Zacatecas at FITUR 2026: Mexico’s “Pink Stone” World Heritage City courts culture and romance travel | News
At the Madrid International Tourism Fair (FITUR), the Mexican state Zacatecas presented itself as a heritage-driven destination with its signature pink-stone architecture and a year-round calendar designed to convert culture vultures and romantic travelers.
The capital of Zacatecas, also called Zacatecashas been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1993recognized for its historic city center with pink cantera stone buildings. “The pink stone is unique,” he said Le Roy Barragán, Tourism Secretary of Zacatecas. “Everywhere you go, you breathe in culture. The streets, restaurants, cafes – there is art everywhere.”
For the second year in a row, Zacatecas is promoting a special “callejoneadaon Valentine’s Day for singles – a festive night walk through historic alleys accompanied by music and food. “The offer of Zacatecas is 100% cultural,” said Barragán, explaining the unexpectedly strong turnout during the first edition on February 14. “We expected between 500 and 800 singles and we had 3,500 arriving people in the center of Zacatecas.”
According to the secretary, Zacatecas also packs a compelling trio of historical storylines – useful for multi-day tours and thematic circuits. In addition to the historic city center, Zacatecas is part of the Camino Real de Tierra Adentroa World Heritage Site, a historic commercial route that connected Mexico’s capital to present-day Santa Fe, New Mexico. A must-visit on the Camino Real route in the state of Zacatecas is the Museo Virreinal de Guadalupe, located in the beautiful Guadalupe Monastery and which houses one of the most important Baroque art collections in Mexico.
Most noticeably, Zacatecas is proud of its Wixárita routewhich has just been added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2025. This pre-Hispanic route starts in the Sierra Huichol and reaches the Chihuahuan Desert, with sacred sites in Nayarit and Durango. “The [wixaritari people] have their own customs and dialect, which they preserve with purity to this day,” said Barragán.
For 2026, Zacatecas will make the 40th edition of the Festival Cultural Zacatecas a cornerstone travel date. This year the music and culture festival takes place around Easter, from March 28 to April 11.
Zacatecas has direct connections to San José, Los Angeles, Dallas and Chicago. By plane it is only 1 hour and 20 minutes from Mexico City.
