Mexico is doubling down on its public health message to avoid big crowds in order to avert a second wave of coronavirus infections as annual festivities approach, including the Day of the Dead, which traditionally draws hundreds of thousands of people nationwide.

The Nov 1 to Nov 2 Day of the Dead celebration blends Catholic rituals and the pre-Hispanic belief that the dead return once a year from the underworld as cemeteries and houses shine with bright orange marigold flowers, according to Reuters.

Authorities have said cemeteries will remain closed, and the government of Mexico City, the country's largest metropolis, warns that tighter coronavirus curbs may be on their way as hospitalisations rise.

From a public health standpoint, Mexico's cemeteries “become areas of high risk for contagion” during the annual celebration, Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell told reporters on Tuesday.