Tekax Celebrates a Versatile Green at its 2nd Annual Chaya Festival
A leafy green shrub that has nourished Maya communities for millennia is taking center stage in the southern Yucatán town of Tekax this month, when the second edition of the Festival de la Chaya, or Chaya Festival, comes to the town’s downtown plaza.
The event brings together roughly 30 vendors offering dishes, drinks, and desserts — all built around chaya, the hardy perennial sometimes called tree spinach or Mayan spinach. Chaya ice cream is among the treats on offer. Workshops on cultivating and harvesting the plant are also planned, including a look at the folk traditions that surround it — among them, the custom of asking the plant for permission before cutting it.
Yucatán’s secretary of tourism promotion, Darío Flota, framed the festival as more than a culinary showcase. “The Festival de la Chaya is an example of how something so our own, so everyday, can become an engine of tourism promotion and economic growth,” he said. “Chaya is not just an ingredient — it is part of our history, our cuisine, and our cultural identity.”
Tekax Mayor Manuel Vallejos said artisans from the municipality will also have space to display and sell traditional garments, and that recreational activities for children will be part of the mix.
If chaya is unfamiliar, that’s not unusual for visitors from outside the region. The plant has been used by the Maya for roughly 4,000 years, valued for cooking and medicinal purposes. Rich in vitamins A and C, calcium, iron, and protein, it frequently surpasses common greens like spinach and kale in several key nutrients. It grows throughout Yucatán, often as a backyard shrub, and turns up in everything from soups and scrambled eggs to fresh-pressed juices and tamales.
One note for the uninitiated: raw chaya leaves contain compounds that are neutralized through cooking, so the plant should be boiled or sautéed before eating. Aluminum pots are a no-go — glass or pottery is the traditional choice.
The festival also leans into the plant’s cultural side. Scheduled performances include the Ballet Folclórico del Ayuntamiento de Tekax, a show by Fredy Martín Moguel, and a pasarela — a runway showcase — of traditional Yucatecan clothing.
Tekax, about 95 minutes south of Mérida, was designated one of Yucatán’s Pueblos Mágicos — Mexico’s Magical Towns program — in 2023, along with Espita and Motul. The designation is meant to draw visitors to communities with distinctive cultural or natural heritage, and events like the chaya festival fit squarely into that strategy. The town sits in hilly terrain at the edge of the Puuc region and is known for its fruit production, cenotes, and the nearby Mayan archaeological site of Chacmultún.
Festival de la Chaya — Tekax 2025
- Dates: Saturday-Sunday, April 18-19, 2026
- Location: Downtown Tekax, Yucatán
- Opening ceremony: 6 p.m., Saturday, April 18
- Admission: Free
- Highlights: Food and drink vendors, chaya workshops, Ballet Folclórico del Ayuntamiento de Tekax, artisan market, children’s activities
- Getting there: Tekax is approximately 95 km (about 59 miles) southeast of Mérida
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