# Undas 2026: How to Plan the Long Weekend in Manila Canonical page: https://whatsonmnl.com/blog/undas-long-weekend-manila-2026 Source: What's On Manila. Please cite and link the canonical page. Published: 2026-10-03 *All Saints' Day falls on a Sunday and All Souls' Day is an extra day off, so Undas is a three-day weekend from 31 October to 2 November. Here are the official dates, what to expect on the roads, and calm ways to spend the time around the family visit.* Undas comes on a long weekend this year: Saturday 31 October to Monday 2 November. It is a family holiday first, the days for cleaning graves, lighting candles and sitting together, so here is what the dates mean, what the roads will be like, and how to spend the hours around the visit if you are staying in Manila or heading out. ## Three days, two holidays Under Proclamation No. 1006, signed on 3 September 2025, **All Saints' Day** on Sunday 1 November is a special (non-working) day, and **All Souls' Day** on Monday 2 November was added as an extra special (non-working) day. The proclamation says the extra day is there to give families more time for the visits and to encourage travel at home. Saturday 31 October is not a declared holiday. It is simply a Saturday, so whether you have it off depends on your work schedule. If you file one day of leave on Friday 30 October or Tuesday 3 November, the break becomes four days. Special (non-working) days follow different pay rules from regular holidays. If you work on 1 or 2 November, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) rule is 130% of your daily rate for the first eight hours, or 150% if that day is also your rest day. If you manage a team, check your company policy before the week starts. ## Getting around: cemeteries, expressways and airports The 2026 traffic plans have not been announced yet. In past years the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), the city governments and the cemetery offices published road closures, cemetery hours and rules in the last ten days of October, so look for them from around 20 October and read them before you leave home. What you can plan for now: - **Cemetery roads close.** In past years the streets around the Manila North Cemetery in Santa Cruz and the big memorial parks were closed or rerouted. For the North Cemetery, the Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT-1) to Abad Santos or Blumentritt and a short walk is far easier than a car. - **The expressways are busiest on the way out and the way back.** Expect the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) to fill up from Friday afternoon, 30 October, and again on Monday afternoon, 2 November, as families return. Leave early in the morning in both directions if you can. - **Book buses early.** Friday evening and Saturday morning departures from the Cubao terminals and the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX) are the first to sell out, so do not leave seats to the last week. - **Carry small bills.** Candle and flower sellers set up just inside the gates of the North Cemetery. - **Flying out?** Allow more time than usual to reach the airport on Friday and Saturday, and follow your airline's own advisories. ## If you are leaving town The simplest plan is to decide your cemetery day first, then build the trip around it. Two patterns work well: - **Visit on Saturday, travel Sunday to Monday.** Make your visit on 31 October and leave early on 1 November, while many families are at the cemetery. - **Travel first, visit on Monday.** Leave Friday night, come back Sunday evening, and make your visit on All Souls' Day. For one night or less, stay close. [Tagaytay](https://whatsonmnl.com/blog/tagaytay-weekend) is up the SLEX for cool air and long lunches, and [Antipolo and Rizal](https://whatsonmnl.com/blog/antipolo-rizal-art-hikes) are east of the city for art and views without an expressway. If food is the point, [Pampanga](https://whatsonmnl.com/blog/pampanga-food-trip) is up the NLEX. Our guide to [escaping Manila for a weekend](https://whatsonmnl.com/blog/how-to-escape-manila-for-a-weekend) helps you match a place to the time you have. ## If you are staying in the city Once the family visit is done, the city is quieter than usual, and a few places suit the mood of the weekend. [Manila American Cemetery and Memorial](https://whatsonmnl.com/place/manila-american-cemetery) in Fort Bonifacio, on the edge of Bonifacio Global City (BGC), is one of the calmest places in Metro Manila. It is open daily from 9am to 5pm, including Philippine holidays, and the visitor centre staff give free guided tours. Bring a valid photo ID, because you need one to enter. Last entry is 15 minutes before closing, which is also when the flag lowering takes place. [Olafur Eliasson: Your Curious Journey](https://whatsonmnl.com/event/olafur-eliasson-your-curious-journey) at [MCAD Manila](https://whatsonmnl.com/place/mcad-manila) in Malate is in its final weeks and closes on Sunday 15 November. In Makati, [Turning Tides](https://whatsonmnl.com/event/turning-tides-maritime-encounters-and-exchanges-of-power) at the [Ayala Museum](https://whatsonmnl.com/place/ayala-museum) is open Tuesday to Sunday, 11am to 7pm, with timed entry slots you book online. Both museums close on Mondays and on declared holidays, so on this weekend Saturday 31 October is the day to go. MCAD is open 10am to 6pm on Saturdays. Hours can change at short notice, so check each museum's page before you leave. ## Halloween falls on the Saturday 31 October is also Halloween, and some people will spend the evening before their visit, or after it, at a party. A few options: - **Poblacion:** [Madness Manor](https://whatsonmnl.com/event/madness-manor-halloween-rave-2026), a Halloween rave at Stratosphere Events Place, Century City Mall, on 31 October. - **Intramuros:** [INTRAMUMU](https://whatsonmnl.com/event/intramumu-halloween-street-party-2026), a street party on Magallanes Drive from 31 October to 1 November. - **In the malls:** [SM Spooktacular Halloween](https://whatsonmnl.com/event/sm-spooktacular-halloween-2026) runs on 30 and 31 October at participating SM malls. ## The next long weekend Bonifacio Day on Monday 30 November is a regular holiday, which gives Manila another three-day weekend from 28 to 30 November. It lines up with the start of the holiday shopping season: the [Designers' Holiday Bazaar](https://whatsonmnl.com/event/designers-holiday-bazaar-glorietta-2026) at Glorietta and the Ayala Museum opens on 27 November, and the [International Bazaar](https://whatsonmnl.com/event/international-bazaar-2026) is at SMX Convention Center Aura in Taguig on 29 November. _We checked the holiday dates against the official proclamation and the museum hours against each museum's own page. We will add the 2026 cemetery hours and road closures to this page when the city and the MMDA publish them._