# From Alebrijes to Ofrendas: New Jersey’s Cleverest Día de los Muertos Events for 2026 2026-10-07 · New Jersey · Reported Feature Wildlife refuge crafts, a giant skeleton puppet parade, an oceanfront procession, a five-course Dinner of the Souls and even a Batman trunk-or-treat give the Garden State an unusually inventive Día de los Muertos calendar this fall. Wildlife refuge crafts, a giant skeleton puppet parade, an oceanfront procession, a five-course Dinner of the Souls and even a Batman trunk-or-treat give the Garden State an unusually inventive Día de los Muertos cale… --- Día de los Muertos is a celebration of remembrance, not simply an extension of Halloween. The Mexican tradition, rooted in Indigenous beliefs and Catholic observances, is most closely associated with Nov. 1 and 2 and centers on keeping the memories of departed loved ones present through ofrendas, photographs, candles, flowers, food, music, art and family gathering. New Jersey’s 2026 calendar begins weeks earlier, and the most interesting part is how differently communities are approaching it. A wildlife refuge in Medford is connecting monarch butterflies, animals and alebrijes to the holiday. Jersey City is sending giant skeleton puppets through a park. A Clifton restaurant is building a five-course tasting menu around remembrance. Asbury Park is taking a procession to the oceanfront. Bridgeton, in one of the season’s stranger crossovers, has put Día de los Muertos, Batman and trunk-or-treat on the same bill. This roundup focuses on confirmed 2026 public programs with a distinct Día de los Muertos component and a creative hook, organized by county. Some are rooted closely in traditional community remembrance; others are clearly modern riffs on the theme. Together, they show just how broad New Jersey’s celebration has become. ATLANTIC COUNTY Noyes Arts Garage Prepares for Día With Alebrijes Saturday, Oct. 24, noon–1 p.m. | Noyes Arts Garage, 2200 Fairmount Ave., Atlantic City | Free; registration required The Noyes Arts Garage of Stockton University is using one of its free fall SatARTdays to give children a hands-on introduction to alebrijes, the brightly colored fantastical creatures associated with Mexican folk art. Children ages 5 to 14 will make their own versions from Model Magic clay. The workshop is explicitly positioned as a lead-in to the Arts Garage’s Día de los Muertos programming, making it a smart way for younger visitors to encounter the visual language of the celebration before the larger seasonal events arrive. BERGEN COUNTY Ancestral Connection at Saltscape Wellness Center Sunday, Nov. 1, 5–7 p.m. | Saltscape Wellness Center, 8 Queen Anne Road, Bogota | $95 early bird through Oct. 10; $105 after Bogota has one of the more unconventional adult interpretations on the list. Saltscape Wellness Center is hosting an evening built around remembrance, ancestral connection, healing and renewal. It is a private wellness-center interpretation rather than a traditional community festival, but the focus remains on loved ones and ancestors. An optional 45-minute medium gallery with Gail runs from 4 to 4:45 p.m. for eight participants, with a combined ticket option for the gallery and the evening program. It is a niche offering, but certainly one of the state’s most unusual Día-related events. BURLINGTON COUNTY Cedar Run Turns Día de los Muertos Into a Nature Weekend Saturday–Sunday, Oct. 10–11 | Cedar Run Nature Center, 4 Sawmill Road, Medford | Advance registration required Woodford Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge may have the cleverest family programming of the season because it does not treat nature as decoration. Its bilingual Día de los Muertos programs connect wildlife, storytelling and art to Latin American traditions. The weekend begins Saturday at 10 a.m. with Criaturas de Color: Alebrije Workshop for families with children ages 3 to 8. After a Spanish-language reading of “I Remember My Abuelo,” children will build wildlife-inspired alebrijes, meet a resident animal and tour the wildlife housing area while learning about the cultural significance of animals in Latin America. Sunday starts at 10 a.m. with Monarcas Mágicas, a program about monarch butterfly migration that pairs a Spanish story, nature crafts and a wildlife tour. At 1 p.m., older children and families can join ¡Calaveras y Ofrendas!, painting rock calaveras and building nature-based ofrendas that represent traditional elements. Standard program pricing is $15 per adult and $10 per child, with refuge admission included; age limits vary by session. Maple Shade Makes the Library an Art Studio Monday, Nov. 2, 3–4 p.m. | Maple Shade Library | Adults; registration opens Oct. 19 Burlington County Library System closes the traditional holiday window with a compact adult program built around making and watching. Participants will decorate a calavera de azúcar mask, create a wreath from tissue-paper flowers and watch a concert film featuring Latino performers. CAMDEN COUNTY Camden County Stages a Full ‘Celebration of Life’ Saturday, Nov. 7, noon–7 p.m. | John H. Adler Memorial Park at Challenge Grove, 101 Bortons Mill Road, Cherry Hill Camden County’s Día de los Muertos Celebration of Life is one of the larger late-season entries. The county is planning traditional music and dance, ofrenda displays, family crafts, face painting, Mexican food and cultural activities in a seven-hour park program centered on honoring the memories of loved ones. The timing, a week after the traditional Nov. 1–2 observance, makes it a useful option for families already committed elsewhere during the main weekend. CUMBERLAND COUNTY Bridgeton Goes Full Crossover: Día de los Muertos Meets Gotham Saturday, Oct. 31, 4–7 p.m. | Bridgeton | City calendar currently lists Bridgeton, NJ 08302 without a street venue There may not be a more unexpected title on a New Jersey municipal calendar this fall: “Dia De Los Muertos/Gotham Batman Trunk or Treat.” Bridgeton has scheduled the three-hour event for Halloween afternoon and evening. The city has not yet published a fuller activity description or street address on its calendar, so the exact shape of the mashup is still developing. But as a collision of Mexican remembrance tradition, comic-book Gotham and American trunk-or-treat culture, it earns a place on the creativity list before anyone has even parked a Batmobile. GLOUCESTER COUNTY Watch ‘Coco,’ Then Make Something Monday, Oct. 26, 5–6:30 p.m. | Gloucester County Library System, Greenwich Branch | Registration required The Greenwich branch keeps its Día program simple and age-friendly: watch Disney-Pixar’s “Coco” and make Day of the Dead crafts. The session is open to children and teens, including preschoolers, making it one of the easier entry points for families with a wide age range. Sips & Psychics Takes Día to the Winery Field Sunday, Nov. 1, noon–4 p.m. | Autumn Lake, Williamstown | $20 advance; $25 at gate; children under 12 free Sips & Psychics is a decidedly modern festival remix: a Día de los Muertos-themed afternoon at the Autumn Lake winery field with psychic readings, artisan vendors, food trucks, a live DJ and wine. The first 150 guests receive a souvenir festival wine glass; psychic readings are purchased separately. This is less about reproducing a traditional observance than building a social festival around the theme, and the organizer makes that distinction obvious in the programming. For adults looking for something far removed from a library craft table, it is one of the season’s more curious options. HUDSON COUNTY Jersey City’s Giant Skeleton Puppets Return — and the Celebration Gets Bigger Thursday, Oct. 29–Sunday, Nov. 1 | Riverview-Fisk Park and Jersey City Heights | Main festival Sunday, Nov. 1, 10 a.m.–2 p.m. | Free The 12th annual Jersey City Day of the Dead celebration is the most fully developed multi-day Día program in the state. Riverview Farmers Market is expanding the festival beyond a single park day into a neighborhood-wide series of art, remembrance and business activations. The communal ofrenda is unveiled Thursday, Oct. 29, from 6 to 7 p.m. in the Riverview-Fisk Park gazebo, with traditional dance by Sueño Americano, Calaverita readings and a youth theater performance. Residents are invited to bring photographs and offerings for departed loved ones. The main festival on Sunday brings back artist Santiago Cohen’s hand-crafted giant skeleton puppet parade, an expanded La Catrina costume contest, Mariachi Oro de Mexico, Sueño Americano dancers, memorial portraits, face painting and family crafts. Contestants in the Catrina competition will join the parade procession. The neighborhood itself becomes part of the set. Central Avenue businesses are joining with decorative banners, skeleton-puppet window displays and special food, drink and craft activations. October workshops leading into the festival include block printing, sugar-skull making, masks and alebrijes. It is less a one-day event than a small temporary ecosystem built around remembrance. HUNTERDON COUNTY Build an Ofrenda From Local Lumber Saturday, Oct. 10, 10 a.m.–noon | Moss & Medium LLC, 99 Kingwood Stockton Road, Suite 3B/C, Stockton/Rosemont | $50 Moss & Medium is taking the altar itself and turning it into a workshop. Participants assemble a wooden ofrenda made from locally sourced lumber, then decorate it with paint, moss, stones and other natural materials while learning about the tradition of honoring loved ones who have died. The workshop explicitly includes pets among those who can be remembered, a small detail that broadens the emotional reach without losing the central idea of the ofrenda. The event is listed as pet-friendly and ADA accessible. MERCER COUNTY Princeton’s Community Celebration Has More Than 20 Years Behind It Sunday, Nov. 1, 1–3 p.m. | Princeton Shopping Center, 301 N. Harrison St., Princeton | Free The Arts Council of Princeton has been celebrating Día de los Muertos with the community for more than two decades, giving this event a level of continuity that many newer fall festivals cannot match. The free family program includes traditional Mexican folk-art-inspired crafts, sugar-skull decorating, live mariachi music and a community altar. The emphasis is on learning by doing: visitors make, listen, contribute and remember rather than simply pass through a themed event. MIDDLESEX COUNTY Zimmerli’s ‘Último Domingo’ Brings the Celebration Into the Museum Sunday, Oct. 25, 1–3 p.m. | Zimmerli Art Museum, 71 Hamilton St., New Brunswick | Free Rutgers’ Zimmerli Art Museum is devoting its October Último Domingo — “Last Sunday” — to Día de los Muertos. The recurring series is designed to bring bilingual communities together through Latinx culture, art, exhibitions, art-making and interactive performance. Admission and light refreshments are free, and the museum is offering free special-event parking registration in designated Rutgers lots and the College Avenue Deck. MONMOUTH COUNTY Red Bank Teaches the Art — and Meaning — of Calavera Makeup Friday, Oct. 23, 6–8 p.m. | ArtSpace, 99 Monmouth St., Red Bank | Free; RSVP required by Oct. 16 Monmouth Arts and the Borough of Red Bank are turning one of the holiday’s most recognizable visual forms into a hands-on cultural workshop. Artist Gina Hernandez, also known as Dulzura Eterna, will lead a DIY calavera makeup tutorial and discuss what the tradition represents. Makeup and art supplies are provided, along with light bites and refreshments. Space is limited, and every participating adult and child must be registered. Asbury Park Takes Remembrance to the Boardwalk Saturday, Nov. 7, 4–7 p.m.; face painting begins at 2 p.m. | Convention Hall to the Asbury Park Casino | Free Asbury Park’s fourth annual Día de los Muertos celebration uses the boardwalk itself as the procession route. The oceanfront walk begins at Convention Hall and concludes at the Casino, creating a moving public remembrance rather than a festival confined to one plaza. Mariachi music, a live DJ, singing and dancing accompany the procession. Visitors may bring offerings to the ofrenda, and prizes will be awarded for creative attire and makeup. Professional face painting is available beginning at 2 p.m. for $10. The event is family-friendly and dog-friendly. OCEAN COUNTY Ocean County Library Builds a Mini Día Arts Curriculum Monday, Oct. 12–Tuesday, Oct. 20 | Multiple Ocean County Library branches | Most programs require registration Ocean County Library has quietly assembled one of the state’s most varied run-ups to Día de los Muertos. Instead of one large festival, several branches are using printmaking, film, flowers and wearable art to approach the imagery and culture from different directions. At the Brick Branch, teens ages 13 to 18 can learn block printing through calavera imagery on Monday, Oct. 12, from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. Two days later, adults can watch the 55-minute concert film “Dia de los Muertos!” featuring Los Lobos, Ozomatli and the all-female mariachi group Flor de Toloache, Wednesday, Oct. 14, from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. The Jackson Branch adds a Frida Kahlo-inspired felt flower headband workshop for adults and seniors on Tuesday, Oct. 13, from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. Then the Island Heights Branch hosts an adult tissue-paper marigold workshop Tuesday, Oct. 20, from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. Taken together, it feels more like a short cultural arts series than a one-off craft. PASSAIC COUNTY Bitol Sets the Table for a Five-Course ‘Dinner of the Souls’ Thursday, Oct. 29; arrival 6:30 p.m., dinner 7 p.m. | Bitol Mexican Kitchen & Handcrafted Cantina, 1061 Bloomfield Ave., Clifton | $95 prepaid For the food-first crowd, Bitol is creating one of the most ambitious adult Día events in New Jersey. “Dinner of the Souls” is a one-night, five-course tasting experience built around Mexican cuisine, music, tradition and remembrance. The menu moves from an oyster and handmade pibil tamal to fire-kissed octopus, prime ribeye with layered Mexican mole and a pan de muerto dessert with cacao and café de olla. Curated cocktails accompany the courses, and the room will be dressed with candlelight and cempasúchil flowers. It is an expensive night compared with the state’s many free community events, but it is also one of the most fully conceived culinary interpretations. UNION COUNTY Plainfield’s ‘Recuérdame’ Puts Memory at the Center Wednesday, Oct. 28, 6:30–7:30 p.m. | Plainfield Area Public Library, Lower Level Program Room | Children and teens; registration required The title says what the program is trying to do: remember me. Plainfield Area Public Library’s Recuérdame celebration invites children and teens to learn about Día de los Muertos and make a craft honoring loved ones in what the library describes as the lands of the living and the dead. It is a small program compared with Jersey City or Asbury Park, but the focus is unusually direct. Rather than starting with skull imagery and working backward, it starts with memory — the core idea that gives the imagery meaning. A STATEWIDE SEASON OF REMEMBRANCE The range is the story. New Jersey’s 2026 Día de los Muertos calendar can be traditional, educational, culinary, artistic, spiritual, outdoorsy or wonderfully strange, sometimes within the same week. The strongest programs do more than borrow the holiday’s visual vocabulary. They explain the ofrenda, invite people to name or remember someone, connect art to meaning and make room for the living to gather around the people who are no longer there. That is why a giant skeleton puppet can belong in the same statewide roundup as a quiet library craft, a nature-built altar, a mariachi procession and a five-course dinner. The forms change. The act of remembrance is what holds them together. Event information verified Oct. 5, 2026. Registration requirements, prices and schedules can change; organizer links are included below for planning. SOURCE NOTES • Background on Día de los Muertos — Smithsonian National Museum of American History • Atlantic County — Noyes Arts Garage • Bergen County — Saltscape Wellness Center Eventbrite listing • Burlington County — Cedar Run: Criaturas de Color • Burlington County — Cedar Run: Monarcas Mágicas • Burlington County — Cedar Run: ¡Calaveras y Ofrendas! • Burlington County — Burlington County Library System • Camden County — Día de los Muertos Celebration of Life • Cumberland County — City of Bridgeton calendar • Gloucester County — Gloucester County Library System: Watch and Craft: Coco • Gloucester County — Sips & Psychics festival listing • Hudson County — Riverview Farmers Market: Day of the Dead 2026 • Hunterdon County — DIY Día de los Muertos Altar workshop • Mercer County — Arts Council of Princeton • Middlesex County — Zimmerli Art Museum • Monmouth County — Monmouth Arts skull makeup workshop • Monmouth County — Asbury Park Chamber of Commerce • Ocean County — Teen Calavera Print Making • Ocean County — Frida Kahlo Inspired Headband • Ocean County — Documentary Film: Dia de los Muertos! • Ocean County — Tissue Paper Marigolds • Passaic County — Bitol / OpenTable Dinner of the Souls • Union County — Plainfield Area Public Library --- ProbleMattic is written and maintained by Matthew Kulcsar, a software engineer, project manager, technologist, platform builder, emergency-services-trained helper, grandfather, and lifelong collector of broken systems, odd behaviors, and useful nonsense.