3 days in Mexico City: Dia de Muertos parades, ofrendas & candlelit Mixquic

A 3-day Day of the Dead itinerary in Mexico City: the Gran Desfile parade down Reforma, the monumental Zocalo ofrenda, Coyoacan markets and Casa Azul, the UNAM Megaofrenda, a Xochimilco trajinera ride, and the candlelit Alumbrada vigil at San Andres Mixquic.

1. Day 19 am – 9 pm · 4 stops
2. 9 am1

   Museo de Arte Popular: meet the alebrijes indoors firstMexico City

   Start with the folk-art museum behind the alebrijes parade: its permanent collection explains the fantastical papier-mache creatures before you meet the monumental ones outdoors on Reforma. The monumental alebrijes exhibition lines Paseo de la Reforma from October 17 to November 8, 2026.

   8 min by train or taxi · 2.2 km
3. 11:30 am2

   Paseo de la Reforma: alebrijes and giant skulls walkMexico City

   Walk Reforma from the Angel toward Diana Cazadora past more than 200 monumental alebrijes (October 17 to November 8, 2026) and the giant painted Mexicraneos skulls (to November 16). This is the same boulevard the parade takes, so it doubles as a scouting walk for your afternoon viewing spot.

   3 min walk · 250 m
4. 2 pm3

   Gran Desfile de Dia de Muertos: the big paradeMexico City

   The 2026 Gran Desfile de Dia de Muertos runs Saturday, October 31 at 2pm from Diana Cazadora down Paseo de la Reforma and Avenida Juarez to the Zocalo, lasting 4-5 hours. Last year's parade drew more than 1.45 million spectators, so claim a spot on Reforma well before 2pm and expect to finish on foot in the Centro Historico.

   8 min by train or taxi · 3.7 km
5. 7 pm4

   Ofrenda Monumental del Zocalo after darkMexico City

   End parade day at the Ofrenda Monumental, in place October 29 to November 2, 2026: this year's display honors Jose Guadalupe Posada's La Catrina with a 32-metre monumental sculpture, beds of cempasuchil marigolds and sawdust rugs. It is free and at its best after dark, with the cathedral behind it.

6. Day 29 am – 8:30 pm · 4 stops
7. 9 am5

   Coyoacan plazas and market in the morningCoyoacán

   Go early, before the evening crowds: Coyoacan's colonial plazas fill with ofrendas, marigold sellers and Day of the Dead programming, and the neighbouring Mercado de Coyoacan is the place for pan de muerto, sugar skulls and market tostadas. Treat the plazas as a neighbourhood walk, not a single photo stop.

   9 min walk · 700 m
8. 12:30 pm6

   Casa Azul: Frida Kahlo's Day of the Dead ofrendaCoyoacán

   Frida Kahlo's blue house, where the seasonal ofrenda honors Frida and Diego Rivera among her dresses, rebozos and jewelry. Book online at least two weeks ahead: walk-in tickets are gone by 9am most days, and this is one of the city's most popular museums.

   8 min by train or taxi · 4.1 km
9. 3:30 pm7

   Museo Anahuacalli: Rivera's pyramid and its ofrendaCoyoacán

   Diego Rivera's volcanic-rock pyramid studio in the south of the city, holding his pre-Hispanic art collection in a setting built for it. The museum stages its own Day of the Dead offering and seasonal activities; the Cacao Para Todos festival here runs October 29 to November 1, 2026.

   8 min by train or taxi · 4.7 km
10. 6:30 pm8

    Megaofrenda UNAM: the university's giant altarsMexico City

    UNAM's student- and faculty-built mega-ofrenda runs October 31 to November 2, 11am to 9pm; the 2026 edition marks the university's 475th anniversary under the theme '475 + Paths That Sustain Us', with altars up to three metres tall. Check that year's venue before going: recent editions have also been staged at the Palacio de la Escuela de Medicina on Plaza Santo Domingo in the Centro Historico.

11. Day 310 am – 10 pm · 2 stops
12. 10 am9

    Xochimilco trajinera ride on the Aztec canalsXochimilco

    A trajinera ride through the Aztec canals and chinampas floating gardens: food and drink vendors and mariachi boats pull up alongside, and standard prices apply at this dock. The seasonal La Llorona night show also runs from this embarcadero on Friday to Sunday evenings until November 22.

    15 min by train or taxi · 15 km
13. 6 pm10

    Alumbrada vigil at San Andres MixquicSan Andrés Mixquic

    The Alumbrada on the night of November 2 is the trip's quiet heart: families decorate graves with thousands of marigolds and candles and keep vigil through the night. Allow about two hours each way on the night itself, go with a guide, and move quietly: for families here this is remembrance, not a show.