San Rafael's Día de los Muertos Starts in Fourth Street Windows and Ends in the Canal
October 15, 2026
October 15, 2026
Each fall, San Rafael's Día de los Muertos links downtown and the Canal neighborhood for a few weeks. City planners have been discussing a permanent version of that link for about twenty years. The 38th annual celebration takes place on Saturday, November 7, from 3:00 to 9:00 p.m. at the Albert J. Boro Community Center, 50 Canal Street. It is free and open to everyone. The altars show up well before that date, though, in the windows of downtown businesses.
That spread is what makes this year worth following. While the altars travel between the two parts of town, the City is collecting ideas for a waterfront park at a former boatyard on Canal Street and studying a pedestrian and bike bridge to downtown. The celebration has been doing that connecting work for a long time already.
Downtown San Rafael's business improvement district lists altar displays in local businesses throughout October and November 2026. It calls the downtown displays a reminder of the main celebration at the Boro Center on November 7. The same page says the Canal neighborhood hosts the celebration and invites residents and visitors to take part. As of mid-October, the district's altar map is still marked "coming soon," and this year's list of host businesses hasn't been published.
Window altars are fairly new to the event. The Marin Independent Journal's coverage of the 35th celebration in 2023 quoted Steve Mason, a senior supervisor at the Al Boro Center who had been on the organizing committee for 15 years by then. He described an event started to highlight the Canal community's culture, which grew during the pandemic to include altars in downtown businesses. That year, the Multicultural Center of Marin was the lead sponsor, and Karina Ramirez-Cortez, the Center's arts and culture coordinator, chaired the event for the first time after taking part for five years.
What began as a way to adapt to the pandemic has stayed. Anyone can build an altar in a downtown business window through November 7, honoring a loved one, a personal hero, or a cause. Fourth Street also has new public art this year. By the end of August, five new artworks funded by a California Arts Council grant were installed downtown, including a fountain mural and tile work at City Plaza and a mural on the Third Street side of the C Street Garage. When the altar map comes out, a walk to see the altars will pass some of these new pieces.
On November 7 the celebration moves into the Canal. The City's 2026 schedule is easy to plan around:
This year adds something visual. The City says to look for barriletes, giant kites built by community members at free Friday workshops this fall.
People who want to help without building an altar can volunteer. Volunteers who sign up by October 31 get a free meal, and organizers will sign off on community service hours, which may matter to high school students in the family. Sign-up details are on the official event site. Some text on that site is left over from past years: it calls this the 37th celebration and mentions shuttle service on "November 2nd." The City's listing has the correct 2026 count and date.
The event has been around long enough to have a documented history. In November 2017 the Marin Independent Journal covered the 29th annual celebration, with the same mix of neighborhood procession, art, music, performances, food, and altar viewing that's on this year's program. In both years, the walk through the Canal is the centerpiece.
The City hasn't posted parking, shuttle, or exact procession-route details for 2026. The transit and bike options between downtown and the Boro Center are already in place, though.
| Option | Route | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Bus | Marin Transit Route 30, Canal to Downtown San Rafael via Francisco Boulevard | Took over the former Route 35 trips between the Canal and San Rafael Transit Center on April 12, 2026 |
| Off-street bike paths | Pickleweed Park path, Bay Trail Shoreline Path, Starkweather Path | Listed as Class I paths in the Canal transportation plan |
| On-street bike routes | Canal Street, Bellam Boulevard, Medway Road, Francisco Boulevard East | Listed as Class III routes in the same plan |
The path and route designations come from the June 2022 Canal Neighborhood Community-Based Transportation Plan, and Route 30's schedule was updated in September 2026. Check both before you go, and look up the Saturday-evening bus times if you plan to stay for the procession and the 7:30 performance.
Every option on that list goes around the water, because nothing crosses it yet. That's where the City's other Canal project comes in.
On November 14, 2025, San Rafael closed escrow on the 1.65-acre former boatyard at 620 Canal Street. The price was $3.355 million, according to a Marin County news release. Funding came from three sources:
Private donors covered more of the price than either public source. The Trust for Public Land led the purchase, with the City, Marin County, Canal Alliance, and the Marin Community Foundation as partners.
A Marin Independent Journal report on the purchase, republished by Canal Alliance, describes a multiyear, community-led process to decide on recreation and programming, plus fundraising still to come for site cleanup, park design, and construction. Ideas suggested so far include a green activity space, a safe dedicated area for food vendors, and places that honor local culture and entrepreneurs. A space that honors culture describes what the Boro Center already offers for one Saturday each November.
The City's community survey on the park, offered in English and Spanish, is open through today, October 12. Residents living within a mile of the site can also join a focus group by emailing [email protected]. The City's update describes this stage as gathering input and gives no construction or opening date.
The City says the park site may eventually connect to a new pedestrian and bike bridge to downtown. The idea isn't new. According to the Marin Independent Journal's report, San Rafael has discussed a Canal crossing since 2006, and a feasibility study is meant to compare options, costs, and impacts while keeping the channel open for boats. The same report says the City announced a $1.575 million Metropolitan Transportation Commission grant for the study and preliminary design, and planned to choose a consultant in early 2026. The City's October 2026 update calls the bridge possible and gives no schedule.
Until the bridge is built, getting between downtown and the Canal means Route 30 along Francisco Boulevard or a bike route around the water. This year's celebration covers the same ground on that route: altars in Fourth Street windows through November 7, then the Boro Center gym that afternoon, and Danza Azteca Mixcoatl leading the walk through the Canal at 6:00 p.m.
If you'd like to talk about how projects like 620 Canal Street are shaping the city, Emily Schaffer is glad to share what she's following. Request a Private Consultation.
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