Cinco de Mayo brings thousands to Pasco to celebrate Mexican culture
Thousands of people filled downtown Pasco and Peanuts Park on Saturday as the city celebrated Cinco de Mayo with a parade, live entertainment, food vendors, music, dancing, and family activities throughout the day.
Mariachi music echoed through downtown Pasco as families lined the parade route Saturday morning, while children scrambled for candy tossed from parade floats, and the smell of grilled street food drifted from festival booths near Peanuts Park.
Organizers said this year’s celebration included more than 85 vendors, 75 parade entries, and 15 stage events. The parade featured floats, marching bands, mariachi groups, folkloric dancers, and dancing horses, while the festival grounds included a kids’ zone, low-rider car show, boxing events, entertainment, and a beer garden.
Pasco City Councilman Mark Figueroa said the annual celebration continues to grow as families from across the Tri-Cities gather in downtown Pasco.
“For us at the community level for Pasco, Cinco de Mayo is about celebrating our diverse community and coming together and having a good time,” Figueroa said. “We have to honor our legacy and recognize who we are as a city.”
Figueroa said Pasco’s large Hispanic population is an important part of the city’s identity and helps strengthen the community.
“Our population is a majority Hispanic, and that’s part of our identity, and that means bringing everyone together, and that brings richness to our community and makes us better,” he said. “Everyone belongs here, and our Cinco de Mayo celebration is part of that.”
Figueroa also pointed to the economic impact the festival has on downtown businesses.
“We’ve had great sponsors that help make this happen, and this has been a great plus for the economic development of the Downtown Pasco district,” he said.
Pasco Hispanic Chamber of Commerce member Ulises Yair Navarro, owner of Alcom Media, said he was encouraged by the turnout and the support shown for downtown businesses.
“This has been very positive for our downtown businesses and is helping bring people into the Downtown Pasco area to see what we have to offer,” Navarro said. “Seeing the streets packed with people and everyone having fun and being together is just great.”
Navarro credited the city of Pasco and community sponsors for helping the festival continue to expand each year.
“Having the city and sponsors back this project has been a huge plus,” Navarro said. “This will just keep getting better and better each year.”
Families attending the event said the celebration offered a chance to share culture, food and traditions with younger generations.
Anthony Reisch of Richland attended his first Pasco Cinco de Mayo celebration with his 9-month-old daughter, Viviana.
“I’ve never been to Cinco de Mayo here in Pasco before, and it’s been so great watching all the parade floats, bands, dancers, and horses,” Reisch said. “We are Hispanic, and we want our daughter to learn about her heritage and culture, and events like this are awesome to show her early what it’s about.”
Five-year-old Abel Rodriguez spent part of the morning waving to parade royalty and collecting candy along the parade route.
“He’s having a great time getting candy and waving to the girls on the floats,” said his father, Richard Rodriguez. “After the parade, we are going to go down to the festival in the park and get some food from the booths, look at the low rider cars, watch the horses, and listen to the music.”
This story was originally published May 2, 2026 at 8:33 PM.