5 Events To Celebrate Cinco De Mayo In SoCal

Cinco de Mayo, always observed on May 5, falls on a Tuesday this year, so the celebration of Mexican heritage and culture starts this weekend in many cities across Southern California.

Viva La Música, a festival celebrating Latin culture, returns to SeaWorld San Diego on weekends from May 1 through May 17, featuring live Latin music, food and cultural performances.

The festival will take place Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, with concerts at the park's Bayside Amphitheater and a nearby festival area with local performers, community groups and family activities celebrating Latin and Mexican heritage.

The opening weekend will also feature the return of SoCal Taco Fest on May 2-3, serving the region's best taco spots, live music and DJs, Lucha Libre All-Stars matches, chihuahua beauty pageants, and live culinary demonstrations.

Other observances include:

Cinco de Mayo Fiesta

• When: May 2
• Where: Max Berg Plaza Park, San Clemente
• What: This free event will feature live music, folklorico dancers, crafts and games, a beer garden and food trucks.

Cinco De Mayo Fiesta

• When: May 2
• Where: Fifth Avenue Promenade, Gaslamp Quarter, San Diego
• What: This free event will feature live music, Lucha Libre matches, chihuahua pageants and races, and an artisan market.

Cinco de Mayo Festival

• When: May 3
• Where: Bowers Museum, Santa Ana
• What: This free event will feature live entertainment, hands-on art projects, face painting, and a sampling of pan dulce.

Cinco de Mayo Festival

• When: May 3
• Where: Plaza Mexico, Lynwood
• What: Plaza Mexico celebrates Mexico's victory at the Battle of Puebla with its annual Cinco de Mayo event full of tradition, culture, music and community.

Cinco de Mayo marks Mexico's 1862 victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla, when an outnumbered Mexican army pulled off an unlikely win.

The date is often mistaken for Mexico's Independence Day, which actually falls on Sept. 16 — decades after independence from Spain was secured.

While May 5 is an official holiday in Mexico, celebrations there are generally modest and largely centered in Puebla, where parades and ceremonies commemorate the battle. In contrast, the holiday has grown into a major cultural and commercial event in the United States.

Cinco de Mayo celebrations here date back to Mexican American communities in California in the years following the Battle of Puebla. The holiday spread nationwide during the Chicano Movement of the 1960s and expanded further in the late 20th century, evolving into the widely observed — and often party-focused — occasion seen today.

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