Egypt has two kinds of public holidays: national days on fixed dates, and religious holidays, both Muslim and Christian, whose dates move from year to year. Knowing them helps you plan, because some sites, banks and offices close, and travel gets busier around the big festivals.
Fixed national holidays
- 7 January: Coptic Christmas.
- 25 January: Revolution Day and Police Day.
- 25 April: Sinai Liberation Day.
- 1 May: Labour Day.
- 30 June: June 30 Revolution anniversary.
- 23 July: Revolution Day, marking 1952.
- 6 October: Armed Forces Day.
When a holiday falls midweek, the government sometimes moves the day off to a Thursday or Sunday to make a long weekend.
Islamic holidays
These follow the lunar Islamic calendar, so they come about 11 days earlier each year.
- Ramadan: the month of fasting from dawn to sunset. Sites stay open, often with shorter hours. Evenings are festive, with lanterns, special foods and busy streets. In 2027, Ramadan is expected to begin around early February.
- Eid al-Fitr: three days of celebration at the end of Ramadan.
- Eid al-Adha: the feast of sacrifice, about 70 days after Eid al-Fitr, usually a four-day holiday and the busiest time for domestic travel.
- Islamic New Year and the Prophet’s Birthday (Mawlid al-Nabi), when shops sell sugar dolls and sweets.
Christian holidays
Coptic Christians, about a tenth of the population, celebrate Christmas on 7 January and Easter according to the Eastern calendar, usually a week or more after Western Easter.
Sham el-Nessim
On the Monday after Coptic Easter, Egyptians of all faiths celebrate the arrival of spring with picnics in parks and by the Nile, eating salted fish, green onions and colored eggs. The festival may go back to ancient Egypt. Read about festivals in ancient Egypt.
Tips for travelers
Book early for Eid holidays and for the Christmas and New Year season, when hotels and trains fill up. During Ramadan, avoid eating and drinking in public during the day out of respect, though tourist restaurants stay open. See our Easter holidays and Egypt tour packages.
