Old Town will be celebrating the 4th Annual Dia de los Muertos celebration in Old Town in 2026! Stay tuned for a full schedule
The Feel: Imagine strolling through Old Town in the week leading up to Día de los Muertos (October 24 to November 2, 2025). Music drifts from patios while laughter and conversation spill into the streets. Shops and plazas glow with orange and yellow marigolds, more than 30,000 hand-crafted flowers strung together as the Marigold Mile. Hidden patios and courtyards open to reveal ofrendas alive with color, calaveras, photos, and offerings that celebrate lives well lived.
From within San Felipe de Neri, the first drumbeats of the Matachines echo outward. Their dance bursts into the plaza, part devotion, part fiesta, carrying with it centuries of New Mexican tradition and joy. The crowd joins in the rhythm as the plaza fills with movement, music, and color.
As night falls, a candlelight procession winds through Old Town, filling the streets with hundreds of flickering flames. Globitos, small hot air balloons lit from within, rise and shimmer, adding their own bursts of light and color to the night. At Plaza de los Recuerdos, families gather among more than 40 community-built ofrendas as a curandero offers a blessing, weaving together prayer, memory, and celebration.
Everywhere you turn, you are greeted by symbols of life and remembrance: a towering Catrina sculpture and a glowing Tree of Life, standing proudly as tributes to connection across generations.
This journey through Old Town offers more than just sights, it is an immersive experience that brings the rich traditions of Día de los Muertos to life.
Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a vibrant Mexican celebration with roots in ancient Aztec traditions and Spanish customs. Originating over 3,000 years ago, the Aztecs honored the deceased with rituals and offerings. In Medieval Europe, Spain had its own traditions guiding souls back to the living. These practices fused in Mexico, leading to a festival with altars and offerings inviting the departed to visit.
While the celebration aligns with All Saints and All Souls Day from the Catholic calendar, it’s now recognized worldwide, each region adding its unique touch.
Key elements include altars filled with favorite foods, photos, flowers, and other offerings to welcome the spirits. Marigolds, particularly their orange and yellow petals, are essential as they’re believed to warm and guide souls. The scent of marigolds and copal incense further paves a sensory path for the departed. UNESCO celebrated this rich tradition in 2008 by naming it an INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE OF HUMANITY.
The iconic calaveras (skulls), especially the satirical designs by Jose Guadalupe Posada in the early 1900s, symbolize both death and celebration. The ofrenda, a temporary altar, showcases the four elements: water for drinking, papel picado banners for wind, food for earth, and candles, representing fire, to guide the spirits.
New Mexico proudly embraces a deep-rooted cultural blend of Spanish, Mexican, and Native histories. This unique fusion is evident in its Dia de Los Muertos celebrations, which integrate the Catholic observances of All Souls Day and All Saints Day. Annual parades, the Matachines dance, nightly Mass, and traditional Dia de los Muertos festivities all showcase New Mexico as a vibrant cultural amalgamation.
This is why we celebrate Dia de los Muertos (the day of the dead) in Old Town Albuquerque. Old Town Albuquerque has long been the community and cultural heart of the City and of the Southwest. We invite you to join in our celebration and remembrance of life.