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El Centro

Día de Muertos

Día de Muertos 2026

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Día de Muertos events are open to everyone!  Our events are educational, cultural and historical observances that celebrate and recognize historical events and contributions of the Latinx Community.

Wednesday, 10.28, El Centro, 5-7 PM: Cempasuchil Flower and Barilete Making

  • Drop-in for a guided craft space where you can create tissue-paper flores de cempasúchil (marigolds) or barriletes (Guatemalan-inspired paper kites).

Thursday, 10.29, 5-7 PM, El Centro: Decorating Sugar Skulls 

  • Drop in to decorate Sugar Skulls, or Calaveras, while learning about the history of the practice.

Help us decorate and build El Centro’s altar with flowers, papel picado, candles, photos, and more.

Learn how to sign up for our Volunteer Corps on our Volunteering Page.

What is Día de Muertos?

Día de Muertos is often only attributed to Mexico, but it is celebrated in other countries, each with their own customs, histories, ceremonies, and iconography. 

What is it?

  • The Día de Los Muertos in El Salvador is also called “El día de los difuntos.”
  • People in El Salvador usually celebrate the “Día de Los Difuntos” every year on the 2nd of November.
  • Family and friends come together at the tombs of their beloved relatives or friends who have died. They usually sit down beside the graves & pray.
  • Salvadoran people decorate the tombs with colorful flowers making the cemetery come back to life. 
  • People clean graves and paint the tombs’ crosses in bright colors.

Traditions:

  • El Salvador’s traditions are not “extravagant” as in Mexico. There are no big parades, and the famous “calaveras” (the skulls) are not as common in El Salvador).

What is it?

  • Rooted in ancient indigenous traditions used in Central America
  • Elements of Mayan, Aztec, and Catholic beliefs.
  • Three-day festival, also known as All Saints Day.
  • Celebrates life, not sadness or being scared.
  • On October 31 families start to prepare to mourn the deceased by getting flowers and making food. People also visit tombs to clean and paint them.
  • Loved ones are honored through food, ancestral rituals, and unique cultural events.

Traditions & Food:

  • November 1st known as Día de Todos Los Santos (All Saints’ Day).
  • November 2nd known as Día de Los Fieles Difuntos (All Souls Day).
    • Dedicated to remembering the dead.
    • People bring offerings like flowers and food to graves.
    • People from Guatemala believe that the souls of the departed return to check up on their families and spend time with them.
    • People wear their best clothes and decorate tombs with flowers and candles.
    • On this Day there is Giant Kite Festival, a Horse Race (La Carrera de Cintas) and Santa Calavera (a human skull procession).
    • In areas you will find carved Squash Skulls.
    • Food associated with this time include Fiambre, Ayote en Miel, Pan de Muerto, Pepian, Tamales Colorados, Torrejas, Jocotes en Miel, & Molletes.

What is it?

  • Although officially, The Day of the Dead is celebrated on November 2nd. Honduras also celebrates El Día de los Santos Inocentes which happens November 1st.
  • Día de los Santos Inocentes remembers those who passed at a young age.
  • Families come together to clean and decorate the graves of their loved ones who died.
  • Celebrations vary within regions and families. Families use artificial or natural flower wreaths to decorate the graves of their loved ones. For those who died at a young age, the flower crowns are placed on the first of November.
  • Día de Muertos in Honduras is a time to remember and celebrate loved ones who have passed away. People celebrate life as they fill the cemeteries on this day.
  • Thousands of people go to the cemeteries on the Day of the Dead; most families share a delicious lunch and an afternoon full of activities around their deceased.

Traditions/Food:

  • Each region in Honduras has its own way of celebrating Día de Muertos.
    • In the west (Copán, Santa Bárbara and Lempira), the inhabitants of the Lenca ethnic group celebrate the date with a typical dish, Ayote en miel. The Ayote en miel is placed in clay pots that are left near the doors of each house so that the dead can taste this dish.

What is it?

  • November 1st: Día De Todos Los Santos (remembering children that passed).
  • November 2nd: Día De Los Fieles Difuntos (remembers adults that passed).
  • Families welcome back the souls of their loved ones. A reunion that includes food, drinks, and celebration.
  • Mexico City has one of the biggest celebrations with their Alebrije Parade full of folk art culture, sculptures, and mythical creatures.

Traditions & Food:

  • La Ofrenda: an altar of remembrance is a colorful art form and a personal expression of love towards family members with the purpose of remembrance and celebration of life.
  • Layers include pictures, religious statues or symbols, ofrendas such as toys, tequila, mezcal, atole, food, candles, calaveras, flor de muerto (cempasuchil/marigolds).
  • Traditionally, families visit local cemeteries to clean and decorate the graves of the loved ones buried.
  • Catrinas is a fashionable tradition. The original Catrina was titled La Calavera Garbancera which is a form of an artistic symbol of the Day of the Dead Celebrations.
  • Pan de Muertos and hot chocolate is a traditional treat. Pan de Muerto is a semi-sweet sugar dusted bread paired with hot chocolate; enjoyable on November evenings.