Fiesta de los Reyes — the largest and historically free Fiesta event — will now charge a $5 admission fee during peak hours this year after San Antonio City Council approved the change Thursday in a 7-4 vote.
Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones voted against the measure, joined by Councilmembers Jalen McKee-Rodriguez (D2), Teri Castillo (D5) and Ric Galvan (D6).
The approved amendment allows organizers to charge $5 for attendees 13 and older during certain hours of the 10-day event at Historic Market Square, which runs from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. most days, with hours extended to midnight on the night of the Fiesta Flambeau Parade.
Under the approved structure, the fee will begin at 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday and on the first Friday of Fiesta, and at 1 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays and the second Friday. People who enter before ticketing hours can remain inside without paying.
Members of The Rey Feo Consejo Educational Foundation, the nonprofit that runs the event, told the council they plan to offer advance online ticket sales, allowing attendees to purchase entry ahead of time and show a QR code at the gate rather than wait in line to pay on site.
The vote followed a lengthy discussion over how to pay for added security measures put in place after recent violence at the event, including a 2024 shooting that left two people dead and four others injured.
What the fee covers
City staff said the fee was proposed after Fiesta de los Reyes organizers took on roughly $140,000 in additional costs last year tied to perimeter fencing, controlled entry points, bag checks, magnetometers and other screening measures. A city presentation said those added costs caused the event organizer to operate at a loss in 2025, even as the event drew more than 250,000 people.
Those measures are separate from the broader police presence provided by the city.
“The existing contract requires that the city — SAPD — provide general event security, so the officers inside the footprint and overall security for the event,” said Shannon Miller, SAPD’s chief downtown officer. “The additional costs that the Consejos cover are for private security that does the screenings for people who are entering the event. They pay for the perimeter and for the screening.”
Deputy City Manager María Villagómez said the city spent about $690,000 on Market Square security last year and expects that figure to rise to about $730,000 this year.
The Foundation told councilmembers the added costs of security have significantly cut into what the event typically generates for scholarships. The foundation has awarded more than $11 million in scholarships to San Antonio students over the years through Fiesta de los Reyes and related fundraising efforts.
Foundation representatives told council the event costs roughly $1 million to produce each year, with profits varying depending on attendance and weather. In 2024, before the added security measures, the event generated about $85,000 in net proceeds. Last year, after the new security costs, the event operated at a loss.
Consejo members said because of the foundation’s commitment to awarding at least $100,000 in scholarships annually, operating in the negative raises concerns about sustaining the program without additional revenue.
That financial pressure led some council members to question whether the city should explore alternate solutions instead of introducing an entry fee.
Cynthia Paniagua, an employee at the La Margarita vendor booth, works her shift in 2023 on the day after a shooting left a man in critical condition in Historic Market Square during Fiesta De Los Reyes. Credit: Brenda Bazán / San Antonio Report
Safety and Access
McKee-Rodriguez said the projected revenue from the fee — about $400,000, with only a portion going to the city — was relatively small compared to the city’s overall budget. He questioned whether the city should absorb more of the cost instead of introducing an entry fee.
“It just feels like what’s being asked in addition to what’s already been paid, feels like pennies,” he said, referring to the cost of additional security. “It feels like we should just eat that, but I don’t know. I can’t support the fee.”
Others raised concerns about preserving access to Market Square, which has long been considered one of the few remaining free Fiesta events.
Castillo said the fee could create a barrier for working-class families, while Galvan, who pulled the item for individual discussion, said the city should explore alternative funding options before changing how the public accesses the space.
City officials said those alternatives were considered.
Villagómez told council the city already spends about $3 million on Fiesta-related expenses each year, including public safety, and that adding more costs would require broader policy decisions from the council.
Supporters of the measure said the proposal reflects a compromise after months of discussion with tenants and city staff.
Councilmember Sukh Kaur (D1) said she initially opposed charging admission and pushed to find city funding to cover the added security costs but was told no additional funding was available.
“We pushed and we tried, and we were going to try to help fund with city dollars,” she said. “Unfortunately, there’s no city dollars to help support the additional security costs. It’s a very tough situation when you’re balancing public safety with keeping an event free and accessible.”
Kaur said earlier versions of the proposal would have charged admission for longer hours but were scaled back in response to concerns from Market Square merchants, allowing the event to remain free during daytime hours.
She added the fee structure cannot be increased or expanded without further City Council approval under the current agreement, which runs through 2030, giving the city time to evaluate its impact.
“I think there’s a fear that this becomes — no offense to some of our other events that we love so much in District 1 — [an event] that charges almost $30 for a ticket,” Kaur said. “But we want to make sure that does not happen, so families can still access and purchase their favorite things at Market Square.”
Kaur said the city could explore programs in future years to help cover entry costs for families who cannot afford the fee.
“We’ll keep working together to make sure Fiesta stays a party with a purpose,” she said.