasures that speak to its vast history. The Mexico City Tourism Promotion Fund (Fondo Mixto de Promocion Turistica del Distrito Federal) supports and enhances city tourism.  For more information and daily updates please visit/follow us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/MexicoCityLive) and Twitter (@MexicoCityLive).

Media Contact:
Miranda Zackowski, +1.212.537.8724, [email protected]

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SOURCE Mexico City Tourism Promotion Fund