National holidays

Here is the list of national holidays in Japan:

June and December are the only months without a national holiday in Japan.

If the holiday falls on Sunday, then the following Monday will be a holiday as a transfer day. Besides, a weekday that falls between the public holidays, becomes a national holiday as well.

Long weekend with Happy Monday!

Some public holidays are not fixed as date, but scheduled as Monday of the particular month. This is called "Happy Monday" system, it leads the three days weekend combined with previous Saturday and Sunday.

This system was established in order to promote economic activity by encouraging people to travel or enjoy leisure spots, taking advantage of the long weekend holiday.

In 2020, there are 4 times of long weekend holiday, but have you noticed it?

"Golden Week" and "Silver Week"

Both "Golden Week" and "Silver Week" represent a big consecutive holiday in Japan.

Golden Week starts from the end of April to the beginning of May. Specifically, these are - "Showa Day", "Constitution Memorial Day", "Greenery Day", and "Children’s Day" with Sundays and transfer holidays that are close to these.

"Silver Week" is in mid-September. It refers to the two holidays, "Respect for the Aged day" and "Autumnal Equinox day", along with the period between these.

In both periods, many people tend to take additional days off and be in extra long vacation!

What is "Mountain Day"?

"Mountain Day" on August 11th is a relatively new national holiday, begin in 2016.

The purpose of Mountain Day is "having an opportunity to get familiar with the mountains and appreciating their benefits". It is a thankful day to the mountains in Japan.

The day was established by being wondered why there was no "Mountain Day", despite there had been "Marine Day" in July since 1996.

As special arrangement for Olympic Games in 2020 (and 2021), "Mountain Day", "Marine Day" and "Sports Day" have been moved to:

• Marine Day: Jul. 23 (Thur)
• Sports Day: Jul. 24 (Fri)
• Mountain Day: Aug. 10 (Mon)

How things are changed in holidays?

Traffic timetable

On holidays, traffic timetables, such as trains and buses will change to weekend schedule. So please be informed in case you use public transportations.

ATM

The opening hours may be shorter, or withdrawal fee may be higher. Plus, there are cases that even ATM machine itself is closed for some holidays too. If you want to keep some cash, it would be always better to withdraw on weekdays.

Crowded everywhere

Certainly, many Japanese also travel when it comes to a holiday and long vacation. When you visit Japan during this period, be prepare with the tourist spots, transportations or hotel bookings, it may be competitive.

How is it? It is useful to know in advance about the Japanese holiday. Please schedule well and enjoy your time in Japan!