Holidays & Seasons

Japan has many public holidays, the exact dates of which you can on the official Cabinet website here, with the public holiday dates for the following year announced in February. Here is a rundown:

Public Holidays

• New Year's Day: Jan. 1

• Coming of Age Day (Jan. 8)

• Foundation Day (Feb. 11-12)

• Emperor's Birthday (Feb. 23)

• Vernal Equinox Day (March 20)

• Shōwa Day (April 29)

• Constitution Day (May 3)

• Greenery Day (May 4)

• Children's Day (May 5-6)

• Marine Day (July 15)

• Respect for the Aged Day (Sept. 16)

• Autumnal Equinox (Sept. 22-23)

• Health and Sports Day (Oct. 14)

• Culture Day (Nov. 3-4)

• Labor Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 23)

Other Holidays

New Year

• The new year is typically celebrated from the second half of December to the beginning of January, making it a major vacation period. Most Japanese have time off and Japanese games often have content geared toward this period.

Valentine's Day

• While not an official holiday, many in Japan celebrate this on Feb. 14. Customarily, women give chocolates to either: men they are interested in, or to friends/colleagues.

• There is also "White Day" on March 14, when people give gifts to those who gave them gifts on Valentine's Day.

New Spring

• While not a holiday, April is considered the beginning of a new fiscal year and so is also the beginning of a new school year. Because of this, Japanese society welcomes the new year in April, and many mobile games will have activities/events related to this.

Golden Week

• With several public holidays in a row, the first week of May has become a major holiday period in Japan.

• Most mobile games in Japan take advantage of the long holiday period to roll out events and other ways to get players engaged.

• Note: While China has two "Golden Weeks" (the first week of October and the first week of May), Japan only has one, so language or imagery referring to "Golden Week" will only make sense in Japan for the May holidays.

Summer Holiday/Obon

• Japanese schools are always on holiday in August, and around mid-August, Japan also celebrates the Obon festival, which usually lasts 3-5 days. During this time, there are several events, such as fireworks and more, which often appear around this time in mobile games.

• Note: While Japan does celebrate the Qixi Festival, there is not a strong sense of tradition around it, and "Chinese Valentine's Day" is not a common term. Qixi Festival falls on July 7 in the lunar calendar, but in Japan it falls on July 7th in the solar calendar. A common tradition at this time is to write notes on bamboo leaves.

Halloween

• The holiday may have originated in the West, but Japan has its own Halloween traditions now, which take place at the end of October. In Japan, this often includes young people partaking in costume parades, with pop culture, businesses, and parties reflecting the theme. It is common for Japanese mobile games to launch items/skins related to Halloween.

Christmas Eve + Christmas Day

• While not a public holiday, some Japanese people do celebrate Christmas Eve and Christmas Day (Dec. 24-25), and so there are often Christmas-themed products or events in businesses.

• Because of its proximity to the New Year, many mobile games in Japan plan more frequent events since it is a major holiday period.

Public Holidays

World Peace Day — January 1st, 1-day holiday

Carnaval — Feb or Mar, moveable date (Lunar Calendar). At least 2.5 days on Mon, Tue, and Wed until 12 pm. Not to be confused with 'carnival' or 'mardi gras', although some elements may look similar.

Holy Friday and Easter — the Friday before Easter Sunday, moveable date (Lunar Calendar), 1-day holiday

Tiradentes — Apr 21st, in honor of a national hero, 1-day holiday

Worker's Day — May 1st, 1-day holiday

Corpus Christi — 60 days after Easter, moveable date (Lunar Calendar), 1-day holiday

Nossa Senhora Aparecida — Oct 12th, national Christian Patron's Day, 1-day holiday

Independence Day — September 7th, 1-day holiday

Finados  — Nov 2nd, the day to mourn the dead (akin to Tomb Sweeping), 1-day holiday

Republic Day — Nov 15th, proclamation of the Republic, 1-day holiday

Black Heritage Day (Zumbi) — Nov 20th, to honor African heritage and to Zumbi, an enslaved hero, 1-day holiday

Christmas — Dec 25th, 1-day holiday

Other Important Dates

AUTUMN:  from March 21st to June 21st

Indigenous People's Day — April 19th, to honor the original peoples of Brazil

Mother's Day — Second Sunday of May, the second highest-grossing day for retail

Festa Junina — Throughout the months of June and July, parties to celebrate 3 Catholic saints, includes dance and special food

Dia dos Namorados — Jun 12th, the day dedicated to couples and lovers

WINTER:  from June 21st to September 23rd

School Winter Break — Usually the whole month of July

Father's Day — Second Sunday of August

SPRING:  from September 23rd to December 21st

Children's Day — Oct 12th

School Summer Break —2nd or 3rd week of December, until early February next year

SUMMER:  from December 21st to March 21st

Christmas Eve — Dec 24th, optional shorter working day

Réveillon (New Year's Eve) — Dec 31st

Dates THAT ARE NOT Celebrated

Any Chinese holiday (Qixi, Single's Day, Chinese New Year, Dragon Boat, etc.)

Valentine's Day, Saint Patrick's, Thanksgiving, Mardi Gras, Columbus Day, and Halloween

Día de los Muertos, Cinco de Mayo

Public Holidays

New Year's Day — January 1st

Mexican Constitution Day — February 6th

Birthday of Benito Juárez — March 20th (also beginning of Spring)

Holy Week — Apr 3rd to 14th, vacation for students and teachers

Holy Thursday — April 6th, holiday for workers

Holy Friday — April 7th, holiday for workers

International Worker's Day — May 1st

Mexican Independence Day — September 16th

Day of the Dead — Nov 2nd

Mexican Revolution Anniversary — Nov 20th

Christmas — Dec 25th,

Key Islamic Religious Festivals 

• Ramadan (March 10-April 9)

• Eid ul-Fitr  (April 9-10)

• Day of Arafah (June 15-16)

• Eid al-Adha (Feast of the Sacrifice) (June 16-17)

• Milad al-Nabi (Prophet Mohammed’s Birthday) (Evening of Sept. 15-16)

• Islamic New Year (July 6-7)

Holidays and Festivals in Saudi Arabia

• Founding Day (Feb. 22)

• Saudi National Day (Sept. 23)

Holidays and Festivals in UAE

• UAE National Day (Dec. 2)

• Dubai International Film Festival 

Holidays and Festivals in Egypt

• Christmas Holiday (Dec. 25 AND Jan. 7, according to the Orthodox calendar)

• Sham El Nessim (Easter) (May 6)

• Sinai Liberation Day (April 25)

• Revolution of 30 June

*NOTE: In addition to paying attention to holidays celebrated in the region, be aware that other holidays may be considered taboo. Valentine's Day, for instance, is considered taboo because public displays of affection between unmarried couples is not permitted in certain countries.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day — January 16

Presidents' Day — February 20

Memorial Day — May 29

Juneteenth — June 19

Independence Day — July 4

Labor Day — September 4

Veterans Day — November 10

Thanksgiving — Fourth Thursday in November

Christmas — December 25

*This list only includes Public Holidays