This is a comprehensive listing of official and non-official holidays and long weekends set for 2013. These dates are important to know, both for work and for programming vacation time. Note as elsewhere in the world, long weekends will bring droves of locals to hotels all around the country, with the consequential bottlenecks on highways and crowded establishments in the resort areas. It is also a good time to enjoy the cities.
Official holidays 2013 [2012]
These holidays will be celebrated on their actual days in 2013:
- Sunday, 1 January: New Year's Day
- Sunday, 6 January: Three Kings Day
- Monday, 21 January: Our Lady of Altagracia Day
- Saturday, 26 January: Duarte Day
- Wednesday, 27 February: Independence Day
- Friday, 29 March: Good Friday
- Thursday: 30 May: Day of Corpus Christi
- Friday, 16 August: Day of Restoration.
- Tuesday, 24 September: Our Lady of Mercedes Day
- Wednesday, 25 December: Christmas Day.
Rotating official holidays:
The following holidays are being celebrated on the closest Monday to the actual date:
- Monday, 29 April: Celebrates Labor Day that actually falls on Wednesday, 1 May.
- Monday, 4 November. Celebrates Constitution Day that actually falls on Wednesday, 6 November.
This makes for three non-rotating official religious holidays:
- Monday, 21 January: Our Lady of Altagracia Day
- Friday, 29 March: Good Friday
- Thursday: 30 May: Day of Corpus Cristi
- Tuesday, 24 September: Our Lady of Mercedes Day
Not a holiday, but observed by many:
- Thursday, 28 March. The Thursday before Good Friday that falls on 29 March.
- Friday, 26 April. National Secretary Day.
- Sunday, 26 May. Mother's Day. Last Sunday in May.
- Sunday, 28 July. Father's Day. Last Sunday in July.
- Tuesday, 24 December. Christmas Eve Day.
- Tuesday, 31 December. New Year's Eve.
Note that December is for Dominicans, what August is for Europeans. Do not expect too much to be done in December, unless entertainment related. Too many parties going on.
Long weekends in 2013 (with Monday's falling on a holiday):
- 18, 19, 20, 21 January. Our Lady of Altagracia Long Weekend. Dominicans may take off from Friday, 18 January, extending the holidays for a weekend dedicated to the family.
- 28, 29, 30, 31 March. Easter Long Weekend. Dominicans will take off from Thursday, 28 March as school is called off from the previous Monday.
- 26, 27, 28, 29 April. Labor Day Long Weekend. Dominicans are likely to take off from Friday.
- 30, 31 May, 1, 2 June. Corpus Christi Long Weekend.
- 16, 17, 18 August. Restoration Day Long Weekend. This marks the Restoration Day holiday that marks the end of school vacation period.
- 2, 3, 4 November. Constitution Day long weekend. Mercedes Day will be celebrated on a Monday creating the long weekend.