Japan Holiday Calendar — Is This Date a Holiday? Plus Streak Ranking
Instantly check whether any date in 2021 — including New Year's Eve or other notable days — is a Japanese public holiday, including substitute and citizens' holidays — plus the longest holiday streaks and the story behind each one.
| Date | Holiday | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| 1/1/2021(Fri) | New Year's Day | Celebrates the new year |
| 1/11/2021(Mon) | Coming of Age Day | Celebrates and encourages young people as they reach adulthood |
| 2/11/2021(Thu) | National Foundation Day | Recalls the founding of the nation and cultivates love of the country |
| 2/23/2021(Tue) | Emperor's Birthday | Celebrates the Emperor's birthday |
| 3/20/2021(Sat) | Vernal Equinox Day | Reveres nature and cherishes all living things |
| 4/29/2021(Thu) | Showa Day | Reflects on the Showa era and looks to the future of the nation |
| 5/3/2021(Mon) | Constitution Memorial Day | Commemorates the Constitution of Japan and hopes for the nation's growth |
| 5/4/2021(Tue) | Greenery Day | Appreciates nature and its blessings, and cultivates a rich spirit |
| 5/5/2021(Wed) | Children's Day | Respects children's individuality, seeks their happiness, and expresses gratitude to mothers |
| 7/22/2021(Thu) | Marine Day | Gives thanks for the bounties of the ocean and hopes for Japan's prosperity as a maritime nation |
| 7/23/2021(Fri) | Sports Day | Enjoys sports, fosters a spirit of respect for others, and hopes for a healthy and vibrant society |
| 8/8/2021(Sun) | Mountain Day | Creates opportunities for people to appreciate mountains and gives thanks for their blessings |
| 8/9/2021(Mon) | Substitute Holiday | |
| 9/20/2021(Mon) | Respect for the Aged Day | Honors the elderly who have contributed to society and celebrates their longevity |
| 9/23/2021(Thu) | Autumnal Equinox Day | Honors one's ancestors and remembers those who have passed away |
| 11/3/2021(Wed) | Culture Day | Loves freedom and peace and promotes culture |
| 11/23/2021(Tue) | Labor Thanksgiving Day | Honors labor, celebrates production, and expresses mutual gratitude among the people |
2021 Consecutive Holiday Ranking Consecutive periods (3+ days) of weekends, public holidays, and the conventional New Year closure (Dec 31, Jan 2–3)
| Rank | Period | Days | Breakdown |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🥇 | 5/1(Sat)–5/5(Wed) | 5 days | Saturday・ Sunday・ Constitution Memorial Day・ Greenery Day・ Children's Day |
| 🥈 | 7/22(Thu)–7/25(Sun) | 4 days | Marine Day・ Sports Day・ Saturday・ Sunday |
| 🥉 | 1/1(Fri)–1/3(Sun) | 3 days | New Year's Day・ Closed(Sat)・ Closed(Sun) |
| 🥉 | 1/9(Sat)–1/11(Mon) | 3 days | Saturday・ Sunday・ Coming of Age Day |
| 🥉 | 8/7(Sat)–8/9(Mon) | 3 days | Saturday・ Mountain Day(Sun)・ Substitute Holiday |
| 🥉 | 9/18(Sat)–9/20(Mon) | 3 days | Saturday・ Sunday・ Respect for the Aged Day |
2021 Calendar
Jan
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 New Year's Day |
2 Closed |
|||||
| 3 Closed |
4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| 10 | 11 Coming of Age Day |
12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
| 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
| 31 |
Feb
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |
| 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 National Foundation Day |
12 | 13 |
| 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
| 21 | 22 | 23 Emperor's Birthday |
24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
| 28 |
Mar
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |
| 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 |
| 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 Vernal Equinox Day |
| 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
| 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
Apr
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||
| 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
| 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
| 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 Showa Day |
30 |
May
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||||
| 2 | 3 Constitution Memorial Day |
4 Greenery Day |
5 Children's Day |
6 | 7 | 8 |
| 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
| 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
| 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 |
| 30 | 31 |
Jun
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
| 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
Jul
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||
| 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
| 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 Marine Day |
23 Sports Day |
24 |
| 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
Aug
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| 8 Mountain Day |
9 Substitute Holiday |
10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 |
| 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 |
| 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 |
| 29 | 30 | 31 |
Sep
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||
| 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
| 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| 19 | 20 Respect for the Aged Day |
21 | 22 | 23 Autumnal Equinox Day |
24 | 25 |
| 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
Oct
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | |||||
| 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
| 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
| 31 |
Nov
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 Culture Day |
4 | 5 | 6 | |
| 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 |
| 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
| 21 | 22 | 23 Labor Thanksgiving Day |
24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
| 28 | 29 | 30 |
Dec
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||
| 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
| 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
| 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 Closed |
Definition of Public Holidays
Article 1 of the Act on National Holidays states that the Japanese people, who ceaselessly seek freedom and peace, shall designate days on which the nation as a whole celebrates, expresses gratitude, or commemorates, naming these "National Holidays," in order to nurture beautiful customs and build a better society and richer lives.
Substitute Holiday Rules
Article 3 of the same Act states that when a National Holiday falls on a Sunday, the nearest non-holiday day after it becomes a holiday — this is the so-called Substitute Holiday (振替休日). Additionally, a non-holiday sandwiched between two National Holidays on either side also becomes a holiday, which is why years where Respect for the Aged Day and Autumnal Equinox Day are separated by one day result in a 5-day holiday known as Silver Week.
New Year's Eve and the First Three Days
Dec 31 through Jan 3, except for New Year's Day itself, are not official public holidays, but are observed as holidays by banks and most companies. In the calendar below, these days are marked with a gray "Closed" badge.
Tips & Notes on Japanese Holidays
- "Substitute Holiday" (振替休日) is the system where, when a public holiday falls on a Sunday, the following Monday (or the nearest subsequent non-holiday) becomes a holiday instead.
- "Citizens' Holiday" (国民の休日) is the system where a weekday sandwiched between two public holidays also becomes a holiday, which can create the extended Silver Week breaks.
- "Sports Day" was renamed from "Health and Sports Day" (体育の日) in 2020. "Mountain Day" (山の日) is a relatively new public holiday, established in 2016.
- Holiday schedules may change due to amendments to the law. Please check the Cabinet Office's official website for the latest information.
FAQ
Side Note — Japan's Public Holidays vs. the World — Many Holidays, Few Paid Vacations Taken
Japan has 16 statutory public holidays per year (since 2007), placing it among the higher counts in developed nations. The US has 11 federal holidays, the UK 8, and France 11. At the same time, Japan's paid vacation take-up rate has consistently ranked among the lowest in developed countries — a gap that public holidays are sometimes said to partially offset.
The "Happy Monday" system, introduced in the early 2000s, moved several holidays — Coming-of-Age Day, Marine Day, Respect for the Aged Day, and Health and Sports Day (now Sports Day) — to Mondays to create more 3-day weekends, with the aim of boosting tourism and consumer spending. As a result, "Health and Sports Day" (October 10), which had commemorated the opening ceremony of the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, lost its fixed date.
Among the more recently established holidays is "Mountain Day" (山の日, established 2016). It was created in the spirit of "Marine Day" (海の日, established 1941) as a counterpart for mountains, but the choice of August 11 as the date attracted attention at the time since there was no particular historical reason behind it.