Historic Oakland Cemetery is about to get a lot livelier than usual. On Sunday, the 26th annual Día de Muertos festival takes over the Atlanta burial ground from noon to 5 p.m., with organizers expecting around 15,000 visitors to pack the grounds for altars, music and traditional food — and it's completely free to attend.
A Tradition Decades in the Making
The festival is presented by the Institute of Mexican Culture in partnership with the Consulate General of Mexico in Atlanta and the Historic Oakland Foundation, according to the Institute of Mexican Culture. The celebration honors Día de Muertos, a Mexican holiday dedicated to celebrating the lives of deceased loved ones, and this year's gathering marks the 26th annual edition. As Secret Atlanta notes, the festival has become a fixture of the city's fall calendar.
The event's roots stretch back further than its current location. The Institute for Mexican Culture's president said in 2023 that organizers had been holding the event for 20 years at that point, per SaportaReport. The festival had previously been held at the Atlanta History Center before moving to Historic Oakland Cemetery, where 2023 marked its second year at the new site, the outlet reported. By 2025, the festival was in its fourth year at the cemetery, according to Atlanta News First.
What's Planned on the Grounds
Sunday's lineup includes live music and dance, traditional Mexican food, artisan markets, and a display of altars honoring the dead, per the Institute of Mexican Culture's event listing. Families frequently put out ofrendas featuring photographs, marigolds, water, favorite foods and personal belongings of their deceased loved ones, a practice central to the holiday itself.
Attendees hoping to show off their own look can enter the Catrín or Catrina costume contests by registering at a contest table on site the day of the event to receive an entry number. A limited number of mausoleums were made available for participants to build traditional ofrendas, though applications to claim those spaces closed October 15, or earlier if all spots filled, organizers said. Oakland Cemetery will only be open during event hours on November 1 to festival attendees, according to the cemetery's own visitor guidance.
Part of a Growing Regional Celebration
The festival has grown into an annual event drawing thousands from across the region, according to ArtsATL, which also notes that Atlanta's Latin population makes up around 7% of residents. Past years have drawn similar crowds for similar offerings — the 2023 festival drew thousands for music, vendors, face painting, a costume contest and several altars, SaportaReport reported, while the 2025 edition featured family-friendly crafts and entertainment alongside mausoleums transformed into ofrendas, per Atlanta News First's earlier coverage.
Atlanta isn't the only metro area marking the holiday this weekend. Plaza las Americas in Lilburn will host its own Día de los Muertos festival on the same day, running noon to 8 p.m. and also free to attend, according to Atlanta on the Cheap. That event will feature altars honoring ancestors filled with marigolds, candles, photos and offerings, plus live music, folkloric dance, family activities, artisan vendors and food, the outlet reported.
Back at Historic Oakland Cemetery, organizers are billing Sunday's gathering as family-friendly and open to all, with no admission charge standing between visitors and a day meant to honor memory, culture and community in one of Atlanta's most historic settings.
