Luca Medina, 1, grins as he playfully reaches for the flowers on Liz Mata’s flower crown at the Oyster Bake at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio in April 2023.
Josie Norris/San Antonio Express-News file photo
After my first Fiesta in April 2023, I wrote about five things I learned during my first Fiesta (and wished I had known before going), so I’m resharing those. But each Fiesta is a different experience, hence new lessons. So, like confetti from a cascarón, I’m sprinkling in bonus tips I’ve learned after my second and third Fiestas.
Before my first Fiesta, I already had heard the stories and asked the questions: It’s 11 days? Schools and government offices really shut down for Battle of Flowers? You buy tickets to watch the parades? But Fiesta was something I had to experience to fully understand and embrace, and I also soon realized it was impossible for me to attend all the Fiesta events.
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Divide & Conquer specializes in hand-stitched guayaberas at its downtown store.
Rene Guzman/San Antonio Express-News file photo
Volunteer Natalie Knoles playfully scoffs after being rejected while selling colorful flower crowns during the first night of A Night In Old San Antonio at La Villita in San Antonio in April 2023.
Josie Norris/Josie Norris/San Antonio Express-News file photo
All sorts of pins and medals were on display during a Saturday afternoon of buying, selling and trading Fiesta medals of all kinds in the parking lot of Amol’s Party and Fiesta Favors. Over 20 venders took part in the event leading up to Fiesta 2026 which begins April 16.
Robin Jerstad/Contributor
Basketball jersey medals featuring a limited edition (1 of 100) No.# 1 jersey was on display during a Saturday afternoon of buying, selling and trading Fiesta medals of all kinds in the parking lot of Amol’s Party and Fiesta Favors. Over 20 venders took part in the event leading up to Fiesta 2026 which begins April 16.
Robin Jerstad/Contributor
Alexus Pena looks over pins during a Saturday afternoon of buying, selling and trading Fiesta medals of all kinds in the parking lot of Amol’s Party and Fiesta Favors. Over 20 venders took part in the event leading up to Fiesta 2026 which begins April 16.
Robin Jerstad/Contributor
1. Trading Fiesta medals is a big deal. I knew Fiesta medals were big business, from the organizations and individuals who design them to the contest entries, but until I showed up at the NIOSA (A Night in Old San Antonio) Kings Garden Party wearing a sash pinned with Fiesta medals, I didn’t know trading was a thing. Maybe I would have planned better by pinning on medals I didn’t like as trade options. Instead, one of my personal favorites captured the fancy of another guest, who caught me by surprise when she asked if I wanted to trade. When I admitted I was a first-timer, she immediately helped me upgrade, and I walked away with the “Fiesta Queen 2020” medal featuring a sparkling purple jumpsuit meant to memorialize the 1995 performance at the Houston Astrodome by Selena, who hailed from my hometown of Lake Jackson. Just be sure to have extra safety pins on your sash to help secure new medals, as I later realized a San Antonio Zoo medal didn’t make it home with me.
Bonus tip: I have come to understand the need for a different sash for each year. You cannot possibly wear all of the medals you own at one time. Either pick a few of your favorites or show off the current medals. There’s just not enough space on a sash, and if you try to make it work, you might as well be wearing a weighted vest — maybe good for burning calories but not for partaking in festivities. Your neck will thank you for taking a load off.
Roxie Chung cracks a cascarones over Sylvia Dimayuga’s head for a photograph on the first night of the Fiesta Night in Old San Antonio on 2022.
KAYLEE C GREENLEE BEAL 2022/Kaylee C. Greenlee Beal / San Antonio Express-News file photo
2. You’ll want your own flower crown or guayabera — or both. A family friend told me I needed to get a flower crown to wear for Fiesta; someone else told me it wasn’t a requirement. But once a co-worker let me borrow hers, with big synthetic blooms in blue, white, orange, yellow, pink and red, I was hooked. The same multicolored paper flower crowns that are sold on the street during the Fiesta Flambeau Night Parade for $5 are available for about $1 less year-round at The Fiesta at North Star, 102 W. Rector St., with more color options, plus headbands and hair clips. My husband also quickly took to wearing guayaberas, from the traditional white purchased at a department store to a navy embroidered with colorful flowers from Mexico. (If you know someone who can get you one from Mexico, they’re a lot cheaper, even for elaborate designs.) Colorful guayaberas are better choices; see lesson No. 3.
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Bonus tip: Be careful to purchase the right size paper flower crown. No amount of bobby pins would make my paper flower crown work because it was a child’s size.
Leah Garza breaks a cascarone egg over Lucia Vasquez, 4, as they watch the 134th Battle of Flowers parade in San Antonio in May 2025.
Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News file photo
3. Cascarones confetti stains when wet. I had heard to watch out for aggressive cascarones offenders, who use force to crack the confetti eggs, and to expect to find the confetti long after the egg is cracked. But nobody told me to watch out for the confetti dye. I first discovered this when washing my husband’s white guayabera, which had turquoise and pink confetti in the pockets. Luckily, I was able to remove the little colored paper dots and successfully treat the shirt with stain remover, but if they had gone into the wash, I might not have been as fortunate. Since then, confetti has been found on our bathroom floors, usually surrounded by a tiny colored puddle I’ve been able to clean up. I’ve also stopped the confetti in its tracks when dry, vacuuming it up and shaking it out of bedding. On numerous occasions, I’ve been told it’s usually really hot this time of year and the confetti will stick to your face, so I can only imagine that means colored sweat.
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Bonus tip: Be sure to crack the confetti-filled eggs in your hands over someone’s head, rather than making contact. They’ll appreciate it and you will too when they return the favor.
Javier Trevino, owner of Divide & Conquer Denim & Leather, shows details of his custom guayaberas at his store in downtown San Antonio in July 9 2021.
Lisa Krantz/San Antonio Express-News file photo
4. Always carry cash and card when heading to Fiesta. Even if you have an idea where you might park, thousands of other people probably have the same idea. Be ready to park at a moment’s notice. If I had $40 cash, I could have parked under the overpass, while $30 cash could have gotten me into various other parking lots. The closest ATM wasn’t working, and after an hour in traffic, I eventually made my way to a church lot, where I was able to click on a text link and charge $40 to my card. (The nearest food vendor, where I was introduced to watermelon and lemon aguas frescas, took both cash and card.)
Bonus tip: You don’t have to stick to Fiesta fare. You can always skip the lines and duck into a downtown restaurant and have a drink and bite to eat. Plus, some San Antonio restaurants serve Fiesta favorites such as chicken-on-a-stick as specials or on their menus year-round if you don’t get your Fiesta food fix.
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Araceli Bermea, from left, Jeanette Lopez and Marisol Lopez, enjoy chicken on a stick with their friends during the opening night of “A Night In Old San Antonio” (NIOSA) at La Villita Historic Arts Village District in April 2024 in San Antonio.
Salgu Wissmath/San Antonio Express-News file photo
5. Go way too early to have more fun. Because of the parking issue mentioned in No. 4, head to your destination ridiculously early — at least three hours early. Chances are, you’ll lessen your stress by avoiding traffic and find another event to attend. There’s plenty of crowd-watching and even dancing. Before the Flambeau Night Parade, spectators tailgating and sitting in the bleachers entertained themselves by taking to the streets for the Electric Slide before going back to eating everything from chicken-on-a-stick and tacos to cotton candy and popcorn amidst a sea of bubble blowing wands, glow-in-the-dark necklaces and light-up flower crowns. This tactic also applies to out-of-town guests arriving in San Antonio during Fiesta, as I watched three people push suitcases down the side of the street and into the night parade crowd heading toward the Emily Morgan Hotel. Others had the right idea, watching from the hotel’s stairwell and rooms.
Bonus tip: The earlier you go, the more likely you’ll be tempted to use a portable toilet — so remember the previous bonus tip and choose a restaurant with a restroom.