UK bank holiday dates for 2022-2023
‘Bank holidays’ are basically just days off when everyone comes to London with their kids. You can pretty much guarantee that it will rain on these days.
Most of the big shops and attractions will remain open but with shorter opening hours. The smaller shops and restaurants might decide to close. The exception is Christmas Day when practically everything is closed.
Bank holidays are always on a weekday. If the date falls on a weekend (like Christmas Day, for example), then the holiday rolls over to the following Monday.
| 2022 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| New Year’s holiday | 3 Jan | 2 Jan |
| Good Friday | 15 Apr | 7 Apr |
| Easter Monday | 2 May | 10 Apr |
| May Bank holiday | n/a | 1 May |
| Spring Bank holiday | 2 Jun | 29 May |
| Summer Bank holiday | 29 Aug | 28 Aug |
| Christmas holiday | 27 Dec | 25 Dec |
| Boxing Day holiday | 26 Dec | 26 Dec |
UK school holiday dates
If you want to avoid all the kids then try and avoid visiting London during a school holiday. The queues tend to be longer and the prices will go up.
These dates should be taken as a rough guide only, as the dates vary greatly from school to school.
| Spring half-term | last week of Feb |
|---|---|
| Easter holiday | one week either side of Easter |
| Summer half-term | last week of May |
| Summer holiday | late Jul to early Sep |
| Autumn half-term | last week of Oct |
| Christmas holiday | mid-Dec to first week of Jan |
Important diary dates for 2022-2023
Important calendar dates to mark in your diary:
| 2022 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| New Year’s Day | 1 Jan | 1 Jan |
| Twelfth Night | 5 Jan | 5 Jan |
| Valentine’s Day | 14 Feb | 14 Feb |
| St. David’s Day | 1 Mar | 1 Mar |
| St. Patrick’s Day | 17 Mar | 17 Mar |
| Spring begins | 20 Mar | 20 Mar |
| Clocks forward | 27 Mar | 26 Mar |
| Mother’s Day | 27 Mar | 19 Mar |
| Easter Sunday | 17 Apr | 9 Apr |
| St. George’s Day | 23 Apr | 23 Apr |
| Father’s Day | 19 Jun | 18 Jun |
| Summer begins | 21 Jun | 21 Jun |
| Longest day | 21 Jun | 21 Jun |
| Autumn begins | 23 Sep | 23 Sep |
| Clocks go back | 30 Oct | 29 Oct |
| Halloween | 31 Oct | 31 Oct |
| Guy Fawkes Night | 5 Nov | 5 Nov |
| Remembrance Sunday | 13 Nov | 12 Nov |
| St. Andrew’s Day | 30 Nov | 30 Nov |
| Winter begins | 21 Dec | 22 Dec |
| Shortest day | 21 Dec | 22 Dec |
| Christmas Day | 25 Dec | 25 Dec |
| Boxing Day | 26 Dec | 26 Dec |
| New Year’s Eve | 31 Dec | 31 Dec |
Calendar of annual events in London
Popular London events that take place every year:
| Shopping sales | 26th Dec to end of Jan |
|---|---|
| New Year’s Day parade | 1st Jan |
| Chinese New Year | usually late Jan or early Feb |
| St. Patrick’s Day parade | mid-Mar |
| University Boat Race | last week of Mar or 1st week of Apr |
| Cricket season | early Apr to end of Sep |
| London Marathon | usually mid-Apr |
| Globe Theatre season | usually late Apr to mid-Oct |
| State Opening of Parliament | usually early May |
| Royal Windsor Horse Show | 2nd week of May |
| FA Cup Final | usually mid-May |
| Chelsea Flower Show | 3rd or 4th week of May |
| The Derby | 1st week of Jun |
| Beating Retreat | 1st or 2nd week of Jun |
| Royal Ascot | usually 2nd week of Jun |
| Trooping the Colour | 2nd or 3rd week of Jun |
| Pride (LGBT march) | usually late Jun |
| Wimbledon Tennis Championships | last week of Jun and 1st week of Jul |
| Hampton Court Flower Show | early Jul |
| Royal Albert Hall Proms | mid-Jul to early Sep |
| Buckingham Palace Summer Opening | end of Jul to end of Sep |
| Houses of Parliament Summer Opening | end of Jul to end of Sep |
| Football season | mid-Aug to end of May |
| Notting Hill Carnival | end of Aug (Bank Holiday weekend) |
| Last Night of the Proms | early Sep |
| Rugby Union season | early Sep to end of May |
| Great River Race | mid-Sep |
| Guy Fawkes Night (firework displays) | week leading up to 5th Nov |
| London-Brighton Veteran Car Run | usually 1st Sun in Nov |
| Lord Mayor’s Show | usually 2nd Sat in Nov |
| Remembrance Day parade | 2nd Sun in Nov |
| Christmas lights go up | usually 2nd week of Nov |
| Christmas ice rinks | mid-Nov to early Jan |
| Christmas markets | mid-Nov to end of Dec |
| Christmas pantomimes | last week of Nov to 1st week of Jan |
| Trafalgar Square Christmas tree | 1st week of Dec to Twelfth night |
| New Year’s Eve | 31st Dec |
Religious observances
Religious feast days and special occasions:
| 2022 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Epiphany (Christian) | 6 Jan | 6 Jan |
| Chinese New Year | 1 Feb | 22 Jan |
| Maha Shivrati (Hindu) | 28 Feb | 18 Feb |
| Shrove Tuesday (Christian) | 1 Mar | 21 Feb |
| Ash Wednesday (Christian) | 2 Mar | 22 Feb |
| Holi (Hindu) | 18 Mar | 8 Mar |
| 1st day of Ramadan (Islam) | 3 Apr | 23 Mar |
| Palm Sunday (Christian) | 10 Apr | 2 Apr |
| Maundy Thursday (Christian) | 14 Apr | 6 Apr |
| Good Friday (Christian) | 15 Apr | 7 Apr |
| 1st day of Passover (Jewish) | 16 Apr | 6 Apr |
| Easter Sunday (Christian) | 17 Apr | 9 Apr |
| Eid-Al-Fitr (Islam) | 3 May | 29 Jun |
| Ascension Day (Christian) | 26 May | 18 May |
| Pentecost (Christian) | 5 Jun | 28 May |
| Trinity Sunday (Christian) | 12 Jun | 4 Jun |
| Corpus Christi (Christian) | 16 Jun | 8 Jun |
| Eid-Al-Adha (Islam) | 10 Jul | 29 Jun |
| Muharram (Islam) | 30 Jul | 19 Jul |
| Raksha Bandhan (Hindu) | 11 Aug | 30 Aug |
| Navaratri (Hindu) | 26 Sep | 15 Oct |
| Rosh Hashanah (Jewish) | 26 Sep | 16 Sep |
| Yom Kippur (Jewish) | 5 Oct | 25 Sep |
| Sukkot (Jewish) | 10 Oct | 30 Sep |
| Diwali (Hindu) | 24 Oct | 13 Nov |
| All Saint’s Day (Christian) | 1 Nov | 1 Nov |
| 1st Sunday of Advent (Christian) | 27 Nov | 3 Dec |
| Hanukkah (Jewish) | 19 Dec | 8 Dec |
| Christmas Day (Christian) | 25 Dec | 25 Dec |