The 34th annual Fiesta de la Pitaya Los Cabos will take place July 18 and 19 in Miraflores, a small agricultural town in the Sierra de la Laguna foothills about 60 kilometers north of San José del Cabo. The two-day celebration centers on the pitaya, a wild cactus fruit harvested each summer from the arid slopes of southern Baja California Sur. The Los Cabos municipal government, the local delegation of Miraflores, and the Institute of Culture and Arts (ICA) of Los Cabos are co-organizing the event.
A traditional ribbon-cutting ceremony will open the main day of festivities on Sunday, July 19, at 11:30 a.m. in front of the Casa de la Cultura, named after Profesora Francisca Monroy Vda. de Collins. The program spans both days and includes cultural performances, regional food, live music, and family activities.
The Pitaya Has Fed Baja Californians for Centuries
The pitaya (Stenocereus thurberi) is not the same fruit as the dragon fruit sold in supermarkets. It grows wild on organ pipe cacti across the deserts and sierras of Baja California Sur. The fruit ripens between late June and August, producing a sweet, intensely colored pulp that ranges from deep magenta to pale white depending on the variety.
For the indigenous Pericú and Guaycura peoples who inhabited the southern cape region before Spanish contact, pitaya season was a defining event of the annual cycle. Jesuit missionaries documented this in the 18th century. Father Miguel del Barco, who served at Misión San Javier from 1738 to 1768, wrote extensively about how indigenous groups organized their year around the fruit harvest. He described pitaya season as a time of abundance after months of scarcity, when entire communities moved into the hills to camp near fruiting cacti.
The fruit was eaten fresh, dried into cakes for storage, and its seeds were ground into flour. That pattern of seasonal harvest persisted long after the mission era ended. By the late 20th century, Miraflores and neighboring sierra communities had formalized the tradition into a festival. The first Fiesta de la Pitaya took place in 1993, making this year’s edition a celebration of more than three decades of cultural continuity.
Today, pitaya remains difficult to commercialize at scale. The fruit bruises easily, has a short shelf life of roughly two to three days after picking, and must be harvested by hand from tall cacti using long poles. That fragility is part of what makes the festival special. For most of the year, you cannot buy pitaya in Los Cabos grocery stores. July is the window.
Miraflores Sits 45 Minutes From San José del Cabo on Highway 1
Miraflores is a town of roughly 3,000 residents located along the Transpeninsular Highway (Highway 1) between San José del Cabo and the turnoff to Santiago. The drive from downtown San José takes about 45 minutes heading north. The road is paved and well-maintained the entire way.
The town sits at the edge of the Sierra de la Laguna Biosphere Reserve, a UNESCO-recognized area that protects one of Baja’s most biodiverse mountain ranges. Miraflores has long been a center for leatherwork, particularly hand-tooled saddles and belts. Visitors to the Fiesta de la Pitaya can expect to find local artisans selling leather goods alongside pitaya fruit, pitaya ice cream, pitaya jam, and traditional dishes like machaca (dried shredded beef) and tamales.
There is no public transit from the Los Cabos tourist corridor to Miraflores. Visitors will need a car or taxi. Parking in town is informal, typically along side streets near the plaza. July temperatures in Miraflores regularly exceed 35°C (95°F), so bring water and sun protection. The town has a few small restaurants but limited services, so plan accordingly.
The festival draws a mix of local families from across the municipality, ranchers from sierra communities, and a growing number of visitors from the tourist corridor. Past editions have featured performances by local musicians, traditional dance groups, and cooking demonstrations using pitaya in both sweet and savory preparations.
The ribbon-cutting on July 19 at 11:30 a.m. will mark the formal opening, but activities begin on Friday, July 18. A detailed schedule has not yet been released. The Los Cabos municipal government published the announcement on its official website.