Downey's Día de los Muertos Festival Falls on the Day the Clocks Go Back. Here's How to Plan the Light.

Downey's Día de los Muertos Art Festival runs Sunday, Nov. 1, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Downey Theatre. Hours before it opens, the clocks fall back an hour. That timing means sunset comes at 4:59 p.m., and roughly the last three hours of the festival happen in the dark.

So you're really getting two versions of the same festival on the same grounds. Sugar skulls, chalk and food trucks fill the afternoon, and after sunset the altars take over. If you live a few minutes from Firestone Boulevard, you can pick which version you want, or plan to catch both.

The clock moves before the gates open

Daylight Saving Time ends in Los Angeles on Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026. At 2 a.m., clocks go back to 1 a.m. standard time, according to timeanddate's 2026 time-change listing. That same source's November sunrise and sunset table for Los Angeles puts sunset that day at 4:59 p.m. Civil twilight, the last glow before full dark, ends at 5:25 p.m.

Put that next to the festival hours. Gates open at 11 a.m., and the event closes at 8 p.m. You get about six hours of daylight and about three hours of evening, all on the first day your body is still on the old clock. Five o'clock will feel like six. If you have little ones who nap or go to bed early, that matters.

The daylight half is built for hands

The festival's official activities page lists arts and crafts, a chalk walk, face painting, art displays, car altars, sugar-skull decorating, food trucks, a mercado and a community altar, all available from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Several of those work best in good light. Chalk art is easier to make and to see with the sun out. Sugar-skull decorating and crafts reward a steady hand and a clear view of the details.

The art also has a strong daytime side. According to The Downey Patriot, the festival will again feature art exhibitions presented with the Downey Arts Coalition, with artists working in a range of mediums. The Patriot's August announcement adds ballet folklórico, mariachi, interactive art activities, artisan vendors, hands-on workshops and family programming.

The festival site has separate pages for a Main Stage, a Community Stage and a Zócalo Stage. All three asked visitors to stay tuned for their 2026 lineups, and none of them named performers. If a certain folklórico group or mariachi set is the reason you're going, check those pages before you leave the house. The performance times will decide which half of the day you plan around.

The evening half belongs to the altars

The festival is built around remembrance, and the pieces that carry that idea are the ones you'll likely see after dark if you arrive later in the day.

The new piece this year comes from Rubicelia "Rubi" Prieto, founder and artist behind La Calaca Blanca. She's bringing a new Catrina sculpture and a community altar. The Downey Patriot describes Prieto as a self-taught artist. She has spent the past decade making large-scale paper-mâché Catrinas and immersive installations rooted in Día de los Muertos traditions, built with paper, paint and traditional craftsmanship.

Alec Esparza's Dodger Altar, a baseball-themed installation, is returning too. The Patriot reports it will sit within a larger collection of ofrendas and displays honoring people who have died. The car altars and the community altar are part of that same set, along with traditional ofrendas and papel picado.

None of these pieces leave when the sun goes down. Anyone who arrives after work-week errands, or after a quiet visit to a family grave earlier that day, will see them from about 5:25 p.m. on, once the sky is fully dark.

Nov. 1, hour by hour

Here's how the day lines up, using the festival's posted hours and the 2026 sun table:

1. 2:00 a.m. Clocks fall back to 1:00 a.m. standard time.
2. 6:12 a.m. Sunrise in Los Angeles.
3. 11:00 a.m. Festival gates open at 8435 Firestone Blvd. Every activity runs from now until close.
4. 11:36 a.m. Solar noon, when the sun is highest and shadows are shortest.
5. 4:59 p.m. Sunset.
6. 5:25 p.m. Civil twilight ends, and the sky is dark.
7. 8:00 p.m. Festival closes.

Want to see both halves in one visit? Plan to arrive around 4 p.m. That leaves about an hour of daylight for the chalk walk and the art exhibitions, then dusk while you find food, then a couple of hours with the altars after dark. For a family with young kids, a late-morning arrival gets you the crafts and face painting while it's bright, and you can be home before the early dark makes bedtime harder.

Getting there on a Sunday

Admission and parking are both free. That's welcome news, but it also explains the crowds. Organizers told The Downey Patriot that the festival draws more than 20,000 visitors from across Southern California, and that the state has recognized it for supporting local artists and performers. The Patriot also calls it one of the Downey Theatre's largest community events of the year.

A few practical points for residents:

• Downey LINK won't help that day. The City of Downey's Downey LINK page says the service runs Monday through Friday only, with no weekend service. It also notes that special-event street closures can affect routes.
• Check parking directions close to the day. The festival's "How to Get Here" page was last updated in 2023, so its lot directions may not match this year's setup. Watch ddlm.downeytheatre.org and the festival's social channels for 2026 details.
• If you live nearby, walking may be easiest. For neighbors within walking distance of the Civic Center, skipping the parking hunt makes the evening half far easier, especially when you'd otherwise be circling for a spot in the dark.
• Bring a layer. It will be dark before 5:30 p.m., and you could be outside for a while after that.

Ofrendas start at home

The festival grounds aren't the only place people are preparing for the season. In Downey, The Pup Gang Bakery lists a three-piece, dog-friendly pan de muerto treat for pickup at 13229 Premiere Ave. Its seasonal window runs Oct. 1 through Nov. 7, 2026. The product page currently shows it as sold out, so check before you go if you were hoping to add something for a dog who's no longer with you.

The festival is in its 13th year, and its central idea hasn't changed. Organizers say it exists to support local artists and artisans and to give visitors a chance to learn about Día de los Muertos and take part in it. Because of the clock change, the altars at 8435 Firestone Blvd. will spend about three of the festival's nine hours in the dark.

Día de los Muertos is a time for remembering the people who made a house a home. For many families in Downey, that remembrance comes with real decisions about a parent's or grandparent's home. If that's where your family is right now, I'm happy to walk you through what comes next, step by step, in English or Spanish, whenever you're ready. Reach out to Karina Chavez. Let's Connect.