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The 2025 El Concilio California Cinco de Mayo Multicultural Festival is returning to the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds in Stockton. It will showcase the best of Mexican and Latin American heritage and culture. The three day festival will be happening on May 2, 3 and 4, 2025. And the best part of all is that it’s free!
Come and enjoy the bustling marketplace, with over 200 merchandise and service vendors. There are also over 20 international vendors. And you can enjoy non-stop music, live entertainment, carnival rides, Ballet Folklorico and free kids activities.
This is California’s Central Valley’s largest annual Cinco de Mayo Multicultural Festival event. It is considered to be the ultimate Cinco de Mayo extravaganza! It is expected to draw more than 60,000 festival goers to the area.
On Friday, the festival begins at 10 am. It will have a Carnival, food vendors, a health fair, kids activities, a great car show and two stages of entertainment. Band August will be performing a variety of Latin, Tejano, Old School and soulful Soul from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm. Friday will have free admission and free parking.
On Saturday, the gates will open at 10 am. Admission will be free all day, but there will be a $10 parking fee.
One of the oldest parades in America is the Stockton Cinco de Mayo Parade. This will begin on Sunday at 10 am, starting at the Weber Institute and going up El Dorado Street. Parade winners will be announced at 4 pm at the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds Main Stage.
If you’d like to go to the festival and look the part, here are some colorful dresses and skirts.
Mexican/Latin Cuisine
If you enjoyed the Mexican/Latin food at Cinco de Mayo and you’d like to enjoy more, you should try the following restaurants. They were named the 10 Best Mexican/Latin Restaurants in Stockton by the users of TripAdvisor.
- Nena’s Mexican Restaurant
- Xohimilco Cafe
- Susy’s Mexican Food
- Don Luis Mexican Restaurant
- The Pepe’s II
- Tepia Taqueria
- Rubio’s Coastal Grill
- Arroyo’s Mexican Cafe
- El Torito
- El Senor Frog’s
If you love Mexican food but can’t get to these restaurants some night, you can get food delivered from Tepia Taqueria, Don Luis Mexican Restaurant and The Pepe II by DoorDash. Check out their menus.
Visiting Stockton
If you’d like to visit Stockton for the festival, you should consider the following hotels. They are all offering discounted rates which can save you money on your stay.
- Comfort Inn Lathrop Stockton Airport – 24% Discount
- Econo Lodge Inn & Suites Lodi – Wine Country Area – 20% Discount
- Quality Inn & Suites Lathrop – 20% Discount
- Rodeway Inn Stockton Highway 99 – 20% Discount
- Park Inn by Radisson, Tracy – 19% Discount
- Quality Inn Tracy I-265 – 19% Discount
- Econo Lodge Stockton near I-5 Fairgrounds – 18% Discount
If you’re going to be flying into Stockton, you can use a promo code to save money on your flight here.