3 can’t-miss Dia de los Muertos celebrations in Denver

Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a Mexican and Mexican-American holiday that typically takes place at the very beginning of November. The goal of the holiday, which is typically quite festive, is to honor loved ones who have died. But it has also come to symbolize the difficulty of preserving traditions in Hispanic culture. Participants often build altars, or ofrendas, to pay their respect to the dead. Other traditions involve sugar skulls, painted faces, Catrinas and more.

In Denver — and Colorado as a whole — Dia de los Muertos has been part of the fabric of life for decades, and there are multiple community celebrations. Here are three of the biggest.

Día de los Muertos Parade and Festival

Saturday, Oct. 28. Santa Fe Drive gets festive starting at 11 a.m. as the Dia de los Muertos Parade rolls by with marching bands, floats, ballet folkloricos, fire trucks, Catrinas, characters from the movie “Coco,” lowriders and...