Holidays India 2009: when will all the Indians go on vacation?

Redmarsy · Dec 12th, 2008, 19:06

Hi there,

Does anybody know where I can find a list of Indian Holidays in 2009?

For example, here in the Netherlands, school going kids have a 2 week holiday in autumn, around christmas, around easter, six weeks in summer, etc.

Does anybody have this information for India?

And also, for example, those weeks, when high school students have exams, and all go on a holiday?

Thanks for the info!

Redmarsy · Dec 12th, 2008, 19:07

Haha, of course I mean: those weeks after high school kids had exams, and all go on a holiday

puchoo · Dec 12th, 2008, 19:22

you can find a list of public holidays / regional holidays / festivals quite easily on google...

machadinha · Dec 12th, 2008, 20:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by puchoo

you can find a list of public holidays / regional holidays / festivals quite easily on google...

No, in fact I've always found this very hard to find all of them in one place, at least ones that would be of any remote and comprehensive usefulness.

So if you have any decent links on it, would be most welcome...

What's more, if you have a really excellent country-wide site on it that gets updated yearly and well in time too & not just covering the major major stuff, I'd say let's have it be a sticky thread even! Could probably go well in Itinerary forum or so

(--> And again, I'm not talking some partial sites/never-updated ones/covering just the main or certain regional events. Those can indeed be found with little trouble.)

puchoo · Dec 12th, 2008, 20:22

a single comprehensive , 100% list might not be that easy i admit , but i think i have a few pages bookmarked on my laptop, next time i open it ill take a look...but whats the big deal in getting 2-3 lists together and compiling them anyway....?

Additionally , not every festival is a holiday everywhere in India , so a lit might mention it , but it might not be applicable...

Baba · Dec 14th, 2008, 14:35

Without consulting any calendars, I know of two "seasons" when Indians travel:
- October around Dussehra and mainly Divali. This is also the "puja season".
- Christmas / New Year when hordes travel to the South and other places. This is when overseas Indians visit home.

Aishah · Dec 14th, 2008, 15:22

School hols. vary enormously from State to State as well - these are the dates for longer hols. up to 30 June 09. Christmas hols are one week here - 25 December to 31 December.
Easter hols are between 4 April - 14 April, but in between there are some days when school is open. Summer hols are 17 May - 30 June.
Looking my new 2009 diary:
Dusshera is 28 Sept. and Diwali is 19 October - some places will have schools closed between all the days between.
This is a rough idea of main, longer school holidays. There are in between many single day holidays for religious celebrations, Independence Day, Republic Day etc.

Redmarsy · Dec 14th, 2008, 17:32

Thanks y'all. Puchoo, if you could send me those links, would be great!

nayan · Dec 14th, 2008, 19:01

One such link

http://www.worldtravelguide.net/coun...ent/India.html

snonymous · Dec 15th, 2008, 16:34

Redmarsy

The main holiday seasons are summer - long - can be from April to June or May to July depending on which region - based on how hot! You can safely assume May in all regions.

Diwali or Deepavali - October / November depending on year, 2009 days are from around the 16th of October onward, schools will usually close the week before to a couple of weeks after. Schools in some states give 2 weeks during Dassehra / Puja.

Christmas - a week or two weeks, boarding schools may have different periods but you can safely assume from approx 20 Dec to 7 Jan as vacation period.

Some states give a weeks holidays at around Ugadi / Pongal / Vaisakhi / Vishu time, check local calendars depending on where you intend visiting.

For bank holidays 2009 statewise, check http://www.rbi.org.in/scripts/holidaymatrixdisplay.aspx

puchoo · Dec 16th, 2008, 13:09

One of the holiday lists i had was this.....but like i mentioned earlier , i think , one would need to compile a few lists together for a comprehensive one.....there are just too many fractions for example a state holiday in Maharashtra would not be taking place anyplace else....in such a case one would need to take out state lists as well....

Jan 1 New Year's Day
Jan 5 Guru Govind Singh Jayanti
Jan 7 Muharram (Islamic)
Jan 15 Pongal
Jan 26 Chinese New Year
Jan 26 Republic Day
Jan 31 Vasant Panchami (Hinduism)
Feb 14 Valentine's Day
Feb 19 Shivaji Jayanti
Feb 22 Maharishi Dayanand Sarawati Jayanti
Feb 23 Maha Shivaratri/Shivaratri (Hinduism)
Mar 9 Prophet's Birthday (Islamic)
Mar 9 Milad un-Nabi
Mar 11 Holi
Apr 3 Rama Navami (Hinduism)
Apr 9 Maundy Thursday (Christian)
Apr 9 First day of Passover
Apr 10 Good Friday (Christian)
Apr 12 Easter Day
Apr 14 Vaisakhi
May 1 May Day
May 8 Buddha Purnima/Vesak (Buddhism)
May 10 Mother's Day
Jun 21 Father's Day
Jun 24 Rath Yatra (Hinduism)
Jul 7 Hazarat Ali's Birthday

Aug 2 Friendship Day
Aug 5 Raksha Bandhan
Aug 14 Janmashtami (Hinduism)
Aug 15 Thanksgiving Day
Aug 15 Independence Day
Aug 21 Parsi New Year
Aug 23 Ganesh Chaturthi/Vinayaka Chaturthi (Hinduism)
Sep 2 Onam
Sep 16 Jamat Ul-Vida
Sep 22 Ramzan Id/Eid-ul-Fitar (Islamic)
Sep 25 Maha Saptami
Sep 26 Maha Ashtami
Sep 28 Dussehra/Dasara (Hinduism)
Oct 2 Mathatma Gandhi Jayanti
Oct 17 Diwali/Deepavali (Hinduism)
Oct 18 Govardhan Puja
Oct 19 Bhai Duj
Oct 31 Halloween
Nov 24 Guru Tegh Bahadur's Martyrdom Day
Nov 28 Bakri Id/Eid ul-Adha (Islamic)
Dec 12 First day of Chanukah
Dec 19 Last day of Chanukah

Redmarsy · Dec 16th, 2008, 21:16

Thank you...

One reason for wanting to know this, is because I am thinking of postponing my Goa trip that I planned to do in February to the first weeks of April.

I'd like to go there, when it is a bit less crowded than it normally is. Do you think Goa will be crowded (relatively) during the two first weeks of April 2009?

Aishah · Dec 16th, 2008, 21:28

Well you have a week of Easter holidays then, so possibly yes. But not as crowded as Christmas-New Year is my guess.

OceanTragic · Dec 17th, 2008, 01:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aishah

Easter hols are between 4 April - 14 April

Is Easter is busy time for hotels?

I was thinking of just turning up to Ranthambhore to get a hotel but maybe I should book.
I'll also be in Udaipur during Easter too but I'll probably book that one anyway as I'll want to get a lake-facing room.

Aishah · Dec 17th, 2008, 09:42

Easter is certainly not as busy out our way as Diwali and Christmas - New Year. I think you could book ahead to Ranthambore from India after you arrive.

Dec 12th, 2008, 19:06	#1
Redmarsy Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Netherlands Posts: 146	Holidays India 2009: when will all the Indians go on vacation? Hi there, Does anybody know where I can find a list of Indian Holidays in 2009? For example, here in the Netherlands, school going kids have a 2 week holiday in autumn, around christmas, around easter, six weeks in summer, etc. Does anybody have this information for India? And also, for example, those weeks, when high school students have exams, and all go on a holiday? Thanks for the info!

Dec 12th, 2008, 19:22	#3
puchoo Maha Guru Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: New Delhi & Himachal Pradesh (Shimla) Posts: 5,397	you can find a list of public holidays / regional holidays / festivals quite easily on google... __________________ Cheers! Indiamike Mod team............ puchoo.wordpress.com

Dec 14th, 2008, 14:35	#6
Baba Senior Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Germany Posts: 364	Without consulting any calendars, I know of two "seasons" when Indians travel: - October around Dussehra and mainly Divali. This is also the "puja season". - Christmas / New Year when hordes travel to the South and other places. This is when overseas Indians visit home. __________________ Baba

Dec 14th, 2008, 15:22	#7
Aishah She-who-must-be-obeyed! Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Jaisalmer Posts: 7,567	School hols. vary enormously from State to State as well - these are the dates for longer hols. up to 30 June 09. Christmas hols are one week here - 25 December to 31 December. Easter hols are between 4 April - 14 April, but in between there are some days when school is open. Summer hols are 17 May - 30 June. Looking my new 2009 diary: Dusshera is 28 Sept. and Diwali is 19 October - some places will have schools closed between all the days between. This is a rough idea of main, longer school holidays. There are in between many single day holidays for religious celebrations, Independence Day, Republic Day etc. __________________ "Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards."

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Dec 12th, 2008, 19:07	#2
Redmarsy Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Netherlands Posts: 146	Haha, of course I mean: those weeks after high school kids had exams, and all go on a holiday

Dec 12th, 2008, 20:22	#5
puchoo Maha Guru Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: New Delhi & Himachal Pradesh (Shimla) Posts: 5,397	a single comprehensive , 100% list might not be that easy i admit , but i think i have a few pages bookmarked on my laptop, next time i open it ill take a look...but whats the big deal in getting 2-3 lists together and compiling them anyway....? Additionally , not every festival is a holiday everywhere in India , so a lit might mention it , but it might not be applicable...

Dec 14th, 2008, 17:32	#8
Redmarsy Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Netherlands Posts: 146	Thanks y'all. Puchoo, if you could send me those links, would be great!

Dec 14th, 2008, 19:01	#9
nayan Forum Leader Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: hyderabad/tokyo Posts: 1,895	One such link http://www.worldtravelguide.net/coun...ent/India.html

Dec 15th, 2008, 16:34	#10
snonymous xxx Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Mumbai Posts: 1,693	Redmarsy The main holiday seasons are summer - long - can be from April to June or May to July depending on which region - based on how hot! You can safely assume May in all regions. Diwali or Deepavali - October / November depending on year, 2009 days are from around the 16th of October onward, schools will usually close the week before to a couple of weeks after. Schools in some states give 2 weeks during Dassehra / Puja. Christmas - a week or two weeks, boarding schools may have different periods but you can safely assume from approx 20 Dec to 7 Jan as vacation period. Some states give a weeks holidays at around Ugadi / Pongal / Vaisakhi / Vishu time, check local calendars depending on where you intend visiting. For bank holidays 2009 statewise, check http://www.rbi.org.in/scripts/holidaymatrixdisplay.aspx

Dec 16th, 2008, 13:09	#11
puchoo Maha Guru Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: New Delhi & Himachal Pradesh (Shimla) Posts: 5,397	One of the holiday lists i had was this.....but like i mentioned earlier , i think , one would need to compile a few lists together for a comprehensive one.....there are just too many fractions for example a state holiday in Maharashtra would not be taking place anyplace else....in such a case one would need to take out state lists as well.... Jan 1 New Year's Day Jan 5 Guru Govind Singh Jayanti Jan 7 Muharram (Islamic) Jan 15 Pongal Jan 26 Chinese New Year Jan 26 Republic Day Jan 31 Vasant Panchami (Hinduism) Feb 14 Valentine's Day Feb 19 Shivaji Jayanti Feb 22 Maharishi Dayanand Sarawati Jayanti Feb 23 Maha Shivaratri/Shivaratri (Hinduism) Mar 9 Prophet's Birthday (Islamic) Mar 9 Milad un-Nabi Mar 11 Holi Apr 3 Rama Navami (Hinduism) Apr 9 Maundy Thursday (Christian) Apr 9 First day of Passover Apr 10 Good Friday (Christian) Apr 12 Easter Day Apr 14 Vaisakhi May 1 May Day May 8 Buddha Purnima/Vesak (Buddhism) May 10 Mother's Day Jun 21 Father's Day Jun 24 Rath Yatra (Hinduism) Jul 7 Hazarat Ali's Birthday Aug 2 Friendship Day Aug 5 Raksha Bandhan Aug 14 Janmashtami (Hinduism) Aug 15 Thanksgiving Day Aug 15 Independence Day Aug 21 Parsi New Year Aug 23 Ganesh Chaturthi/Vinayaka Chaturthi (Hinduism) Sep 2 Onam Sep 16 Jamat Ul-Vida Sep 22 Ramzan Id/Eid-ul-Fitar (Islamic) Sep 25 Maha Saptami Sep 26 Maha Ashtami Sep 28 Dussehra/Dasara (Hinduism) Oct 2 Mathatma Gandhi Jayanti Oct 17 Diwali/Deepavali (Hinduism) Oct 18 Govardhan Puja Oct 19 Bhai Duj Oct 31 Halloween Nov 24 Guru Tegh Bahadur's Martyrdom Day Nov 28 Bakri Id/Eid ul-Adha (Islamic) Dec 12 First day of Chanukah Dec 19 Last day of Chanukah

Dec 16th, 2008, 21:16	#12
Redmarsy Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Netherlands Posts: 146	Thank you... One reason for wanting to know this, is because I am thinking of postponing my Goa trip that I planned to do in February to the first weeks of April. I'd like to go there, when it is a bit less crowded than it normally is. Do you think Goa will be crowded (relatively) during the two first weeks of April 2009?

Dec 16th, 2008, 21:28	#13
Aishah She-who-must-be-obeyed! Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Jaisalmer Posts: 7,567	Well you have a week of Easter holidays then, so possibly yes. But not as crowded as Christmas-New Year is my guess.

Dec 17th, 2008, 09:42	#15
Aishah She-who-must-be-obeyed! Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Jaisalmer Posts: 7,567	Easter is certainly not as busy out our way as Diwali and Christmas - New Year. I think you could book ahead to Ranthambore from India after you arrive.

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