Costa Rica Holidays and Celebrations: A Month-by-Month Guide

A public holiday can close the bank you needed, fill every beach hotel or put you in the middle of a parade you didn’t know was happening. Knowing the calendar before you book makes all three easier to plan around.

Costa Rica has 12 public holidays. Nine are mandatory paid days off: Jan. 1, Holy Thursday and Good Friday, April 11, May 1, July 25, Aug. 15, Sept. 15 and Dec. 25. On the other three, Aug. 2, Aug. 31 and Dec. 1, many businesses stay open. The biggest shutdown of the year is Semana Santa (Holy Week), and the busiest travel stretch runs from Christmas through New Year’s. On top of the official holidays, the calendar is full of regional festivals, from rodeo fiestas in January to San José’s December parades.

This guide lists every public holiday, explains what closes, and walks through the year’s main holidays and celebrations month by month.

The official list

Costa Rica Public Holidays

Holidays are normally observed on the date itself, even when they fall on a weekend. In some recent years, a few were moved to Mondays to encourage domestic travel, so check the official calendar for the year of your trip. Oct. 12 is no longer a public holiday; Dec. 1 replaced it.

Planning

What Closes on Costa Rica Holidays

• Banks and government offices close on the mandatory holidays. Get cash and do any paperwork the day before.
• Shops and supermarkets often keep shorter hours, and some close entirely on Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Dec. 25 and Jan. 1.
• Buses run reduced schedules on the big holidays, and long-distance routes sell out before Semana Santa and New Year’s.
• Tourist businesses, including hotels, restaurants and tour operators in places like La Fortuna and Manuel Antonio, generally stay open.
• Beaches and parks get crowded with local families on long weekends, Semana Santa and the Christmas break.

Month by month

Holidays and Celebrations in Costa Rica by Month

January

• New Year’s Day (Jan. 1): Public holiday; beaches stay packed through the first week.
• Fiesta de los Diablitos: The Boruca Indigenous community’s festival runs from Dec. 30 to Jan. 2, with carved masks and a mock battle between the “little devils” and a bull. See our Diablitos guide.
• Fiestas de Palmares: One of the country’s biggest fiestas, with a horse parade, concerts, bullfighting and fair rides, in the first half of January. See our Palmares guide.
• Fiestas de Santa Cruz: Guanacaste’s traditional fiestas around mid-January, with folk dancing and bull riding.

February and March

• Diablitos in Rey Curré: A second Diablitos festival in the Indigenous community of Rey Curré, in early February.
• Envision Festival: A music, yoga and arts festival near Uvita, held in late February or early March.
• Día del Boyero: The oxcart drivers’ parade in San Antonio de Escazú, on the second Sunday of March. Our oxcart guide explains the tradition.
• Semana Santa: Falls in March or April. Expect processions in many towns and the year’s biggest shutdown on Thursday and Friday.

April and May

• Juan Santamaría Day (April 11): Public holiday honoring the drummer boy who died in the 1856 Battle of Rivas. Our guide to Juan Santamaría tells the story.
• Labor Day (May 1): Public holiday, with marches in San José.

June and July

• Father’s Day: The third Sunday of June. It is not a public holiday, but restaurants are busy.
• Fiesta de la Virgen del Mar: A boat procession in Puntarenas on the Saturday closest to July 16.
• Guanacaste Day (July 25): Public holiday with rodeos, folk dancing and fiestas, especially in Liberia and Santa Cruz.

August

• La Romería (Aug. 2): In the days before Aug. 2, pilgrims walk from all over the country to the Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels in Cartago. Our Romería guide covers the route and tips.
• Mother’s Day (Aug. 15): Public holiday, also the Feast of the Assumption. Our guide to Mother’s Day in Costa Rica explains why it is such a big deal.
• Afro-Costa Rican Culture Day (Aug. 31): Optional holiday celebrated mostly in Limón. See our guide to Afro-Caribbean culture.

September

• Children’s Day (Sept. 9): Activities for kids around the country; not a public holiday.
• Independence Day (Sept. 15): The Independence Torch arrives in Cartago on the evening of Sept. 14, children parade with homemade lanterns that night, and school bands march on the 15th. See our Independence Day guide.

October and November

• Limón Carnival: A week of calypso, parades and street food in Limón around Oct. 12, the Día de las Culturas. Our Limón guide has background on the region.
• Día de los Muertos (Nov. 2): Families visit cemeteries to remember the dead; not a public holiday.

December

• Abolition of the Army Day (Dec. 1): Optional holiday.
• Fiesta de la Yeguita: Nicoya’s festival on Dec. 11–12, with a procession, music and a traditional dance. See our traditional dances guide.
• Festival de la Luz: San José’s nighttime parade of bands, held on a Saturday in mid-December.
• El Gordo Navideño: The Christmas lottery draw, on a Sunday in mid-December. See our El Gordo guide.
• Christmas (Dec. 25): Public holiday; families celebrate on Christmas Eve with tamales. See our guide to Christmas in Costa Rica.
• Fiestas de Zapote, the Tope and Carnaval: San José’s end-of-year fair starts on Christmas Day, with the horse parade traditionally on Dec. 26 and the carnival on Dec. 27. See our guides to the Fiestas de Zapote and El Tope.

Good to know

Costa Rica Holidays FAQ