Public holidays in Cuba

This is a list of public holidays in Cuba.

Date English Name Local Name Notes
January 1 Liberation Day (Triumph of the Revolution) Día de la Liberación (Triunfo de la Revolución) The day of the victory of the revolution led by Fidel Castro in 1959 – after Fulgencio Batista fled the night before – which established the present government in Cuba.
January 2 Victory Day Día de la Victoria
date varies Good Friday Viernes Santo[1] Made a public holiday in 2012 at the request of Pope Benedict XVI, during his visit to Cuba in that year; confirmed as an annual holiday in 2013
May 1 International Workers' Day Día de los Trabajadores Labour Day
July 25 Day before the Commemoration of the Assault on the Moncada Garrison Conmemoración del asalto a Moncada[2] Day before the anniversary of the assault on the Moncada Barracks.
July 26 Commemoration of the Assault on the Moncada Garrison (Official name means "Day of the National Rebellion") Día de la Rebeldía Nacional[2] The date after which the revolutionary movement (M 26-7) was named. In the morning of July 26, 1953, some 160 men under the command of Fidel Castro attacked the Moncada army garrison in Santiago de Cuba, Cuba's second-largest city. Although this action failed, it is seen as the beginning of the Castro-led insurrection that expelled Fulgencio Batista. There are normally two or three days of public holidays together.
July 27 Day after the Commemoration of the Assault on the Moncada Garrison Conmemoración del asalto a Moncada[2] Day after the anniversary of the assault on the Moncada Barracks.
October 10 Independence Day Día de la Independencia This day in 1868, Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, "Father of the Homeland", gave freedom to his slaves and started the independence war against the Spanish colonial power, which led to the Ten Years' War.[3]
December 25 Christmas Day Navidad From 1969 to 1998, Christmas was a normal working day in Cuba. Official observance of Christmas was reinstated in 1998 after Pope John Paul II's visit to Cuba.
December 31 New Year's Eve Fiesta de Fin de Año New Year's Eve in Cuba is a public holiday where it is a day off for the general population, and schools and most businesses are closed.

References

  1. ^ "Recesan las actividades laborales el viernes 18 de abril". Granma (in Spanish). 15 April 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  2. ^ a b c "Fiestas y días festivos en Cuba". VisitarCuba (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 March 2015.
  3. ^ "Independence Day in Cuba in 2021". Office Holidays. Retrieved January 5, 2021.