All Saints' Day Eve

All Saints’ Day Eve in the Philippines falls on October 31, the day before All Saints’ Day on November 1, and forms part of the wider Undas season of remembrance. In 2026, it will occur on Saturday, October 31. Although the eve is not usually treated as a separate national religious holiday, it is one of the busiest periods for travel, cemetery preparation, and family reunions before Filipinos honor the dead on November 1 and All Souls’ Day on November 2.

The observance developed from the Catholic calendar introduced during the Spanish colonial period, when devotion to all saints and prayers for departed souls became closely woven into local customs of family remembrance. Filipino communities adapted these practices to existing traditions of honoring ancestors, producing a distinctive national observance commonly called Undas, Todos los Santos, or Araw ng mga Patay. In contrast with the North American emphasis on Halloween costumes and trick-or-treating, All Saints’ Day Eve in the Philippines is generally associated with preparing to visit loved ones’ graves, traveling to ancestral towns, and making cemeteries ready for prayer and communal remembrance.

On October 31, families commonly clean, repaint, and decorate tombs and mausoleums with flowers, candles, and sometimes framed photographs. Many people travel from Manila and other urban centers to provincial hometowns, often arriving before November 1 to avoid heavy traffic and crowded public transport. In cemeteries, relatives may sweep grave sites, repair memorials, light candles, and arrange flowers, while parishes and local authorities prepare for large crowds, security measures, traffic controls, and religious services.

The atmosphere is usually solemn and family-centered, although some urban neighborhoods, schools, hotels, and commercial districts also hold Halloween-themed costume events, especially for children. Common Undas foods include rice cakes, kakanin, pancit, grilled dishes, snacks, and shared family meals brought to or eaten near the cemetery, depending on local rules. People may offer prayers such as the rosary, attend Mass, and remain at graves for conversation and remembrance. There is no single nationwide greeting, but expressions such as “Maligayang Undas,” “Mapayapang Undas,” and “Nakikiramay” may be used according to the setting; respectful phrases such as “Let us remember our departed loved ones” are also appropriate.