Public Holidays in Egypt: 2027 Calendar and How They Affect Your Trip

What are the public holidays in Egypt?

Egypt's public holidays fall into three groups: fixed national days, Islamic religious holidays set by the lunar calendar, and two Christian-linked days, Coptic Christmas and Sham el-Nessim. The Egyptian government confirms the official list, and any moves, each year, so treat expected dates as a guide and check closer to travel.

Islamic dates depend on the sighting of the new moon and can shift by a day or two from the expected date. The government also often moves fixed holidays that fall midweek to a Thursday or Sunday to create a long weekend, sometimes announcing it only days ahead.

Are sites and museums open on public holidays?

Yes, in almost all cases: the pyramids, the Grand Egyptian Museum, the Luxor and Aswan temples and the Valley of the Kings normally open on public holidays, though hours can vary and crowds are bigger.

What closes are banks, government offices, post offices and many businesses, and that matters to travellers mainly if you need a bank branch or official paperwork. ATMs, pharmacies, hotels, restaurants, cruise ships and tourist shops keep running. On the first morning of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, things are quiet while families attend prayers and visit relatives, and some local shops stay shut for a day or two.

The bigger change is people. On holidays and the days around them, Egyptian families pour into the Giza plateau, the Citadel, Al-Azhar Park, the Corniche in Alexandria and the Nile-side promenades of Luxor and Aswan. Atmosphere is festive and friendly, and it is a great chance to see Egyptians enjoying their own heritage, but queues are longer. Your guide will schedule the most popular sites for opening time. Check specific site hours on the official monuments website.

Which holidays have the biggest impact on travel?

Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha have the biggest impact, followed by Sham el-Nessim and the long summer school holidays, because these are when Egyptians travel domestically.

• The two Eids: the official holiday is typically three to five days, but many people take the whole week. Red Sea resorts in Hurghada, El Gouna, Sharm el-Sheikh and Ain Sokhna, the north coast and Alexandria fill up and prices jump. Trains between Cairo and Upper Egypt and domestic flights sell out well ahead. See our guide to Eid in Egypt.
• Sham el-Nessim: an ancient spring festival on the Monday after Coptic Easter, celebrated by Muslims and Christians with picnics, coloured eggs and salted fish (fesikh). Parks, gardens, Nile banks and felucca landings are packed for the day. See Sham el-Nessim.
• Coptic Christmas: a quieter, family-centred holiday; Coptic Cairo's churches hold midnight services on 6 January.
• National days: 25 January, 23 July and 6 October usually mean closed offices and some ceremonies; tourism carries on normally, and security may be visibly tighter in central Cairo.
• Ramadan: not a public holiday, but it reshapes the working day for a month before Eid al-Fitr, with shorter working hours and lively evenings.

How should you plan a trip around Egyptian holidays?

If your dates overlap an Eid, book flights, trains, Red Sea hotels and Abu Simbel arrangements early, sightsee early each morning, and treat the festive crowds as part of the experience.

• Book ahead: for travel during Eid, secure Red Sea and Alexandria accommodation and sleeper train berths months in advance rather than weeks.
• Timing: visit the pyramids, Karnak and the Valley of the Kings at opening time; families tend to arrive later in the morning.
• Nile cruises: ships sail their normal schedules, and Eid often brings more Egyptian passengers on board, which can be fun.
• Money: banks may be shut for several consecutive days, so carry enough cash or rely on ATMs, which can run low in small towns over long holidays.
• Tips: Eid is a season of giving; a slightly larger tip for your guide, driver or cruise crew is warmly received. Kull sana w enta tayyib (many happy returns) is the greeting to use.

Hotels and cruise ships often mark the Eids, Christmas and New Year with gala dinners and entertainment. New Year's Eve on 31 December is not an official Egyptian public holiday, but it is one of the busiest nights of the tourist year, so book festive-season trips early; see our Christmas and New Year in Egypt guide.

How do Egyptian holidays line up with Australian school holidays?

In 2027 the main Egyptian peaks fall in March (Eid al-Fitr) and May (Sham el-Nessim and Eid al-Adha), so they largely miss Australia's peak family travel windows, apart from parts of the autumn school holidays in some states.

Because Islamic holidays move about 11 days earlier each year, the overlap shifts. By 2028, Eid al-Fitr is expected in late February and Eid al-Adha in early May; by 2030 Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr fall in January and February, in the heart of Egypt's peak season and the Australian summer holidays. For families locked into school holiday dates, Egypt's own busy weeks are worth checking when you choose a fortnight; our guide to Egypt in Australian school holidays compares each term break.

Egypt's own school year runs roughly from late September to June, with a mid-year break in late January and February. During the long Egyptian summer holiday, roughly June to September, domestic tourism concentrates on the Mediterranean coast and the Red Sea rather than Luxor and Aswan, where heat keeps visitor numbers low.

What other festivals happen in Egypt that aren't public holidays?

Several of Egypt's most memorable events are not public holidays at all: the Abu Simbel sun festival, local saints' moulids, and the Ramadan nights.

Twice a year, around 22 February and 22 October, sunrise penetrates the inner sanctuary of Abu Simbel to light the statues of the gods, drawing thousands of visitors; see the Abu Simbel sun festival. Moulids, festivals for Muslim and Christian saints, fill neighbourhoods around Cairo's Al-Hussein and Sayeda Zeinab mosques and towns across Upper Egypt with Sufi music, fairground rides and street food; our guide to moulids in Egypt explains how to experience one. The biggest moulids happen around the Prophet's Birthday, which is a public holiday.

Cultural events also mark the calendar, including the Cairo International Film Festival, held in late autumn in recent years, and music and arts festivals at venues such as the Cairo Opera House. Dates vary from year to year, so check close to travel.