Which night does Alum Rock Avenue fill with altars? Usually it's a Saturday just after Halloween: November 2 in 2024, then November 1 in 2025. This Saturday it is October 31, Halloween itself.
Mexican Heritage Plaza picks a Saturday close to the holiday, and the calendar moved that Saturday onto the 31st this year. Across town at History Park, Calpulli Tonahlehqueh holds its own celebration on the same Saturday and Sunday. So San Jose's two long-running, community-organized Día de los Muertos gatherings line up with the start of the holiday itself. You can follow the weekend in order, from a Saturday afternoon in Kelley Park to a Saturday night in East San José, then through Sunday, November 1, and into the week after.
Why the 31st matters
In its explanation of the holiday, Calpulli Tonahlehqueh describes the timing this way. At midnight on October 31, the souls of children who have died are believed to come down and reunite with their families on November 1, and the souls of adults visit on November 2. The Mercury News describes the same idea in its 2026 roundup: loved ones return on November 1 and 2, guided by ofrendas covered in marigolds, candles and sugar skulls.
In most years, San Jose's altar nights come a day or two after that midnight. This year the altars are up on the eve itself, on the same night many families are out trick-or-treating. The History Park program even builds a trunk-or-treat into its Saturday schedule.
Saturday afternoon: Micailhuitl at History Park
The 22nd annual Micailhuitl runs from 2 to 10 p.m. on Saturday, October 31, and from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday, November 1, according to the Mercury News, at History Park, 635 Phelan Ave. Admission is free.
Saturday has a few scheduled windows, and they set the pace for the rest of the day:
- Trunk-or-treat, 2 to 5 p.m., hosted by the Blvd Kings and Viejitos car clubs
- Kids' activities, 2 to 6 p.m., including sugar skull decorating, clay skulls, flower crowns, paper cempoalxochitl and jump houses
- Historic buildings open with guides, 2 to 6 p.m., across more than 20 buildings
- Fire House art exhibit, 2 to 8 p.m., on the first floor, co-hosted and curated by One Culture, with live painters working outside
- Danza Azteca, 5 to 9 p.m., with guest dancers from California and Mexico
The Danza Azteca ceremony starts with a community procession from the park's main entrance to the ceremonial space, and the organizers say everyone is welcome to join. The Mercury News puts the procession start at 5 p.m. The trunk-or-treat ends just as the procession begins, so families with young children can do both without picking one.
Between those windows, the grounds stay busy. The organizers list more than 40 Native artists and entrepreneurs in the craft market, more than 10 food vendors serving tacos, barbacoa, huaraches and aguas frescas, and more than 40 custom classic lowriders. The main altar stands at the Park Tower, and more altares are set up at the historic buildings throughout the park. There are benches around the park, and you're welcome to bring a folding chair if you plan to stay for the dancing.
Getting there: A small lot sits at the main entrance on Phelan Avenue. The larger Kelley Park lot at the end of Phelan costs $6. Overflow parking is at the San José State South Campus Garage at 10th and Alma, where a $6 daily fee may apply. By transit, take VTA Route 73 to Senter Road and Phelan Avenue and walk about five minutes. If you're arriving on Caltrain, ACE or Amtrak, transfer to Route 73 at the downtown San Jose transit hub.
Saturday night: Avenida de Altares on Alum Rock
As the History Park afternoon programs wind down, the doors open in East San José. Avenida de Altares runs from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 31, at the School of Arts and Culture at Mexican Heritage Plaza, 1700 Alum Rock Ave. General admission is free with an RSVP. The Eventbrite listing says doors open at 5 p.m. and parking is free.
This is the 10th annual edition. The plaza's 2025 page called last year's event the 9th and dates the tradition to 2017, so the 2026 count follows from that. According to that 2025 page, the celebration has spread beyond La Plaza and now stretches down Alum Rock Avenue to the 101 freeway, with a curated altar gallery set among local businesses. The 2024 route went from King Road to Mexico Bakery, which has its Alum Rock location at 1560 Alum Rock Ave. The plaza hasn't posted this year's exact endpoints, so plan to walk the avenue itself rather than staying only on the plaza grounds.
The 2026 lineup on Eventbrite lists Combo Tezeta, Bloco Do Sol, Los Lupeños de San José and Pro Wrestling Revolution. The Mexican Heritage Plaza event page also promises a community altar gallery, hands-on art activities, an artisanal vendor market and face painting. Most of the event is outdoors, with a few activities inside.
Ira Jones, production director at La Plaza, described the event in the plaza's 2025 announcement:
"Avenida de Altares is more than a festival — it's a moment when our community comes together to honor memory, celebrate culture, and transform the streets of East San José into something truly magical."
Stringing Saturday together
If you want to see both celebrations on the 31st, the published schedules suggest an order:
- Get to History Park around 2 p.m. for the trunk-or-treat, kids' activities and the historic buildings, which close at 6.
- Join or watch the 5 p.m. procession into the Danza Azteca ceremony.
- Head to Mexican Heritage Plaza for the evening. Programming there starts at 5:30 and runs until 10:30, so there's time for the altar walk after dark.
If you'd rather stay put, History Park keeps going until 10 p.m. with dancing until 9.
Sunday, November 1: the day the tradition welcomes children
On the calendar Calpulli Tonahlehqueh describes, November 1 is the day the children's souls reunite with their families. San Jose's Sunday programs happen to lean toward families too.
The Children's Discovery Museum, 180 Woz Way, holds its celebration from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tickets are $20 to $22. The Mercury News lists sand painting with stencils, calavera painting, Marigold Butterfly mask making, Aztec dancers, giant skeleton puppets, and a calacas procession led by Teatro Familia Aztlán. The procession makes a stop at Lupe, the museum's 14,000-year-old mammoth.
Santana Row picks up from noon to 5 p.m. at 377 Santana Row, hosted by The Pop-Up Shoppes. The Santana Row event page and the Mercury News list folklórico performances by M.A.N.O.S Folklorico, mariachi music, Catrinas and Catríns, community ofrendas, a Marigold Mercado of local artisans and Latino-owned businesses, a cempasúchil flower bar, face painting and crafts.
History Park opens again Sunday morning and runs until 6 p.m. Kids' activities run until 4, the historic buildings are open from noon to 4, and Danza Azteca returns from 2 to 4 p.m. For a quieter visit to the altars at the Park Tower and the historic buildings, without the Saturday night crowd, Sunday is the better day.
The weekday option runs through Thursday, November 5
Not everything is packed into the weekend. "Art of Remembrance," an exhibit of ofrendas, runs October 5 through November 5 in the AAACNA Studies Center on the fifth floor of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Library, 150 E. San Fernando St. The San José Multicultural Artists Guild and SJSU King Library present it, and the Mercury News lists it as free.
The exhibit guide names a wide range of contributors. They include Folklórico Nacional Mexicano de Elena Robles, El Centro SJSU, M.E.Ch.A. de SJSU, the Roberto Cruz Leadership Academy Visual Arts Department, the Tibia African-American Ensemble, the Maiko Women's Drum and Poetry Ensemble, the Bay Area Jewish Coalition, and SJSU students. That range sets it apart from the weekend events, since many San Jose communities contribute to one exhibit about how they remember their dead.
The King Library's posted hours are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 1 to 6 p.m. Sunday. The exhibit closes Thursday, November 5, so the last weeknight to see it runs until 8 p.m. Holiday weeks can bring schedule changes, so check the library's calendar before you go.
If you run into us on Phelan Avenue or along Alum Rock this weekend, come say hello. Sandra keeps an eye on how weekends like this one shape life in each San Jose neighborhood. If you're curious how your corner of the city is changing, Sandra Darrow would be glad to set up a free, personalized market consultation whenever it suits you.
