Kenya · Nairobi
Kenya public holidays 2026
Kenya’s 2026 civil year is Friday-heavy: gazetted Eid al-Fitr on 20 March, Good Friday on 3 April, Labour Day on 1 May, and Christmas on 25 December already create long weekends before anyone books leave.
I keep this Kenya 2026 list for my own leave and school-term planning, then publish the same rows the printable studio uses. The year is easy to read once you notice how many named days already sit on Friday or Monday.
Eid al-Fitr is not a guess on this page: the project records Friday 20 March 2026 as gazetted (notice published 18 March 2026). Eid al-Adha is Wednesday 27 May 2026, gazetted on 25 May 2026. Later years on this site still wait for a notice.
Easter 2026 is the first long close of the second quarter: Good Friday 3 April through Easter Monday 6 April. Kenya does not treat Easter Sunday as a public holiday, so 5 April never appears as an “observed” row here.
Parents can read the Kenya 2026 school circular on its own page. Term 1 runs into early April, so the Easter pair sits inside the April holiday for basic education. That is a school fact, not a new public holiday.
I am Collins Odeny. Africa Calendar is a personal project in Kenya, not the Kenya Gazette, a payroll bureau, or the Ministry of Education. If your employer or school publishes a different observed weekday, their notice wins.
What each public holiday is
New Year's Day
Thursday 1 January 2026 is a weekday, so January already loses one working day. Banks, ministries, and most private firms close. Count it with the ordinary Saturday–Sunday weekend when you total January.
End of Ramadan (Eid al-Fitr)
Friday 20 March 2026 is Eid al-Fitr on this page, and that civil date is already gazetted (notice published 18 March 2026). Because it is a Friday, many offices are closed through Sunday without annual leave. In Kenya the day is nationwide, not only for Muslim families.
Good Friday
Good Friday 2026 is 3 April. It opens a four-day close once you add Saturday 4 April, Sunday 5 April, and Easter Monday 6 April. The Friday itself commemorates the crucifixion and is a Kenyan public holiday.
Easter Monday
Easter Monday 2026 is 6 April. Kenya does not list Easter Sunday as a public holiday, so 5 April is an ordinary Sunday on this calendar. Use 3 April and 6 April when you plan the Easter stretch.
Labour Day
Labour Day 2026 falls on Friday 1 May, so May begins with a three-day weekend. The day honours workers; government offices and most private employers close.
Feast of the Sacrifice (Eid al-Adha)
Wednesday 27 May 2026 is Eid al-Adha on this list, gazetted on 25 May 2026. A Wednesday holiday does not attach to a weekend unless you spend leave on Thursday 28 May or Tuesday 26 May.
Madaraka Day
Monday 1 June 2026 is Madaraka Day, the anniversary of internal self-government in 1963. Offices, schools, and most banks close. The preceding Saturday and Sunday already make this a three-day weekend.
Mazingira Day
Saturday 10 October 2026 is Mazingira Day, the environmental public holiday formerly listed as Moi Day, Huduma Day, or Utamaduni Day. Because it is Saturday, it coincides with the ordinary weekend and does not add a Monday on this list.
Mashujaa Day
Tuesday 20 October 2026 is Mashujaa Day (Heroes’ Day). It replaced Kenyatta Day and honours people across Kenya’s history. A Tuesday close is a single weekday lost unless you bridge to the weekend with leave.
Jamhuri Day
Saturday 12 December 2026 is Jamhuri Day — independence in 1963 and the republic in 1964. Parades are common; government offices close. The Saturday civil date does not by itself create a Monday off on this 2026 list.
Christmas Day
Friday 25 December 2026 is Christmas Day, so the December close starts with a three-day weekend before Boxing Day is even counted. Churches hold services; most offices and banks close.
Boxing Day
Saturday 26 December 2026 is Boxing Day. Together with Friday Christmas it closes most offices at year end. The Saturday itself does not subtract an extra weekday beyond the weekend rule.
Fridays, Mondays, and the 2026 leave map
Kenya’s weekend is Saturday and Sunday. Sunday public holidays generally move to the next weekday that is not already a holiday. Easter Sunday is never added as an observed row.
Named Fridays in 2026: End of Ramadan (Eid al-Fitr) (Friday, 20 March 2026); Good Friday (Friday, 3 April 2026); Labour Day (Friday, 1 May 2026); Christmas Day (Friday, 25 December 2026). Those are the dates that already give a Friday–Sunday close.
Named Mondays in 2026: Easter Monday (Monday, 6 April 2026); Madaraka Day (Monday, 1 June 2026). Madaraka Day and Easter Monday are the two Monday anchors.
Saturday civil holidays in 2026 include Mazingira Day, Jamhuri Day, and Boxing Day. They overlap the weekend and do not mint Mondays on this list.
The Kenya 2026 leave planner repeats these Friday and Monday rows. The working-days calculator subtracts only weekdays that are public holidays.
Neither the leave planner nor the working-days calculator replaces payroll. They only apply Kenya’s weekend rule to the 2026 holiday list on this site.
Print a calendar or subscribe
Print a Kenya 2026 wall calendar from the studio on this site, or subscribe to the Kenya 2026 ICS feed under /feeds/ke-2026.ics. The canvas you export stays ad-free.
The Kenya 2026 school calendar, the Kenya 2026 leave planner, and the working-days calculator all read this same holiday list. Start there if you are matching terms or counting weekdays.
Open the Kenya 2026 studio to print a wall calendar as PDF, PNG, or SVG. To subscribe, add the Kenya 2026 ICS feed. The leave planner and working-days calculator use this same holiday list.