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Dia de los Muertos Celebrations in Southern California in 2022

Dia De Muertos, Events, Holiday Events

As far as October Festivals, there is nothing quite like the Dia de los Muertos Celebrations in Southern California.  Between the colorful costumes of the the uniquely Mexican catrin and catrinas (artistic “skeleton” men and women) and calaveritas de azúcar (brightly decorated “sugar skulls”), the heartwarming floral ofrendas (“offerings” of favorite foods and treats next to pictures of loved ones on an elaborate home altar) and the general joy of family, it’s a far cry from the western traditions of Halloween.

A splash of the artistic styles associated with Dia de los Muertos can be found in any place selling Halloween supplies, and in many Halloween festivals, but true celebrations of Dia de Los Muertos in Southern California are something more unique.  We (Rubi and Scott) found a number of different options for you to enjoy more of the true flavors of Mexican Dia de Los Muertos Celebrations in SoCal.

Sept 2nd – Nov 2nd 2022: Plaza de la Familia in California Adventure Park Disneyland Resort

One of the first celebrations to start each year is found in the California Adventure Park in Disneyland Resort.  Due to the popular movie Coco, which is heavily based around some of the Mexican traditions of Day of the Dead, California Adventure Park infused many elements from the movie, and therefore the holiday, into their seasonal décor, entertainment, and food.  There are a variety of activities and shows that expand on the holiday and of course the movie Coco, such as pictures with Miguel, making your own paper alebrije (spirit guide), adding a loved one to the Memory Wall, and live entertainment.

There is also a corresponding mini-celebration in Disneyland Park in Frontier Land.  In el Zócolo Park there are some mariachi-dressed Catrin as well as the brightly colored flowers and decorative items featured in ofrendas.

Though perhaps not the most accessible event due to the cost of entry to the park, and maybe not the most authentic, these celebrations are certainly a fun introduction to Dia de los Muertos and worth visiting if you already have Disneyland resort in your sights for September or October.

A dancer ruffles her red skirt flamboyantly at the Dia de Los Muetos Musical celebration of the movie Cocoat Plaza de la Familia
Dance and music, part of the celebration of family and life at the Dia de Los Muertos Celebrations in Disneyland Resort
A brightly colored catrina statue that can be seen at the Zocolo in Frontierland in Disneyland Park
Iconic catrin and decorations reminiscent of ofrendas to be found in Frontierland in Disneyland Park

8th of October 2022: The Muertos Art Walk on Olvera Street

Located on Olvera Street in Downtown Los Angeles, the Muertos Art Walk is a one day event celebrating Dia de los Muertos.  An arts & crafts show with local artists featuring their goods, some with a Day of the Dead theme, it’s a free family event.  This year it featured over 35 artists from the greater Los Angeles community selling original artwork, jewelry, accessories, clothing, face painting & more.  If you did not catch it this year, hopefully you will get to enjoy the 8th annual celebration in 2023!

A Dia de los Muertos celebration collage of face painting, A drummer wearing native mexican clothing, and a young girl in a catrina costume
Pictures of the entertainment available at the Muertos Art Walk from past years

Oct 13th – Nov 2nd 2022: Dia de los Muertos Celebration at Sherman Heights Community Center

Starting October 13th and completing on November 2nd, the Sherman Heights Community Center in San Diego is hosting its 28th Dia de Muertos event.  This year their event dates are  Oct 13th for a Noche de Mole (and Altar preview), Oct 17th beginning their Altar Tours (which continue through Nov 2), Youth activities on Oct 22nd, and a free celebration at the Westfield Plaza Bonita on October 29th, and finishing with a procession on November 2nd.

For the procession, though people will be meeting up at both Centro Cultural de la Raza (in Balboa Park) and Sherman Heights Community Center simultaneously at 5pm, the procession starts at 5:45pm from Centro Cultural de la Raza (2004 Park Blvd, San Diego) and then arrives at Sherman heights around 7:15pm.  From there it will then depart again at 7:30pm on a path from where to bless local altars before returning to Sherman heights at 8:30pm.  For more details of the route and exact they have a procession flyer.

For their other events please make sure to check their website for updates and more information on getting tickets to some of those event dates.

A picture of an ofrenda as seen during an altar tour for the Sherman Heights Community Center Day of the Dead Celebrations
An example of one of the past elaborate ofrendas that could be seen during a private altar tour

Oct 25th thru Nov 2nd 2022: The Dia de los Muertos Festival at Olvera Street.

Though it also takes place at Olvera Street, it is a different event from the Muertos Art Walk that we mentioned before.  This Day of the Dead festival takes place from Oct 25th thru Nov 2nd.  There are nightly performances that include a Danza de la Muerte at 6pm. There is also the nightly Novenario Procession at 7pm, which is a colorful parade to honor loved ones, and all in attendance get a sweet bread!

Community altars will be on display in the plaza starting Oct 29th thru Nov 2nd from 10am to 9pm and there will  also be entertainment (daytime during the 29th-30th at 11am, and evening Nov 1st-2nd from 4pm) and face painting (only the 29th and 30th).

Of course, Since it is Olvera Street, there are also the numerous merchants to check out selling products from Mexico, much of it hand crafted.  There is traditional Mexican clothing, shoes, jewelry, toys, art and home décor as well as Restaurants and vendors selling Mexican food and refreshments

For this Halloween Event in SoCal a covered archway decorated with jack-o-lanterns and spooky webbing leads to fog-laden atmosphere of frightening possiblities
Get ready for scares as you embark on the Los Angeles haunted Hayride

Oct 29th 2022: Dia de los Muertos Festival at Hollywood Forever

Now in its 23rd year the Dia de los Muertos Festival at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, according to some, is one of the largest Day of the Dead celebrations in all of California. Taking place on October 29th, you can enter from 9am to 3pm, or from 5pm to midnight.  Each slot has a separate program, so check carefully to see which entertainment you’d prefer to catch.

They have pictures online from their event last year but this year there is a lot to do such as checking out the altars, a lot of which are part of the altar building contest, get artistic face painting, find a range of Day of the Dead themed merchandise and handcrafts (sold by the artisans responsible], eat delicious Mexican food, watch folkloric, Aztec, and traditional dances, enjoy musicians and singers, and more.

There are two price tiers of ticketing, General Admission ($35-$50) and VIP ($150-$200).  The VIP ticket gives you access to the VIP Oasis, but unfortunately there is no information available about what the VIP Oasis experience is meant to be (Ticket pages just mention “more VIP ticket details on event ticketing page” but no such page appears on event or venue website)… hopefully it’s nice.  If you purchase a VIP ticket, please comment below what the experience was like so our readers (and us!) can make their own informed decision about it for next year!

This is a one day only festival, so make sure you book your tickets early for an awesome experience.

an elaborately decorated ofrenda covered in flowers for the Dia de los Muetros Celebrations at Hollywood Forever Cemetery
An example of the past years entries in the community ofrenda contest

If you want to find more about the Halloween Events and Harvest Festivals in Southern California Check out our master list or read one of the other Event articles in this series below:

Or watch our Youtube video where we present the highlights of our list… and don’t forget to like and subscribe!

If you’ve been to any of the Dia de los Muertos events above, let us know in the comments below what you thought of them, or what you enjoyed the most.  If there is an event that you’ve been to (and loved!) that we missed, please share about it with us here so we can check it out as well!

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