2017 Indian Holiday Calendar Filled With Long Weekends

The year 2017 is packed with 14 long weekends, including two nine-day bonanzas—one in Aug and the other in Oct. Get prepping, folks!

Dec 2, 2016, 9:15 am ISTFestivalsAazad Staff

For all of you who have been cursing the year 2016 for placing important holidays over weekends, there is a very good news in store for you. The year 2017 is loaded with Holidays that a day before or after Sat-Sun thereby giving us all some long weekends spread across the year. Here is the 2017 India Holiday Calendar along with our suggestions to make the best use of the upcoming extended weekends:

January

Thu, 26 Jan: Republic Day
Fri, 27 Jan: Take leave
Sat, 28 Jan
Sun, 29 Jan
Consider: Gulmarg or Auli for skiing; Jawai to spot leopards

February

Fri, 24 Feb: Mahashivratri
Sat, 25 Feb
Sun, 26 Feb
Consider: Agra for Taj Mahotsav (18–27 Feb); Andaman Islands for diving; Goa for Carnival (25–28 Feb)

March

Sat, 11 Mar
Sun, 12 Mar
Mon, 13 Mar: Holi
Consider: Mathura for Holi; Coorg to catch the white coffee flowers in bloom; Jaipur before summer kicks in

Sat, 25 Mar
Sun, 26 Mar
Mon, 27 Mar: Take leave
Tue, 28 Mar: Gudi Padva
Consider: Rishikesh for white-water rafting

April

Sat, 1 Apr
Sun, 2 Apr
Mon, 3 Apr: Take leave
Tue, 4 Apr: Ram Navami
Consider: Srinagar for tulips

Thu, 13 Apr: Vaisakhi
Fri, 14 Apr: Dr Ambedkar Jayanti, Good Friday
Sat, 15 Apr
Sun, 16 Apr: Easter
Consider: Amritsar for Baisakhi (14 Apr) Mahabaleshwarfor the Mapro Strawberry Festival (Easter weekend)

Sat, 29 Apr
Sun, 30 Apr
Mon, 1 May: May Day
Consider: Shillong, Mashobra or Landour to beat the heat; Tadoba or Ranthambore to spot the big cat; Tawang for adventure

June

Sat, 24 Jun
Sun, 25 Jun
Mon, 26 Jun: Ramzan Eid
Consider: Hyderabad or Lucknow for Ramzan Eid; Munnar for the monsoon; Dharamshala for camping/trekking

August

Sat, 12 Aug
Sun, 13 Aug
Mon, 14 Aug: Janmashtami or take leave
Tue, 15 Aug: Independence Day
Wed, 16 Aug: Take leave
Thu, 17 Aug: Parsi New Year
Fri, 18 Aug: Take leave
Sat, 19 Aug
Sun, 20 Aug
Consider: Ladakh for adventure; Uttarakhand for trekking and Valley of Flowers

Fri, 25 Aug: Ganesh Chaturthi
Sat, 26 Aug
Sun, 27 Aug
Consider: Pune for Ganesh Chaturthi; Coonoor for cheese-making at Acres Wild; Agumbe, Karnataka for a monsoon drive; Bali for a beach break

September - October

Sat, 30 Sep
Sun, 1 Oct
Mon, 2 Oct: Gandhi Jayanti
Consider: Bhutan for the Thimphu Tshechu festival (30 Sep–2 Oct); Bandhavgarh for wildlife season; Ziro, Arunachal Pradesh for the pleasant weather

Sat, 14 Oct
Sun, 15 Oct
Mon, 16 Oct: Dhanteras or take leave
Tue, 17 Oct: Naraka Chaturdashi or take leave
Wed, 18 Oct: Diwali
Thu, 19 Oct: Balipratipada
Fri, 20 Oct: Bhaiduj
Sat, 21 Oct
Sun, 22 Oct
Consider: Gangtok for clear views of the Kanchenjunga; Rajasthan for Diwali; Birand Billing for paragliding

December

Fri, 1 Dec: Eid-e-Milad
Sat, 2 Dec
Sun, 3 Dec
Consider: Nagaland for Hornbill Festival; Periyar for wildlife; Bharatpur or Odisha for spotting migratory birds