The Department of Veterans Affairs is pointing families, caregivers, survivors and the public to Memorial Day ceremonies at national cemeteries and nearby communities across the country, as observances get underway ahead of the May 26 holiday. The agency says its events list will keep changing through May 22, 2026, and that visitors should check the host organization or National Cemetery linked on the page before they go.
The Memorial Day listings include a ceremony hosted by Veterans Alliance/Friends of the Monument on May 25, 2026 at 1100 in Placerville, California. For people who cannot make it in person, the VA is directing them to the Veterans Legacy Memorial site, where they can leave a tribute to a fallen service member. The site holds stories, decorations and interment locations for more than 10 million veterans.
Washington is also preparing for the National Memorial Day Parade, which organizers describe as the nation’s largest annual Memorial Day event. More than 300,000 attendees are expected this year, along with 5,000 participants from all 50 states. The three-hour parade begins at 10 a.m. on Constitution Avenue and runs from 7th Street to 17th Street NW, from the National Archives Building to just past the White House. Tickets are free, there is no reserved seating, and the American Veterans Center says the National Archives steps offer one of the best views.
The parade will be broadcast on ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and CW stations nationwide and streamed on YouTube. Organizers say this year’s event will carry the Freedom 250 banner, and parade history traces the tradition back to just after the Civil War, when Memorial Day parades began. A photo caption from May 27, 2019 noted people visiting graves during a Memorial Day Ceremony at Fort Douglas Cemetery, though that source adds no reporting beyond the image itself.
Memorial Day is being marked with ceremonies, parades and other events across the country, and the VA’s page is functioning as a live guide rather than a one-time announcement. So the answer to the holiday question is plain: Memorial Day is a federal holiday, and this year the federal, local and volunteer pieces of the observance are being updated as the day approaches.
