This Year, the Heights' Day of the Dead Parade Climbs to Central Avenue

At 6 o'clock tonight, the gazebo in Riverview-Fisk Park gets its Ofrenda. Riverview Farmers Market is putting up a large shared memorial altar for the unveiling, which runs until 7 p.m. Sueño Americano will perform traditional dance, there will be Calaverita readings, and students from Educational Arts Team will put on a youth theater play. Anyone can bring photos and offerings for loved ones who have died and place them on the altar.

The altar stays in the park. On Sunday, the parade that ends at the altar goes farther than it ever has. For its 12th year, the procession leaves the edge of the Palisade, heads up to Central Avenue, and then comes back to the gazebo. One parade linking the park and the avenue also sets up the rest of the Heights' fall. From now through early December, the calendar moves back and forth between those two streets.

Last Year, the Puppets Stayed Close to the Bluff

The 2025 festival had giant skeleton puppet parades that went around Riverview-Fisk Park. Sueño Americano danced, El Mariachi Oro de Mexico played live music, and the La Catrina Costume Contest held its first year. Riverview Farmers Market's recap says hundreds of people came. In the same post, artistic director Santiago Cohen calls the day a holiday of love and remembrance that belongs to the whole community.

That's the starting point for this year. Last year the loop stayed around one park on Palisade Avenue. This year the market's own wording says the route "will expand through the Heights to Central Avenue." Hoboken Now's listing also describes the return trip. The march goes up to Central Avenue, then back to Riverview Park, and ends at the gazebo and the Ofrenda with mariachi music.

The street-by-street route is posted on the market's site as a map image. It's worth checking before Sunday if you want to watch from a particular corner.

October Already Took the Festival Off Palisade Avenue

The longer parade is the most visible change, but the festival spent all of October spreading beyond the gazebo.

The market partnered with the Central Avenue Special Improvement District, known as CASID, to bring the festival to the avenue. The plan includes decorative banners on Central Avenue, skeleton puppet displays in shop windows, and food, drink, and craft activations at local businesses. Together with CASID and Educational Arts Team, the market also announced free public workshops held at businesses around the Heights during October. People could make papel picado, flower crowns, and skeleton puppets ahead of the November 1 parade.

Here's how the month played out according to the market's own schedule:

• October 2: a JCAST art show at Tres Chilitos, curated by Athena Toledo, with Día de los Muertos artwork and pieces by local young people.
• October 4, 11 and 18: mobile printing at the Sunday market, where local artist Jerry Alba of Punk Cat Press helped visitors block-print tote bags, shirts, and frame crafts.
• Through October: community crafting sessions on sugar skulls, masks, and alebrijes.

With that context, Sunday's route makes sense. The puppets heading to Central Avenue are going to an avenue that's already decorated for them.

Sunday, November 1, in Order

The main festival runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Riverview-Fisk Park. The market itself is open every Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., rain or shine, at 498 Palisade Avenue, so the festival takes place during regular market hours.

1. Arrive at 10 a.m. for the opening hour at the park. The lineup includes live music from Mariachi Oro de Mexico, Sueño Americano dance performances, memorial portraits by Athena Toledo, face painting, and family crafts.
2. Be at Bowers Street and Palisade Avenue by 10:45 a.m. That's where marchers meet to pick up a skeleton puppet. The market says everyone is welcome.
3. March with the giant puppets made and led by Santiago Cohen, through the Heights to Central Avenue.
4. Come back to the gazebo, where the parade ends at the Ofrenda with mariachi and more.

The La Catrina contest returns with an upgrade. It now has two prize categories, individual and group, and contestants walk in the procession. Registration goes through the market's sign-up form. The market posts full schedules and workshop details on its Facebook event page and on Instagram.

After the Parade, the Calendar Keeps Crossing the Heights

The parade goes from the park to Central Avenue and back. The weeks after it follow the same pattern, with each event at one end of the neighborhood or the other.

The market's season started May 3 and ends with the November 22 Sunday. After the parade, that leaves three regular Sundays at the park before it shuts down for the year.

Pershing Field Takes the Middle of November

The other end of the Heights gets its turn in November. Jersey City's Department of Recreation and Youth Development says the Charlie Heger rink at Pershing Field will "officially open November 2026," and adds that more announcements are coming. As of October 21, the page did not list a specific opening day.

Here is what the city's facility page currently lists for the rink at 800 Summit Avenue:

• Hours: Friday 4 to 7:30 p.m., Saturday and Sunday 2 to 7:30 p.m., closed Monday through Thursday
• Jersey City residents, per session: adults 18 to 61 pay $3, children 17 and under pay $2, seniors 62 and older pay $1
• Non-residents, per session: $5, $3 and $2 for the same age groups
• Who pays: everyone who enters, spectators included
• Payment: cash and debit or credit cards, but not American Express or wireless pay
• Policy: no refunds, credits or rain checks, and the rink is closed on city holidays

To get the resident rate, anyone 18 or older has to show a photo ID and proof of Jersey City residency at the front desk. Without both, you pay the non-resident fee. The page also lists $4 roller skate and $5 inline skate rentals but doesn't show an ice skate rental price yet. Since the city says more details are on the way, check the page again before your first session.

On a weekend in mid-November, that gives the Heights two options a few blocks apart. The market at Riverview-Fisk runs Sunday mornings, and the rink at Pershing Field opens at 2 p.m. on Sundays.

December 5 Brings It Back to the Bluff

The route finishes at the park, where it started. The Heights Holiday Market comes back to Riverview-Fisk Park on Saturday, December 5, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Organizers expect more than 150 local makers, artists, food businesses, and small businesses, along with music and holiday activities.

The holiday market started in 2022. In its vendor call, Riverview Farmers Market says the event has "grown significantly" since then and calls it one of Jersey City's biggest holiday shopping destinations, with some of the best views in the city.

So the same organizer that sends puppets up to Central Avenue on November 1 also brings the Heights back to the bluff five weeks later, for one Saturday of shopping at the park's edge.

If you plan to march on Sunday, or you're thinking about how a home near Riverview-Fisk compares with one near Central Avenue or Pershing Field, I know these blocks and I'm happy to talk through either one. Reach out to Christine Ayubi and let's connect.