UMBRAL
A luminous Day of the Dead gathering where memory becomes celebration and gratitude becomes energy.
UMBRAL is not a festival. It is a portal.
Held in Tulum from October 25 to November 2, UMBRAL reimagines Día de Muertos as a conscious, elevated and joyful experience.
It honors ancestral traditions, Mayan light ceremonies and symbolic art, while integrating astrology, ritual, music and community.
UMBRAL exists to transform remembrance into presence, and presence into celebration.
UMBRAL means threshold.
A threshold is the space between two worlds. It is not a border, it is a point of connection.
During Día de Muertos, Mexico recognizes that the line between the living and the ancestors becomes thinner. The threshold opens. UMBRAL represents that exact moment: the meeting between past and present, between memory and celebration, between earth and cosmos.
A celebration of continuity
In Mexico, Día de Muertos is not a mourning ritual but a celebration of continuity. Rooted in pre-Hispanic cosmologies and later interwoven with Catholic tradition, it honors the belief that life and death are part of the same sacred cycle.
During these days, families welcome the return of their ancestors through altars, candles, flowers, music and food: not in silence, but in joy. Death is not seen as an end, but as transformation; not as darkness, but as memory illuminated.
Laughter, color, satire and beauty coexist with reverence, expressing a uniquely Mexican understanding that to remember is to keep alive, and that gratitude is the bridge between worlds.
The Mayan light
In the Yucatán Peninsula, candle rituals honor the return of ancestral spirits through light. Flame is guidance, memory and continuity. At UMBRAL, the collective candle ceremony becomes a luminous act of gratitude, a field of light connecting earth, lineage and cosmos.
The narrative of Posada
Inspired by the graphic language of José Guadalupe Posada, we reinterpret death not as tragedy, but as satire, elegance and social mirror. His imagery reminds us: life is fragile, therefore celebrate it.
Living culture, not museum culture
UMBRAL does not replicate tradition. It collaborates with it: Mayan ritual, symbolic art, sacred fire, music and community. The past is not displayed. It is activated.
Nine days, one journey
From October 25 to November 2, UMBRAL brings together ceremony, art, gastronomy, music and community at Papaya Playa Project. Each day has its own intention, from the opening of the portal to the radiant closing.
UMBRAL is aligned with the sky. We integrate astrology not as prediction, but as orientation. Planetary energies during this time invite reflection, release, reconnection and gratitude, through guided astrological gatherings, collective intention-setting and embodied practices under the stars of Tulum.
A journey from portal to radiance
Nine days at Papaya Playa Project. Select a day to see its program.
Opening the Portal
The threshold awakens. Intention. Alignment. Reverence.
Official opening ceremony
A gathering at the Tree of Gratitude to welcome one another and symbolically cross the threshold between the everyday and the sacred.
Sacred fire ritual
The lighting of the sacred fire as a symbol of transformation and purification.
Collective intention setting
A guided exercise to define, together, the intention that will accompany the group throughout the week.
Astrological alignment session
A group reading of the season’s astrological energy to understand the present moment and align with the cycles of the sky.
Organic ceremonial music
An intimate concert of organic music and ancestral instruments to accompany the first night.
Two nights to celebrate
The two main nights of UMBRAL at Papaya Playa Project, Tulum.
The Night of Transition
The main night of UMBRAL at the Beach Club, from 9 PM to 3 AM: fire performance, stilt-walking catrinas and a setting inspired by Posada. Two DJs to be announced.
Early entrance before 10:00 PM.
Mayan Dinner Experience, 8:00 PM sitting.
Music Journey by Stavroz (live)
Stavroz, a Belgian organic electronic act, closes the celebration with live instruments and downtempo and house rhythms.
Dinner from 6 to 11 PM.
Show starts 9 PM. Last entry 12:50 AM.
The venue behind the nights: Papaya Playa Project has welcomed Diplo, Solomun, RÜFÜS DU SOL, WhoMadeWho, Monolink and CamelPhat.
Tickets, lodging, or both
Buy tickets for Saturday and Sunday, book a room, or do both. Each one works on its own.
Event tickets
Saturday, October 31 and Sunday, November 1 are sold separately on Ticket Fairy. Buy one night or both.
Lodging at Papaya Playa Project and Art Village Tulum
Casitas at Papaya Playa Project, or a three-night package for two at Art Village Tulum. Book with or without tickets.
Lodging at Papaya Playa Project
Live the festival from within: casitas between the jungle and the Caribbean beach, at the venue itself.
Jungle casitas at the festival venue. Prices in US dollars, plus taxes.
Lodging at Art Village Tulum
Art Village Tulum packages: three nights for two, with or without a Maya dinner for two. Limited stock. Prices include fees.
Getting here
The most convenient gateway is Cancún International Airport (CUN), approximately 1.5 to 2 hours by car from Tulum. Private transfers and shuttle services are readily available.
From Europe, Cancún receives direct flights from Paris, Amsterdam and Madrid, among others. From the United States, it connects directly to New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, Dallas and Chicago.
Frequently asked questions
Plan your stay
Lodging, VIP tables, groups or any question: send us a message and we will reply on WhatsApp.