Undas in Croatia: why 1 November looks familiar – candles at Mirogoj, a Sunday holiday and shops that stay shut

Filipinos visit cemeteries on 1 November for Undas, and so do Croats: All Saints' Day (Svi sveti) is a public holiday with candles, flowers and crowded graveyards. In 2026 it falls on a Sunday, and almost every shop will be closed. What to expect and how to plan.

Published 2026-10-19 · Source checked 2026-10-19

If November 1 means Undas to you – the cemetery, the candles, the whole family together – you will feel at home in Croatia. All Saints' Day, Dan svih svetih or simply Svi sveti, is a national public holiday here, and on that day Croats traditionally go to cemeteries in memory of their loved ones, as the regional daily Glas Slavonije puts it.^[1] In 2026 the date falls on a Sunday.^[2]

The parallels are close. In the Philippines, Rappler explains, the remembrance of the dead is called Undas and it is mostly observed on 1 November, even though in the Catholic calendar 1 November honours the saints in heaven and 2 November, All Souls' Day, is for praying for the deceased. Families light candles, offer flowers and pray at the graves, and 1 November is a special non-working day.^[3] Croatia has the same split: the Church marks All Saints on 1 November and the Remembrance of All the Faithful Departed, Dušni dan, on 2 November – yet the custom of visiting graves is tied to the holiday on the 1st.^[1]

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What does it look like? Croatia Week described last year's scene: cemeteries filled from early morning with families lighting candles and laying flowers, and in Zagreb the Mirogoj cemetery drew large crowds and, by evening, was lit by a sea of candles.^[4] Glas Slavonije adds that decorating graves with flowers, lighting candles and sprinkling them with holy water has become the usual practice.^[1] Mirogoj, with its long arcades, is a landmark of the city and worth seeing, but expect large crowds on the day.

There are differences in feel. Undas is often a long family gathering at the tomb, with food and conversation, while the Croatian visit, as these reports describe it, centres on candles, flowers and prayer. If you join a Croatian colleague or neighbour, follow their lead, keep your voice low and ask before taking photographs of other people's graves.

Now the part that affects your week. Since 1 July 2023 the Trade Act treats Sundays and public holidays as non-working days for shops, and a trader cannot declare a holiday a working day – the 16 permitted open Sundays a year apply only to Sundays.^[2] On 1 November 2026, which is both, RadnaNedjelja.com – a site that tracks shop opening hours – currently counts 423 open branches out of the 5,185 it follows: 409 Tisak kiosks, 12 Müller and 2 Supernova. These figures can change before the day.^[2]

The next holiday is close behind: Wednesday 18 November, the Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Homeland War and of Vukovar and Škabrnje. Shops are closed that day too, even though it is midweek.^[2] So the sensible plan is to do your main grocery shop on Saturday 31 October, keep in mind that Tisak kiosks are the likeliest to be open for basics, and check the opening-hours page of your own shop.

If you work in retail, hospitality, care or logistics, a holiday may still be a working day for you. Ask your employer how holiday work is paid and check your contract and payslip. If your shifts allow, you could combine a visit to the cemetery with the Tagalog Mass in your city, but confirm the times with your parish or community group first: schedules differ and we have not seen a published Filipino programme for 1 November.

For many Filipinos abroad, Undas is one of the hardest days to miss. A candle at home, a call to your family and a quiet visit to a local cemetery are small ways to keep the tradition – and Croatia, unusually for a country so far from the Philippines, will be doing much the same around you.

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